With all the flashy powerful hardware out there, it's easy to forget technological advancements in the PC space are all about things getting smaller. We've managed to cram down what would once be a whole room of processing power into handheld portables and mini ITX wonders. Miniaturising tech is a sure sign of advancement, which is why things like this new little unit from Aoostar (pronunciation at your discretion) packing a Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 are always so exciting to see.
Videocardz spotted Aoostar's G-Flip 370 announcement, which showed off the little beast as the next in the company's lineup of mini PCs. Aoostar is known for making these boxy, palmable units that punch far above their weight specwise. Still, this one looks like a significant step up thanks to its removable memory, included flip up screen, and of course that impressive mobile Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 CPU with Radeon 890M integrated graphics.
While I'm a little dubious about some of Aoostar's claims around its high-performance video editing and 3D modelling capabilities, the specs point to a very nice little mini PC unit. Of course, it's not going to play Monster Hunter Wilds in 4K at 160 fps but I believe it could manage its boast of running League of Legends in 4k at 90 fps.
We've seen these Ryzen chips deliver significant gaming gains on portable devices, but I can't imagine many would be keen to try it on that flip up 1080p, 60 fps, five-inch screen. That puts it at a little smaller than the front screen on a Samsung Z-Flip 5 phone, or about the size of a floppy disk.
Screens aren't a common inclusion in mini PCs. Most opt to save the money, space, and power implementations for everything else going on inside their limited form factors. That being said, good visual indicators are so damned handy and we'll throw a screen on just about anything else nowadays. Even if all it did was display simple server or system status information, that's super useful.
Naturally, you're not just limited to the included screen and can absolutely go for something more impressive out of our list of the best gaming monitors. The G-Flip 370 sports a nice collection of ports including HDMI 2.1 and Oculink for visuals, or you could just remote in. It has dual 2.5 G ethernet ports and supports Wi-Fi 7. Plus there are a few USB connections on both the back and front of the box. There's even a fingerprint scanner next to the flip up screen for easy sign in.
Displays have been getting smaller and more efficient along with tech, and having one included on a mini PC like this feels really handy for basics. Plus its flip up aesthetic makes me think of the good old Game Boy SPs so I can't help but get some nostalgia gaming vibes from this little unit. Still, I'd want to put this through some testing before I gave it the stamp of approval for gaming.
The Aooster G-Flip 370 is set to launch mid-March, which is about now, but we haven't yet seen them available. We're also yet to see pricing, which could make or break the feasibility of this miniature beasties. Aooster's other mini PCs cap out at around $700 USD, so it will be interesting to see where this one sits when it finally goes on sale.
