Ayaneo Revives the PlayStation Smartphone with Pocket Play

Adrian Mühlroth

December 12, 2025, 3:10 pm | Read time: 2 minutes

The manufacturer Ayaneo, previously known for Android and Windows handhelds, has unveiled its first smartphone. The Pocket Play has a party trick reminiscent of the first PlayStation smartphone, the Xperia Play. Beneath the display is a sliding mechanism that reveals a full gamepad, making an extra controller unnecessary.

Construction with Sliding Mechanism

In July 2025, Ayaneo vaguely announced its first smartphone. Until now, the manufacturer was primarily known for its wide range of handheld consoles. Now, the name and design of the smartphone are known, which aims to “bring the handheld spirit into the mobile world.” The Pocket Play is not only an obvious nod to the Xperia Play in name–the first smartphone with PlayStation roots that Sony Ericsson launched 15 years ago.

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The Pocket Play features an upward-sliding display that reveals the integrated gamepad. As with the Xperia Play, the screen cannot be tilted, which may make operation somewhat unergonomic for many.

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Ayaneo Relies on Familiar Gamepad Layout in Pocket Play

Beneath the display is a complete control layout. In addition to a directional pad and the usual action buttons, Ayaneo integrates two touch-sensitive areas. These can be used as a virtual directional pad or as a trackpad.

The Ayaneo Pocket Play adopts the gamepad concept from the Xperia Play–including touch areas instead of joysticks.

Similar touch areas were used as joystick replacements in the Xperia Play. More recently, Valve has also used trackpads in the Steam Deck. Ayaneo itself has experience with touch inputs, as demonstrated by its Game Boy clone Pocket DMG.

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The controls are complemented by additional function buttons, including Start, Select, and a dedicated Ayaneo button. Individual buttons, such as a prominent red button, have not yet been detailed in terms of functionality.

Initial Technical Insights and Open Questions

It remains unclear whether Ayaneo intends to offer the device worldwide, and a release timeline is also missing. The Kickstarter page already lists more than 1,000 interested parties but provides no new information on features or availability. Until concrete details emerge, the Pocket Play remains a concept likely to appeal to nostalgic gamers.

This article is a machine translation of the original German version of TECHBOOK and has been reviewed for accuracy and quality by a native speaker. For feedback, please contact us at info@techbook.de.