ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review – 3-in-1 handheld gaming PC, mini laptop and tablet

We recently got both the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini and AMD handheld gaming PCs in for review. If you haven’t already read our ONEXPLAYER X1 AMD review check it out for more in-depth coverage. This one is a ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review with some comparisons to the AMD model.

ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini Review Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7lHJNVqirU

ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini 8840U Overview

We start the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review with a closer look at the portable gaming PC. The ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini measures around 8.2 x 5.07 x 0.78 inches (21.0 x 12.9 x 2.0 cm) and weighs 737g (1.62 lbs) without the controllers attached. With controllers it measures around 12.4 inches (31.5 cm) and weighs 859g (1.89 lbs).

The display is an 8.8” 144Hz LTPS touch screen with a 2560×1600 resolution. Compared to its big brother, which has a larger 10.95” display and lower 120Hz refresh rate there’s some differences here.

As a note, if your screen resolution options have disappeared after updating the graphics drivers, please see our very quick and easy fix for this on our Knowledge Base post.

There is a 1MP camera at the top which supports Windows Hello for facial unlocking. 

On the left and right sides are covered slots for attaching the controllers to.

Along the top we have a power button with integrated fingerprint scanner, volume buttons and a button for bringing up the ONEXPLAYER control centre overlay. Next there is a USB 4 port, followed by a USB-A 3.2 port and 3.5mm headphone port.

On the bottom there is one USB-C 4 port, a covered OCuLink port, and a micro SD card slot.

The back features a built-in adjustable kickstand.

ONEXPLAYER Controllers Overview

Next we will spend some time with the controllers as part of the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review. These are available separately and come in a pair of left and right sides of controls that attach to the sides of both the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini and AMD mobile gaming PCs. It has your standard gaming controls including hall effect analogues. It also comes with a detachable D-Pad top to suit your preference.

The controllers simply slide and lock into place on the sides of the X1 Mini. There is a small button on the back to unlock and slide them back off. The connection feels strong and there is very little movement between the controller and device.

Also available to buy is the controller connector. This acts like a base for your controllers and again slides and locks into place. It has a 1200mAh rechargeable battery inside. It connects via a USB dongle which is located inside the connector. You can connect this to any Windows device if you want to. We did notice a bit of movement between the two controllers and the connector.

ONEXPLAYER Keyboard

Next in our ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review we have the attachable keyboard. It very easily connects via pogo pins and magnets to keep it in place. The connection is strong enough to not disconnect when the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini is lifted but do not try lifting with the keyboard 🙂

The keys are a good size and height profile for the size of the keyboard, a little smaller than what you would find on a laptop keyboard. I wrote this review using the keyboard and it was an overall OK experience but the larger X1 AMD keyboard was definitely more comfortable.

One annoyance is there is no magnet at the top of the X1 Mini to help keep the keyboard closed. The X1 AMD has one, it looks far nicer and remains closed as a result.

ONEXPLAYER Carry Case

And last but not least is the carry case for the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini. It has a strong finish on the outside and a softer material on the inside. It is large enough to fit the X1 Mini and keyboard attachment. Definitely worth using to help protect against knocks and scrapes while not in use.

ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini Technical Specifications

As part of our ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review we take a look at and compare the technical specifications with the AMD.

ONEXPLAYER X1 AMD & X1 Mini Compared

	ONEXPLAYER X1 AMD	ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini
DISPLAY	10.95″ LTPS, 2560×1600, 120Hz, 16:10,sRGB: 133%, 540 nits, 10 point touch support	8.8″ LTPS, 2560×1600, 144Hz, 16:10, sRGB: 133%, 500 nits, 10 point touch support
DIMENSIONS	9.9 x 6.4 x 0.5  inches (25.2 x 16.3 x 1.3 cm)	8.2 x 5.07 x 0.78 inches (21.0 x 12.9 x 2.0 cm)
WEIGHT	969g (1.73 lbs)	710g (1.56 lbs)

ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini Technical Specifications

CPU	AMD Ryzen 7 8840U, 8 Cores / 16 Threads, Up to 5.10GHz at 28W TDP
GPU	AMD Radeon 780M, 12 cores up to 2,700MHz
RAM	Up to 64GB LPDDR5X Dual channel 7500Mhz
STORAGE	Up to 2TB M.2 2230 NVME PCIe Gen 4.0 SSD
COMMUNICATIONS	Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2
CAMERA	1MP Front Facing AI Camera (Windows Hello supported)
I/O	2x USB-C 4.0 1x USB A 3.2 1x 3.5mm audio port 1x OCuLink port 1x Micro SD reader
BATTERY	65.02Wh 16,890mAh rechargeable battery
OPERATING SYSTEM	Windows 11 Home

Powering it all is a 65.02Wh 16,890mAh rechargeable battery. We ran Cinebench on a loop and got a battery life of exactly 2 hours, 3 minutes longer than the ONEXPLAYER X1 AMD model. Average usage will vary, but expected around 6-8 hours.

While running Cinebench we also tested the fan noise and temperature. We got a highest fan noise of 60dB and highest temperature of 62 °C. Both slightly lower than the AMD model by 2dB and 2 degrees respectively.

System Benchmarks

We will now run some system benchmarks to see how it performs with its X1 AMD counterpart as well as some other 8840U based portable gaming computers.

PCMark

We start off with some fairly low benchmark scores for the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini, to be fair the X1 model did also score low. They are both lower scores than the GPD models, maybe slightly slower RAM or SSD speeds are holding it back a little but it’s not a good start.

Cinebench R23

For Cinebench, which tests the single and multi-core performance of the CPU, we see around the same scores for single core. The ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini does take the lead in first place for multi-core performance, with the X1 AMD very close behind. A great result here!

3DMark

For 3DMark we are running the Time Spy, Night Raid and Fire Strike benchmarks. We see essentially the same scores for Time Spy, slightly above in Night Raid and a noticeably lower gap when compared to the X1 AMD model. Overall though, the scores are generally in the higher, if not the highest range which is great to see.

Gaming Benchmarks

And as it is a handheld gaming computer we also benchmark a variety of games across different TDP settings to gauge its performance as part of our ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review.

Forza Horizon 5

On Forza Horizon 5 at 1080P we  see excellent scores at 98 frames per second.

And at 720P across the TDP range we again see high frames per second. Swapping first and second place with the X1 AMD. Very impressive!

Shadow of the Tomb Raider

For Shadow of the Tomb Raider we see the X1 Mini take second place behind the X1 AMD at 1080P.

On 720P we generally see great scores across the TDP range, either the same or slightly lower than the X1 AMD but beating the others.

Street FIghter VI

For Street Fighter VI we push the handhelds to their limits by running on the highest graphics settings. At 1080P we overall see very good frames per second for the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini.

And at 720P the frame rates remain amongst the highest scoring.

Call of Duty Modern Warfare III

And our last benchmark is Call of Duty Modern Warfare III. We see just a two frame difference to first place, well within margin of error.

And at 720P, we see essentially identical scores to the X1 AMD. This is a GPU biassed game and the 780M GPU basically performs the same.

ONEXGPU Benchmarks

We are able to take advantage of an eGPU such as the ONEXPLAYER ONEXGPU eGPU docking station or GPD G1. This will give us a massive boost in performance not only for gaming but also tasks such as image and video editing and encoding.

We connected the ONEXGPU via OCuLink for the best performance and ran the following games at 2560×1600 resolution. On Forza Horizon 5 we got 130 Frames Per Second. On Shadow of the Tomb Raider we got 131 FPS and on Call Of Duty Modern Warfare II we got 92 FPS.

That’s a large increase in performance especially considering the higher 1600P screen resolution!

Gaming Performance

Next in our ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review we will take a look at some games with the best resolution and graphics settings that are actually playable. Along with some other settings if you want higher frames per second.

Forza Horizon 5

2560×1600 Low graphics for above 60 FPS, or High locked to 48 FPS. Lower the resolution for higher frames per second and/or graphics quality.

Crash Bandicoot N’sane Trilogy

2560×1600 Ultra graphics quality at around 15W TDP should run great.

Dungeons of Hinterburg

You can enjoy this dungeon exploring/puzzle game at 2560×1600 resolution on the Highest Quality graphics at around 20W TDP

Neon White

You can run this speed run style game at 2560×1600 resolution on the highest graphics settings. You can lock the frame rate to 144Hz and enjoy silky smooth frame rates.

Emulation Performance

PS3

The majority of compatible PlayStation 3 games will run great. You may experience some occasional frame drops during busy scenes but nothing game breaking.

Vita

Depending on the compatibility and the game you should have no issues. We can run Street Fighter X Tekken at 2x resolution with occasional FPS drops.

Xbox 360

There are many playable games, especially third party games. For first party games you will see a drop in performance.

Ryujinx

Lower demanding compatible games are very playable. As you go to higher demanding games you will see a drop in performance.

ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini Review Final Thoughts

Time to sum up our final thoughts of our ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review. Like the X1 AMD compact gaming PC, the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini fits in an interesting niche of 3-in-1 tablets, laptop and gaming handhelds. You can start the day browsing with a tablet, write a word document with the keyboard attached and then later attach the controllers or use the connector and enjoy some gaming either as a handheld or the device resting on a desk. 

With this you get a bit more choice on how you want to use the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini. However I find the lack of magnet to hold the keyboard closed a bit of an annoyance and ugly when it’s folded up on a desk.

One thing we could not complain about was the performance. We saw some great benchmark results from the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini. This is partly due to the newer AMD graphics drivers actually working well when compared to their older drivers. Also do keep in mind it has OCuLink support, the performance increase is great and we definitely have no complaints here. 

The ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini is perhaps suited for someone that desires a handheld gaming computer that is less orientated for office style work due to the smaller display and keyboard. It can of course still do it, but it’s more preferable on the larger X1 AMD model. This one is more for your tablet use and definitely for handheld gaming which it excels at.

You can learn more about and order the ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini and AMD models at their respective links below.

That wraps up our ONEXPLAYER X1 Mini review, we hope you have found it useful. If you have any questions please feel free to ask in the comments.