The Abxylute 3D One has loads going for it. It's intriguing, powerful and immersive for a handheld, fully featured, configurable and more. But it's also pretty flawed. Its key feature, the glasses-free 3D tech, doesn't really add up, the battery life is pretty bad, and the price and compromised portability have you wondering whether a much more powerful gaming laptop wouldn't be a far better idea.
It's busy and crowded out there in the world of handheld gaming PCs. If you want to stand out, what you need is some kind of unique feature. Hummm. How about the world's first glasses-free 3D handheld PC? We give you the Abxylute 3D One.
Actually, this huge handheld has quite a bit more going for it than just the glasses-free 3D stuff. For this class of device, the 10.95-inch IPS display is pretty monstrous. Then there's the modular construction with detachable controllers, kick-stand and a keyboard. Oh and it's all powered by an Intel Lunar Lake chip, in this case the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V complimented by 32 GB of memory.
The real novelty is, of course, the glasses-free 3D tech. Abxylute describes it as, "electronic parallax barrier technology, the most mature and reliable form of glasses-free 3D tech today to balance brightness, tracking, and viewing comfort." But I think it amounts to essentially the same approach as seen in various glasses-free 3D monitors.
That includes the Acer Predator SpatialLabs View 27 I reviewed last year, which uses lenticular lenses and eye-tracking cameras. The Abxylute 3D One does indeed have tracking cameras at the top of the display and the resulting visual experience is very much the same as that Acer monitor, albeit in a smaller scale. But hold that thought, there are a few other issues to attend to.
(Image credit: Future)
Actually, it's an open question as to whether you'd really want to use the glasses-free 3D tech at all. Part of the problem is performance. Abxylute has decided to go with a 2,560 by 1,600 resolution screen for the 3D One. With most handhelds, you'd have the option of running at lower, non-native resolutions where performance is marginal. But not on the Abxylute 3D One. Not if you want to use the 3D tech, anyway.
According to Abxylute, using a non-native screen resolution will, "disrupt the 3D interlacing and cause depth distortion." A simpler version is that it really doesn't work at all at non-native resolutions.
If that sounds like a problem on a handheld running an iGPU and such a high-resolution screen, actually it's even worse than you think. "The 3D One uses integrated graphics," Abxylute explains, "and 3D mode renders two 2.5K frames simultaneously, which is demanding. We recommend lowering graphics quality if needed, but do not reduce resolution. Some games may fail to display correctly in 3D if the resolution is below 2.5K."
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Image 1 of 3
LG WOLED left, this new QD-OLED on the right. A very bright LED light exaggerates the problem, but the light absorption issue hasn't been totally solved.(Image credit: Future)
(Image credit: Future)
(Image credit: Future)
All of these issues also apply to the Acer monitor I reviewed last year. Overall, my take that applies to both that screen and this handheld is that glasses-free 3D tech is superficially impressive and fun, but only on immediate acquaintance. It's likely not a feature I would use in most games given the performance limitations and even where performance isn't an issue, I'm not sure the visual experience entirely hangs together.
1 / 2
1080p gaming performance
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
19
15
OneXPlayer X1 Air
22
17
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
26
19
07.51522.530
Black Myth Wukong (1080p Medium) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
19 Avg FPS, 15 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
22 Avg FPS, 17 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
26 Avg FPS, 19 1% Low FPS
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
30
23
OneXPlayer X1 Air
35
21
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
39
30
010203040
Black Myth Wukong | Upscaling (1080p Medium) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
30 Avg FPS, 23 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
35 Avg FPS, 21 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
39 Avg FPS, 30 1% Low FPS
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
31
27
OneXPlayer X1 Air
38
24
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
41
34
015304560
Cyberpunk 2077 (1080p Medium) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
31 Avg FPS, 27 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
38 Avg FPS, 24 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
41 Avg FPS, 34 1% Low FPS
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
45
34
OneXPlayer X1 Air
55
37
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
53
44
015304560
Cyberpunk 2077 | Upscaling (1080p Medium) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
45 Avg FPS, 34 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
55 Avg FPS, 37 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
53 Avg FPS, 44 1% Low FPS
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
66
60
OneXPlayer X1 Air
87
70
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
84
76
0255075100
F1 24 (1080p Medium) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
66 Avg FPS, 60 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
87 Avg FPS, 70 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
84 Avg FPS, 76 1% Low FPS
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
81
73
OneXPlayer X1 Air
98
85
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
97
88
0255075100
F1 24 | Upscaling (1080p Medium) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
81 Avg FPS, 73 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
98 Avg FPS, 85 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
97 Avg FPS, 88 1% Low FPS
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
45
23
OneXPlayer X1 Air
48
28
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
48
15
015304560
Horizon Zero Dawn (1080p Original) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
45 Avg FPS, 23 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
48 Avg FPS, 28 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
48 Avg FPS, 15 1% Low FPS
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
50
9
OneXPlayer X1 Air
57
36
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
70
18
020406080
Horizon Zero Dawn | Upscaling (1080p Original) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
50 Avg FPS, 9 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
57 Avg FPS, 36 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
70 Avg FPS, 18 1% Low FPS
Avg FPS
1% Low FPS
ABXYlute 3D One
29
20
OneXPlayer X1 Air
23
12
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
27
15
07.51522.530
Metro Exodus Enhanced (1080p High) Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
29 Avg FPS, 20 1% Low FPS
OneXPlayer X1 Air
23 Avg FPS, 12 1% Low FPS
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
27 Avg FPS, 15 1% Low FPS
System performance
Max CPU temp (°C)
Max CPU package power (W)
ABXYlute 3D One
82
30
OneXPlayer X1 Air
96
37
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
96
55
0255075100
Thermal performance Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
82 Max CPU temp (°C), 30 Max CPU package power (W)
OneXPlayer X1 Air
96 Max CPU temp (°C), 37 Max CPU package power (W)
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
96 Max CPU temp (°C), 55 Max CPU package power (W)
Single-core index score
Multi-core index score
ABXYlute 3D One
551
116
OneXPlayer X1 Air
119
568
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
111
762
0200400600800
Cinebench R24 Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
551 Single-core index score, 116 Multi-core index score
OneXPlayer X1 Air
119 Single-core index score, 568 Multi-core index score
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
111 Single-core index score, 762 Multi-core index score
Index score
GPU index score
CPU index score
ABXYlute 3D One
4342
4087
6731
OneXPlayer X1 Air
4457
4139
7911
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
4033
3663
9462
02,5005,0007,50010,000
3DMark Time Spy Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
4342 Index score, 4087 GPU index score, 6731 CPU index score
OneXPlayer X1 Air
4457 Index score, 4139 GPU index score, 7911 CPU index score
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
4033 Index score, 3663 GPU index score, 9462 CPU index score
Index score
Avg bandwidth (MB/s)
Access time (ųs)
ABXYlute 3D One
1625
274.83
109
OneXPlayer X1 Air
2737
464.7
65
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
1163
199.98
155
07501,5002,2503,000
3DMark Storage Data
Product
Value
ABXYlute 3D One
1625 Index score, 274.83 Avg bandwidth (MB/s), 109 Access time (ųs)
OneXPlayer X1 Air
2737 Index score, 464.7 Avg bandwidth (MB/s), 65 Access time (ųs)
Asus ROG Xbox Ally X
1163 Index score, 199.98 Avg bandwidth (MB/s), 155 Access time (ųs)
It's debatable how much more portable this device is than a gaming laptop.
Of course, you could treat the whole glasses-free 3D thing as a mere extra and assess the Abxylute 3D One more broadly as a gaming handheld. How does it hold up by that more conventional metric? The two most obvious things are that it's both very expensive and very large. The size of the screen certainly has some advantages in terms of gaming immersion. But it does rather knobble the portability aspect compared with much smaller handhelds.
The Abxylute 3D One is bundled with a protective carry case, for instance. But it measures over 15 inches or about 40 cm across. It's debatable, then, how much more portable this device is than a gaming laptop. And even in today's distorted market, you can get an RTX 5070 Ti laptop for the same amount as the Abxylute 3D One's current $1,599 list price. And that is an incomparably more powerful gaming device.
The Abxylute 3D One has loads going for it. It's intriguing, powerful and immersive for a handheld, fully featured, configurable and more. But it's also pretty flawed. Its key feature, the glasses-free 3D tech, doesn't really add up, the battery life is pretty bad, and the price and compromised portability have you wondering whether a much more powerful gaming laptop wouldn't be a far better idea.
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