The OrangePi Neo gaming handheld with Manjaro Linux is now "on ice" due to component prices

By Liam Dawe - 27 Feb 2026 at 3:34 pm UTC

The latest update for the OrangePi Neo handheld with Manjaro Linux is not a positive one, with the whole thing now unfortunately "on ice". In other words, the planned release has been paused.

Why? You can thank the AI surge once again. Because of course you can - it's affecting every consumer device thanks to shortages and high prices with data centres buying up lots of production.

Manjaro Linux Project Lead Philip Müller updated the rather long post on the official forum with a status update for 2026, which simply says:

Due to high prices of DDR5 RAM and SSDs the project is currently on ice. Certifications for CE and FCC are now complete. Also a lot of improvements around the Manjaro Gaming Edition had happened. We are now waiting for a good time to launch the product …

Considering it was going to be releasing with either the AMD 7840u or the 8840u, if they do still manage to get it out - would it even be worth it at this point? They've already been through a few delays before as it was due out in Q1 2025, then it was pushed to Q3 2025, then they were hoping for H1 2026 and now it's on ice.

Unless the AI hype bubble bursts, we'll see delays and cancellations from other vendors too. Just look at how difficult it is for Valve with the Steam Deck OLED repeatedly out of stock.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.

Tags: Handheld Gaming, Hardware, Manjaro, Misc

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About the author - Liam Dawe

I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly checked on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly.
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6 comments

syylk 2 hours ago

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If it'd burst yesterday, it'd be still too late.

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ToddL 2 hours ago

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I can't wait for the day that the AI bubble bursts so that everyone can go back to enjoying new hardware again without worrying about components. Also, for those that build PCs, it'd be nice to go back to the days where RAM, SSD and other components were affordable instead of the high price markups that we see today.

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Lofty 1 hour ago

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To be fair it felt unlikely that this thing was ever going to ship on time and if it did the hardware would have already been not in step with some of the larger handheld brands. The specs felt old just as they were announcing it.

Not to mention ARM gaming is coming on at an insane rate and the chipset's are more suited to mobile gaming. Im not sure how fast a Snapdragon Elite is in comparison to an X86 APU of comparable cost but given the huge never ending global demand for phones/tablets we see these chipsets getting upgraded & refreshed faster, like real upgrades not like AMD who change the naming convention and keep the last GPU inside a slightly updated CPU.

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nebadon2025 1 hour ago

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They really missed the boat.. even if this comes out I can't imagine anyone really wanting it now, and even if it came out a year ago its questionable if this device was going to see any level of success.

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matiaslavik 1 hour ago

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It's true what they say: AI is really transforming the game industry!

... In a year or two, we'll only be playing software rendered pseudo-3D games, because nobody can afford modern hardware.

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Jarmer about a minute ago

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retro inspired pixel games for life! I'm 100% okay with that.

but also: (insert my obligatory i-hate-ai-its-ruining-everything)

but also also: this device always seemed cursed from the get-go to me. Along with a few other indie handhelds. For this one specifically: why are you all trying to reinvent the wheel from scratch with a tiny team of people (majaro gaming edition?) when you could just parter with steam and license their steamos and let their virtually infinite resources and people do all the software work for you?

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