Zotac Zone 2 Showcased with Manjaro Linux and AMOLED Display — Featuring 12-Core Zen 5 CPU and 32GB RAM

Sure thing, here’s a version of the article rewritten with a casual, human-centered touch. Let’s dive right in:

—

So I stumbled onto Zotac’s booth at Computex 2025, and they’ve got this handheld wonder—kind of caught me off guard—showing off a 7-inch AMOLED screen. It’s powered by AMD’s fancy Ryzen AI HX 370 APU from their Strix Point lineup. And, get this, instead of the usual Windows or SteamOS, they’ve decided to go for Manjaro Linux. How quirky is that? They’re calling it Zone 2 for now. Still, no clue on what they’ll finally name it or how much it’ll set you back.

Remember when Zotac launched their first Zone 1 gizmo last September? Seems like they’ve kept things on the down-low, pacing themselves slower than some of their big-league competitors. Anyway, they’d initially dropped hints at CES last January and here they are again—kind of feels like déjà vu, yeah? Their rep spilled that “Zone 2”—doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, does it?—probably isn’t the final name. We might see it pop up in stores later this year. Fingers crossed.

The brains of the device, AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, a mouthful, I know, packs quite a punch. We’re talking a 12-core setup with some Radeon 890M graphics prowess. While others stick to the tried and true Ryzen Z2 Extreme, Zotac’s going all out with this beast. Throw in up to 32GB of LPDDR5x memory and a massive 1TB SSD that you can swap out, and you’ve got a nifty little package.

Oh yeah, about the display—it’s this vivid 7-inch 1080p AMOLED touch deal with a 120Hz refresh rate. Super bright, too, like 800 nits or something. Very shiny. They decided to add a kickstand, giving it a bit of a Nintendo Switch vibe. And it’s got some sleek controls: touchpads, hall-effect joysticks, adjustable triggers, and whatnot.

It’s all running on an unchangeable version of Manjaro Linux, which is cool, featuring the KDE Plasma 6 desktop. Guess that means it’ll run games using Proton, like the Steam Deck. Not all multiplayer games though—anti-cheat issues, yadda yadda. You can swap the OS if you feel the urge.

Powering this rig is a 48.5Wh battery. Should last about as long as the Zone 1, whatever that means. And ports? Plenty of them—UHS-II microSD, 3.5mm jack, and some USB4s lined up. Wireless? Got WiFi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2. Also, a mesh back design—probably for keeping the heat off your palms. More info should trickle in pre-launch, assuming Zotac doesn’t throw any curveballs.

Anyway, that’s it. I’m keeping an eye on Tom’s Hardware for updates. Or not. Depends on the mood, really.