Nano Banana 2 Hands-on: Now Live on APIYI with Stunning 4K+ Chinese Rendering, but Speed Requires Patience

Author's Note: gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview is now live on the APIYI platform. Real-world test: Pro performance at Flash prices, supports 4K and 14 aspect ratios, perfect Chinese rendering. Current speed is around 100s, pending optimization.

gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview is officially live on the APIYI platform. We've conducted immediate testing, and the verdict is: Pro performance, Flash pricing—but we need to give Google some time to sort out the compute capacity issues.

Our tests revealed three key facts: it supports 4K resolution output; Chinese rendering capability has significantly improved (perfect generation for "Ode to the Red Cliffs" fragments); and the current generation speed is about 100 seconds, clearly limited by Google's compute supply. This speed issue is temporary, but the improvements in image quality and capabilities are very real.

Core Value: Using real-world model invocation data from the APIYI platform to help you understand the current state of Nano Banana 2—what's already delivered and what still needs time.

Nano Banana 2 Core Test Data

The Real Reason Behind Nano Banana 2's Speed Issues

In our tests, the generation speed for gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview was around 100 seconds. While this seems slow, it's not an issue with the model itself, but rather a bottleneck in Google's compute supply.

Based on public info, Google's Gemini infrastructure has been facing continuous compute pressure in February 2026:

• Feb 17-19: Widespread latency for Gemini 3 Pro and Flash models.
• Feb 19: A major incident occurred, with API invocation failure rates hitting 45%.
• Gemini 3.1 Pro Preview also recorded single requests taking up to 104 seconds.
• Google has officially acknowledged that "demand far exceeds initial compute allocation" and is accelerating expansion.

As a newly launched Preview model, Nano Banana 2 has limited compute resources. Combined with the surge of early adopters, a 100-second delay is expected. Once Google completes its expansion, the speed advantages of the Flash architecture will shine—theoretically, standard resolution generation could take just a few seconds.

🎯 Usage Advice: For now, we recommend using Nano Banana 2 for scenarios where you need high image quality but aren't sensitive to speed. If you need instant responses, you might want to stick with Nano Banana Pro or the original Nano Banana for a bit. Through APIYI (apiyi.com), you can flexibly switch between models without changing your code.

Nano Banana 2 Chinese Rendering Test: Stunning Performance with "Ode to the Red Cliffs"

A Milestone in Chinese Image Generation

This was the most surprising discovery of our entire test. We used Nano Banana 2 to generate an image containing snippets from the classical masterpiece "Ode to the Red Cliffs" alongside its corresponding scene. The text was crisp, the layout was elegant, and the scenery blended perfectly with the poetic atmosphere. The result was, quite simply, flawless.

This level of quality was almost impossible to achieve with previous AI image generation models. Past issues included:

• Original Nano Banana: Chinese characters were severely distorted and basically unusable.
• Nano Banana Pro: Improved rendering, but still flawed with occasional broken strokes or "hallucinated" characters.
• Competitors (DALL-E, Midjourney): Chinese support remains generally weak; complex characters often turn into illegible scribbles.

Nano Banana 2's Chinese rendering prowess stems from several technical breakthroughs:

Example Prompts for Chinese Scene Generation in Nano Banana 2

Here are some prompt strategies that performed exceptionally well in our tests:

• Classical Poetry Scene: "A scene from 'Ode to the Red Cliffs' depicting 'a clear breeze blows gently, the water is unruffled,' a moonlit river at night, a single small boat, with calligraphic text integrated into the frame."
• Chinese Poster: "E-commerce promotional poster, large headline reading 'New Year Special,' red theme, featuring traditional Chinese elements."
• Data Visualization: "A bar chart comparing AI model performance with Chinese labels and specific numerical values."

🎯 Creative Tip: Nano Banana 2's Chinese rendering has reached commercial-grade quality. If your business involves generating Chinese content (posters, product images, social media graphics), we highly recommend testing the Chinese generation capabilities of gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview via APIYI (apiyi.com) as soon as possible.

Nano Banana 2 vs. Nano Banana Pro: Impact Analysis

Why gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview is challenging gemini-3-pro-image-preview

According to the official model card, gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview is positioned as providing "Pro-level visual intelligence with Flash-speed efficiency"—even Google is calling this Pro-level quality. When a model that's 50% cheaper claims to offer the same image quality as the high-end version, a major impact is inevitable.

Who still needs Nano Banana Pro?

According to Google, the relationship between Nano Banana Pro and Nano Banana 2 is complementary—"Pro is the professional camera, Flash is the smartphone." However, in reality, Nano Banana 2 has already surpassed Pro in several key metrics:

Scenarios to stick with Pro:

• Extreme high-fidelity requirements (e.g., ultra-fine details for print-grade 4K posters).
• Professional use cases with absolute zero tolerance for quality variations.
• Special cases where higher speed is required once capacity issues are resolved.

Scenarios to switch to Nano Banana 2:

• Batch image generation (costs are cut by 50%).
• Projects requiring Chinese or multi-language text rendering.
• Content that benefits from Google Search knowledge integration.
• Specific composition needs using the new aspect ratios (1:4, 4:1, 1:8, 8:1).
• Price-sensitive small-to-medium developers and startup teams.

🎯 Migration Tip: For most developers, we recommend migrating your main model invocations once Nano Banana 2's capacity stabilizes. By using the APIYI (apiyi.com) platform, you can maintain access to both models simultaneously, allowing you to flexibly choose the best solution during the transition.

Detailed Breakdown of Nano Banana 2's New Capabilities

Exclusive Features of gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview

Beyond the advantages in pricing and image quality, Nano Banana 2 introduces several exclusive capabilities that aren't available in Nano Banana Pro:

Nano Banana 2 API Invocation Code

import openai

client = openai.OpenAI(
    api_key="YOUR_API_KEY",
    base_url="https://vip.apiyi.com/v1"
)

# gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview invocation
response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Atmosphere of 'Ode to the Red Cliffs': A gentle breeze stirs the water, a single boat on a moonlit river, Chinese ink wash painting style"}]
)

import openai

client = openai.OpenAI(
    api_key="YOUR_API_KEY",
    base_url="https://vip.apiyi.com/v1"
)

# Full example: 4K resolution + Chinese text rendering
response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview",
    messages=[
        {
            "role": "user",
            "content": "Generate a 4K HD Chinese-style poster, title 'Reminiscence at Red Cliff', subtitle 'The Great River flows east, its waves scouring away...', deep blue night sky background, moonlight reflection on the river, classical calligraphy font"
        }
    ],
    max_tokens=4096
)

if response.choices[0].message.content:
    print("Image generated successfully")
    print(f"Model: gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview")
    print(f"Cost: $0.0672/image")

Pro Tip: APIYI (apiyi.com) has already launched gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview, supporting OpenAI-compatible format calls. You can use a single API key to call both Nano Banana 2 and Nano Banana Pro, making it easy to switch flexibly until speeds recover.

FAQ

Summary

Key takeaways from testing gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview (Nano Banana 2) on the APIYI platform:

1. Pro Performance at Flash Prices: $0.0672 per image (half the price of Pro), with text tokens 75% cheaper. Google officially labels it as having Pro-level image quality.
2. Perfect 4K + Chinese Rendering: Supports up to 4096×4096 resolution. Chinese text rendering has reached commercial standards—our "Ode to the Red Cliffs" test was flawless.
3. Speed Recovery Pending: Currently clocking in at about 100 seconds per image due to Google's computing power constraints. This is a temporary issue; the Flash architecture's theoretical speed is in the seconds range.

The impact on gemini-3-pro-image-preview is real: it outperforms or matches Pro in 6 metrics and offers 2 unique advantages, with speed being the only temporary drawback. Once computing power stabilizes, Nano Banana Pro's core user base will likely shrink significantly.

APIYI (apiyi.com) has launched gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview, supporting OpenAI-compatible formats and offering free test credits. We recommend starting your tests now to prepare for a full migration once computing capacity recovers.

📚 References

1. Google AI Studio: gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview Model Card and Online Invocation

   • Link: aistudio.google.com
   • Description: Official API invocation portal; view model card details here.

2. Gemini API Image Generation Documentation: Official developer docs (NB2 info pending update)

   • Link: ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/image-generation
   • Description: Currently contains Nano Banana Pro info; NB2 documentation will be added soon.

3. Google Official Blog: Nano Banana 2: Google's official introduction to Nano Banana 2

   • Link: blog.google/innovation-and-ai/technology/ai/nano-banana-2/
   • Description: Official capability overview and positioning.

4. Google AI Developers Forum: Discussions on Gemini infrastructure performance and capacity

   • Link: discuss.ai.google.dev
   • Description: Developer feedback on latency issues and official responses from Google.

Author: APIYI Technical Team
Tech Talk: Feel free to share your Nano Banana 2 testing experience in the comments. For more AI model resources, visit the APIYI documentation center at docs.apiyi.com.