Clearly in line with the 2023 gaming laptop trend, Razer’s latest blade features a taller 16:10 display, which also increases the diagonal dimension of the display by an inch.
Razer is using “Nvidia’s GeForce next-generation laptop GPUs” alongside Intel’s new 13th Gen Core i9 HX CPUs with 24 cores and clock speeds of up to 5.6 GHz to deliver “up to It advertises a 35% higher graphics power metric.
All configurations of the 16-inch model will use the Intel Core i9-13950HX, but the GPU will range from RTX 4060 to RTX 4090. The laptop starts with 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage, packing 64 GB in the most expensive configurations. memory and 2TB SSD.
The display is also focused on the Blade 16, offering what Razer calls the world’s first dual-mode Mini-LED display. This will give you a resolution of 4K+ (probably 3840×2400, given the aspect ratio) at 120 Hz for “creative” applications, while in “gamer” mode the screen will be reduced to “native” FHD+ (1920×1200) resolution at 240 Hz. switch. Mini-LED backlighting gives 1,000 nits of peak brightness and 100% of his DCI-P3 color gamut.
The Blade 16 is also slightly larger than the previous 15, with Razer touting a less than 1cm increase in front-to-rear dimensions to accommodate taller displays. The laptop has a new battery from the Blade 15 with a max of 80 Wh to 95.2 Wh and includes his 330W GaN charger.
Razer offers the Blade 16 in various configurations starting at $2,699. That’s $200 more than the current starting price for the current last-generation Blade 15 configuration.
If you’re looking to trade portability for more graphics power and screen size, the Blade 18, which starts at $2,899 according to Razer, may be faster. Of course, it also features Nvidia’s latest generation of laptop graphics, from the RTX 4060 to the RTX 4090, and according to Razer, the Blade has the highest TGP (maximum power envelope) of all GPU options, and Intel’s 13th. provides a maximum TDP of Gen Core i9-13950HX CPU. This should give you the best gaming performance you can get on your laptop, at least without overclocking.
In order to achieve this level of performance (if desktop models weren’t a problem, top-end 40-series graphics chips would likely be under a considerable heat load), Razer actually increased the size of the chassis a bit. 0.86 for Blade 18. Thickness in inches (up from 0.78 for Blade 17).
The Blade 18’s 18-inch screen is a QHD+ (2560×1600) resolution 240 Hz panel, with no mention of a 4K+ option. In fact, Razer says the panel will come with all Blade 18 models, regardless of configuration. Some may be disappointed, but that may be due to the move to 18-inch 16:10 panels. While this is still fairly new, it seems to be a trend that is quickly becoming commonplace in the gaming laptop space. Expect more screen options next year, with Razer highlighting the Blade strongly.
18 as a desktop alternative. As such, the company says the laptop will be upgradeable, but didn’t elaborate on its range. It starts with the SSD, but with the second slot open. Filling both SSD slots yourself gives this laptop 8 TB of storage.
Both the Blade 16 and Blade 18 are expected to be released in “Q1 2023.”
