The Razer Blade 16 and 18 gaming laptops offer massive power – and a hefty price
Razer is back in the game of gaming laptops with the Blade 16 and Blade 18, both of which have some serious strength behind them.
Both machines will be “equipped with the latest 13th Gen Intel Core i9 HX chipset” and Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 40 Series GPU capable of up to 175W TGP (Total Graphics Power). 175W refers to the amount of power sent directly to the GPU for high performance, but not energy efficiency as it drains the battery pretty quickly.
Judging by the description, there will be several models of Blade laptops corresponding to a particular video card. The full list is not known. But we know that one of them will house the mighty RTX4090. Impressive is the hardware, but what really convinces us is this differences between them (opens in a new tab). Arguably the Blade 16 is the less powerful of the two, but still packs some impressive features.
Impressive differences
Razer claims that Razer Blade 16 (opens in a new tab) it has “the world’s first dual mini-LED display”, which means it has two native resolutions: Ultra HD Plus (3840 x 2160 pixels) at 120Hz, also known as Creator Mode, and Full HD Plus (1920 x 1080 pixels) at 240Hz, called gamer mode.
As the names suggest, each resolution is better suited for a particular task. Creator Mode allows content creators to work in 4K resolution for optimal quality. Game mode, on the other hand, lowers the resolution in exchange for smoother gameplay. The “Plus” aspect refers to the accompanying features that further enhance the display quality, such as HDR 1000 support and 100% DCI-P3 color gamut for excellent visuals.
The Razer Blade 18 takes a different approach as it aims to be a desktop replacement. Instead of two native resolutions, it sticks to a Quad HD Plus display (2560 x 1440 pixels) at 240Hz, which Razer says is the “perfect” medium for both work and play. And although HDR 1000 is missing, the device still supports the entire DCI-P3 range.
Other notable features on Blade 18 (opens in a new tab) that solidify its “desktop replacement” status include “5MP camera, THX 6-speaker surround sound system, expandable components, versatile port selection, and ultra-efficient vapor chamber cooling.” The Blade 16 has similar characteristics, but to a lesser extent. For example, instead of a set of 6 speakers, it has four. The Blade 18 has three fans for the cooling system while the 16 has two and so on.
Availability
Speaking of the Razer Blade 16, there is one minor point that needs to be mentioned. According Engadget report (opens in a new tab), switching between creator mode and player mode is pretty “clunky”. Users will have to completely shut down the laptop and restart it to change the resolution; you can’t just go to the menu.
Clumsiness aside, if you’re interested in any of these, be prepared to cough up cash. The Razer Blade 16 and 18 cost $2699.99 and $2899.99 respectively. Both will be launched in the first quarter of 2023, so they should be available for sale in the next few months.
If you’re looking for something more affordable, check out TechRadar’s guide on best cheap gaming laptops for January 2023 we have a little under $700.
