Cheaper, faster, and more storage
This afternoon, at a panel at Penny Arcade Expo 2012, Razer announced their newest product, the Razer Blade. You may remember a similar announcement from around this same time last year, but this is a redesigned device that answers many of the concerns gamers had for the original.
I got a closer look at the new Blade today in a behind-closed-doors meeting. It has the same sexy, thin (0.88 inches thin, less than 7 lbs) shape and size, and the lovely 17″ 1920 x 1080 display is the same, but the innards have seen significant upgrades. The CPU is so new that they can’t fully reveal its identity yet, but know it’s a 3rd generation Intel i7 quad-core chip from a future platform. For storage, a new hybrid system uses both a 64GB SSD and a 500GB traditional hard drive. Finally, three USB 3.0 ports with Razer’s distinctive green coloring line one ridge of the system.
The new Blade keeps the slick Switchblade UI, with its multitouch panel and 10 assignable buttons. The heat system has been overhauled to make a cooler, quieter system. Razer showed us its larger heat vents on its bottom side, and they connect to larger heatpipes.
This thing is a beast. Razer tells us that Battlefield 3 runs 45 percent faster than it did on the previous model. They’re also getting twice the performance in Diablo III.
It’s nice to see a lower price of entry for this new Blade: $2,499.99. That’s a few hundred cheaper than last year’s model for something much more powerful. Last year’s model will still be available, but at a new price of $2,299.
The new Razer Blade begins shipping this September, with preorders starting on the 2nd. See the full specs below.
- future platform 3rd Gen core i7 Intel quad core
- NVIDIA GeForece GTX 660M, 2GB dedicated GDDR5 video memory
- 8GB 1600 MHz DDR3 Memory
- 17.3 inch LED backlit display at 1920 x 1080
- HD Webcam
- integrated 60WH battery
- 500 GB 7200 RPM HD and 64 GB SATA IIII SSD HD
- Wireless 802.11 A/G/N and Bluetooth 4.0
Dimensions: 16.81 x 10.9 x 0.88
6.6 lbs
