Gaming laptop Razer Blade 14: review, specifications, prices, reviews

The first laptop Razer Blade 14 was released by the manufacturer back in 2013. At that time, the novelty was equipped with the latest technology, if you do not take into account the rather weak graphics card. She could not gain much popularity, and the main reason for this was the very high price, which almost reached the figure of $ 3,000. Since then, the manufacturers of the Razer Blade 14 have been constantly improving the laptop and working on bugs, and they really were. And this year, the next updated version was introduced, which is designed to create competition in the gaming laptop market in 2017.

Let us consider in more detail what came of this.

Description

Before you begin a full review of the Razer Blade 14, it’s worthwhile to briefly talk about the new product, that is, make a short description. The 2017 Razer Blade replaces last year’s model. Basically, the changes affected the hardware and, of course, the price.

The rest is the same productive and powerful gaming laptop that was created to compete with such giants as Alienware, Gigabyte, Asus, Msi or all those involved in the production of powerful gaming laptops.

Razer's proprietary technologies like Chroma, Cortex or Synapse haven't gone anywhere. If anyone does not know, then Chroma is Razer's branded device lighting. Cortex - a set of utilities designed to free up PC resources in order to ensure maximum performance during the game and smooth, clear broadcasts on the Internet.

As for Synapse, this is a kind of cloud storage, but not in order to upload your files or other information there, but to save the settings of your devices. That is, each person is individual and adjusts the mouse and keyboard to their needs. When a device becomes unusable or a person simply changes it, he has to reconfigure everything, but with Synapse, all configurations can be saved to the cloud and, if necessary, uploaded to a new device.

Everything is simple! The only thing you should know about this program is that it only works with Razer products released since the beginning of 2011.

This description can be completed and go to the next paragraph.

Specifications

To begin with, it’s worth looking at the technical specifications of the Razer Blade 14, as well as making a comparison with competitors and the previous version at the same time. For clarity and ease of comparison, all specifications will be indicated in table form.

In general, all 4 models, including the previous version of Razer Blade 14, are almost similar. The changes affected little - a new screen with a higher resolution, a new seventh-generation processor Intel core i7 and several options for solid-state drives for storing data with a capacity of 256Gb, 512Gb and 1Tb. The biggest plus (and minus), of course, is the price, but it will be discussed at the end.

Nevertheless, in total and in comparison with competitors, the new Razer Blade 14 looks much more profitable.

Dimensions and weight

The dimensions and updated gaming laptop of 2017 have not changed much:

• Length - 236 mm.
• Width -345 mm.
• Thickness - 18 mm.
• Weight - 1.85 kg with a regular screen and 1.96 kg with a 4K screen.

Compared to the previous version, the dimensions have not practically changed, except that the new product has “lost weight” a little: from 2.04 kg to 1.85 / 1.96 kg. Otherwise, it's still the same laptop from last year.

Appearance and assembly

The design of the Razer Blade 14 is in monolith format. There are practically no collapsible parts. The assembly is very high quality and there are no complaints about it. Squeaks, subsidence or crunching are also not observed, since the body is completely made of metal.

The color of the laptop is traditionally black with the company logo on the top cover, which when turned on starts to glow green. The coating is matt and pleasant to the touch. In terms of build quality, materials and appearance, the Razer Blade looks much more interesting and attractive than its direct competitors, namely Gigabyte Aero 14 and Alienware 13.

The keyboard remains the same as before, with a smooth, soft stroke and a distinctive click at the end. There is also a proprietary Razer Chroma backlight, which will be written separately.

As for the trackpad, the changes did not affect it. It is still located in the middle below and has all the same snap buttons that many would like to get rid of.

In general, it would be nice to see some branded design decisions regarding some functions in the younger model, like the older Razer Blade model with the prefix "Pro". We are talking about the lateral location of the trackpad and the original mechanical keyboard switches. Yes, it is quite possible that the cost would have risen slightly, but after all, Blade 14 is considered a more "popular" laptop than its top counterparts.

Ergonomics

Since the Razer Blade 14 is a gaming laptop of 2017, its ergonomics should be at a fairly high level to ensure maximum comfort during operation. Fortunately, this laptop has no problems. The keyboard is comfortable, rearranging fingers from button to button on it is a pleasure, the case materials do not cause irritation or discomfort.

As for the sharp edges, they only seem so at first glance. In fact, all faces have a slight rounding, so that even with the longest play, the hand that is used to manipulate the keyboard does not get tired and the feeling of discomfort does not appear.

Screen

The screen of the Razer Blade 14 has also undergone changes. First of all, his resolution has grown in the "maximum" version. If it was 2K on the 2016 model, then this time it was raised to 4K. It is only necessary to make a reservation that for the maximum version of the laptop you will have to pay significantly more, so that the version with the traditional Full HD 1920x1080 will still be more popular.

Now more about the display itself. First of all, it is matte and made using LED backlit technology. The screen is very high-quality, the information displayed on it is very clear, and the brightness margin is enough for quite comfortable work even in bright sunshine.

Yes, its dullness, perhaps, slightly reduces the color saturation, but it is definitely better than any glossy display. The only thing that catches your eye is the thick frames at the edges, that is, the edging of the screen. The manufacturer could make them much smaller, but for some reason decided to simply ignore it. In any case, at first they will catch the eye and involuntarily raise a question about their size, but after some time they simply stop paying attention to them and get used to it completely.

Viewing angles are standard and do not differ from the previous version. The matrix itself is made qualitatively, so that when you look at the image from different angles, it does not change its color. The maximum opening angle is 180 degrees.

Connectors

As for the connectors, here is a complete set. On the right side is a Type C USB port (Thunderbolt 3.0), one USB 3.0 port and an HDMI 1.4 connector. On the left side there is a traditional connector for connecting a power supply (charger), 2 USB ports of version 3.0 and a universal 3.5 mm jack for headphones and an external microphone. It is worth noting that the USB ports are painted in the classic color of the company - green. But, this is not a simple paint, but neon, so that in the dark the connectors will glow.

Some consider the Razer’s decision to leave the traditional connector for an external power supply controversial, as many manufacturers and competitors also switch to the USB-type C standard, or, as it is also called, the Thunderbolt 3. This port allows you to connect an external monitor, a charger device, well, and other devices, for example, a portable Razer Core station.

Tests

Finally, the most important part of the review came up - testing the Razer Blade 14 laptop. I would like to warn you right away that the tests pass in several stages:

1. First, various benchmarks are launched one by one to check the performance of the system, i.e. how it will cope with a particular load. In a word - stress test.
2. The second part of the testing consists of games - yes, what most people expect, because, after all, the Razer Blade 14 is a gaming laptop.

Well, it's time to start.

Cinebench

The main objective of Cinebench is to load the processor and video card to the maximum by visualizing complex 3D scenes and animations. Razer Blade 14 showed a pretty confident and excellent result - 156 points. The 16th year version scored 149 points, so the difference is not too big.

As for competitors, Alienware 13 and Gigabyte Aero 14 scored the same number of points - 159, which is only 3 more than Blade 14.

Cinebench has another great test called the CPU Muli-core 64 bit. Its main task is to load 100% all the physical cores of the processor and check the functions of hyper-trading.

Razer Blade 14 showed a score of 729 points in this test. His last version of 2016 scored 678 points, and here the gap looks already much more serious than in the first test. Alienware 13 stopped at around 737 points, and Gigabyte Aero 14 - 730.

As you can see, the gaps between the new Blade 14 and its direct competitors are minimal. What is the reason for this is difficult to say, because all the presented laptops (except for the previous version of Blade 14) are based on the same chipset and on the same processor. Perhaps the whole point is in more accurate optimization, but in any case, the final result can be safely called very high.

PCMark 8

Now it's time to test PCMark for the new 8th version. The principle of the program is the integral measurement of PC performance in different load scenarios. In total, the program includes 6 different tests, according to the results of which a total score is set. As part of the testing, 2 main tests will be used: Work Accelerated 2 and Home Accelerated 2.

In the first test, Razer Blade 14 scored 5008 points, which is pretty good. Its previous version showed a slightly worse result - 4920 points. This time, competitors have even worse things, they are significantly inferior not only to the new product, but also to the 2016 Blade. So, Alienware 13 scored 4799 points, and Gigabyte Aero - 14 4702 points.

The second test also did not make any changes, except that it surprised something. The fact is that the new Blade 14 scored 3958 points, but its predecessor - 4010. It seems that the gap is not too big, but still. Alienware showed the result in 3894, and the laptop from Gigabyte - 3717. Thus, PCMark 8 has a clear favorite, and with a pretty solid margin.

3Dmark 11

3DMark 11 is a package of various benchmarks designed for testing primarily the graphic part of a PC, i.e., a video card. For testing, it was decided to set the resolution not to Full HD, but traditional HD, i.e., 1280x720. Thus, it turned out to save a little time.

Here are the results of 3DMark 11 tests:

• Razer Blade 14 - 13870.
• Razer Blade 14 (2016) - 12,780.
• Alienware R13 - 14275.
• Gigabyte Aero 14 - 14731.

As you can see, the news is not going smoothly in terms of performance in games. But then again, why is that so? The systems can be said to be exactly the same, at least in terms of filling. On all laptops are video cards from Nvidia GTX 1060 with a memory capacity of 6GB. Perhaps someone will say that tests are not always an indicator, and to some extent it is, but nevertheless, the result is obvious, as they say.

Games

To complete the testing, we will launch several modern toys. I immediately want to note that the launch will be carried out only on the new Blade 14 in order to save time, because installing a certain number of games on several laptops is not as problematic as how long.

The first game is the world hit "The Witcher 3". The settings are set to ultra, and the HBAO + function is also turned on. Resolution 1920x1080. The laptop shows a pretty good result at a stable 37 fps, which is more than enough for a comfortable game. If you disable NvidiaHairWorks from the settings and lower the parameters from “ultra” to “high”, you can significantly increase the result to 68 fps.

Next up is Deus Ex Mankind Divided. The settings are maximum, the resolution is Full HD. This time, the Razer Blade 14 showed a stable 30 fps, which, in fact, can be said to be on the verge. I would like some small stock. When lowering the settings from maximum to high, the FPS rises to a stable mark of 55.

Well, in conclusion, the immortal GTA V. Full HD screen resolution, the settings are set to "ultra". The result is 38 fps, which is, in general, very good.

The new Razer laptop is perfect for most modern games and even more, and if you also buy a Razer Core station on your laptop, you can safely forget about the upgrade for the next few years.

Heat

Now for the heat. During tests and games, the maximum temperature did not exceed 58 degrees, but at the same time, heating in the middle was well felt. The edges were cooler, but nevertheless in their area the pyrometer showed from 32 to 39 degrees. We can say that the cooling system is doing its job, and if you bribe a cooling pad, there will be no problems at all.

The only negative is the cooling fans, or rather, the sound they make. At maximum loads they are very well audible. For the sake of interest, we measured the noise level with a special device, and it showed 52 dB.

Chroma

Chroma is a signature lighting from Razer. A unique feature is that it can be customized as you like based on your tastes and preferences. And not only all the keys are meant, but each one individually. Thus, you can highlight the most important buttons with your favorite color or adjust the flicker frequency for them.

One of the most important advantages of Chroma is the ability to change color during games and inform the user about various indicators. For example, if the character's health is at a sufficient level, then the color will be green, and if it is low, then red. In addition, if the character level drops to a critical level, the keyboard backlight will flicker. In short, Chroma does not restrict the user in any way and gives complete freedom to configure.

Total

To summarize, the new Blade 14 is a great gaming laptop for the money. It has very good performance, it is enough for it to play absolutely any new and already released games. as well as for other tasks of varying complexity.

Of course, in addition to the pros, there are also disadvantages. The most important is the price of the Razer Blade 14. It starts at $ 2,100 for the regular version with a Full Hd screen. Is this a lot? A lot, albeit less than what competitors are asking for their product. Of course, maybe some stores sell the new Blade for a lower price, but is it really important if instead of 120 thousand rubles. will they ask you 110 thousand? The remaining shortcomings are not so critical, and you can put up with them, or rather, have to put up with for such and such money.

Well, in conclusion, based on the reviews of the Razer Blade 14, you can make one simple conclusion: the laptop is certainly high quality and costs a lot of money. Performance is at a very high level, as is battery life. They especially praise the company's signature feature - Chroma highlighting. Most of all, users have questions regarding a not-so-good trackpad and matte finish. Although it is pleasant to the touch, it collects fingerprints very well, which are not so easily erased.

To take such a laptop or not, let everyone decide for himself. Good luck