Razer Blade Gaming Laptops Upgraded With Next-Gen Chips, DDR5

Looking to upgrade your gaming laptop for 2022? Razer’s refreshed Blade lineup, unveiled today at CES, bumps the PCs up to Windows 11 and DDR5 memory, and adds the option for an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti GPU, among other things.

Razer Blade 14 (2022)

The 14-inch Blade was a new entrant to Razer’s lineup last year, and the first-gen version earned a PCMag Editors’ Choice award for its all-around excellence and unique positioning. This year’s refresh runs Windows 11, as well as an AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX processor. That new CPU is an eight-core, 16-thread chip with a max boost up to 4.9GHz. It's part of the Ryzen 6000 series debuting at CES today.

This year’s version also adds the fingerprint-resistant coating and the 1080p IR webcam found on the larger Blade laptops, up from 720p.

(Photo: Razer)

There’s a 1TB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe, upgradable to a 2TB SSD, plus 16GB of DDR5 memory. Ports include two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, two USB 3.2 USB-C ports (with power delivery and DisplayPort 1.4), and one HDMI 2.1 port. Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 are supported.

(Photo: Razer)

The base-model Blade 14 includes a full HD (1,920-by-1,080-pixel) 16:9 display with a 144Hz refresh rate. It features an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 GPU with 6GB of GDDR6 VRAM for $1,999.99. 

Upgrade to a QHD (2,560-by-1,440) 16:9 display with a 165Hz refresh rate, along with an RTX 3070 Ti (this mobile GPU and the RTX 3080 Ti also launch today at CES) and 8GB GDDR6 VRAM, for $2,599.99. A QHD display and RTX 3080 Ti with 16GB of DDR6 VRAM will set you back $3,499.99.

All three versions will be available to pre-order via Razer.com and Razer Store locations on Feb. 10; they’ll also be available at select retailers starting in Q1.

Razer Blade 15 (2022)

The slightly larger Blade 15 is an Intel-based PC. It runs a 12th Gen Intel Core i7-12800H, a 14-core, 1.8GHz chip with Turbo Boost up to 4.8GHz, though there’s a top-of-the-line option for a Core i9-12900HK with Turbo Boost up to 5GHz. These CPUs are part of Intel's 12th Generation Core “Alder Lake” mobile processor lineup, which is also launching at CES 2022 today.

(Photo: Razer)

Like the Blade 14, the 15 also has a 1TB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe, upgradable to 2TB SSD and 16GB of DDR5 memory. But the Blade 15 has three USB 3.2 Type-A ports, two Thunderbolt 4 ports, one HDMI 2.1 port, and an SD card reader.

There are several display and GPU configurations available, up to an all-new 144Hz UHD panel with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti for $3,999.99. The base version starts at $2,499.99. Pre-order it at Razer.com and from Razer Stores on Jan. 25; it’ll be in stores in Q1.

Razer Blade 17 (2022)

If you need the added real estate of a 17-inch laptop, Razer promises audio and power enhancements in its latest Blade 17. It boasts eight speakers, up from four, plus a suite of apps: Nvidia Omniverse, Broadcast, and Canvas.

For creatives on the go, there’s an 82-watt-hour internal battery, which is more than 10 watt-hours more capacious than previous generations, Razer says. It also ships with a new GaN-powered 280-watt charger, versus the usual 180-watt power brick.

(Photo: Razer)

Processor and GPU options are similar to the Blade 15's, as are display configurations, though the Blade 17 includes an Ethernet port.

The new Razer Blade 17 starts at $2,699.99. Pre-order from the same locations on Jan. 25, and purchase in stores sometime this quarter.