Razer Blade 2022 models.

[maflynn]

As expected, Razer announced their 2022 offerings during CES. Spec wise, I'm really liking what it has to offer, though I do openly question the pricing. Seems a bit out of reach for what I'm willing to pay. I don't know if I want to spend 3k on a laptop as I'm not sure if I will get enough of a boost of the base model over what I have, i.e., RTX 2070 vs. RTX3060. There are other changes and refinements that I really like, I have the non-standard keyboard even though I use the Razer daily, the placement of the cursor and /? keys causes a lot of headaches.

The Razer 14" also received some love with an update to CPU, and I believe some if not all models of the 14" includes a MUX switch to improve performance where as the 15" model, only the high end includes that.

 

[diamond.g]

Man, they are not shy about "aligning" their pricing with Apples.

 

[maflynn]

Man, they are not shy about "aligning" their pricing with Apples.

I've criticized apple pretty hard about their apple tax, so I can't give Razer a pass.
I can come up with a number of justifications for getting a new laptop, but in all honesty, I don't think I'm willing to spend 3,000 dollars

I believe many laptop makers have raised their prices due to the supply chain woes. Yet with that said, 3,000 dollars for a mid-tier model its just way to expensive.

 

[diamond.g]

I've criticized apple pretty hard about their apple tax, so I can't give Razer a pass.
I can come up with a number of justifications for getting a new laptop, but in all honesty, I don't think I'm willing to spend 3,000 dollars

I believe many laptop makers have raised their prices due to the supply chain woes. Yet with that said, 3,000 dollars for a mid-tier model its just way to expensive.

Yeah the options are not that great. Lenovo wants 2,000+ for 3070 (and still shipping 11th Gen CPU).

 

[maflynn]

Lenovo wants 2,000+ for 3070 (and still shipping 11th Gen CPU).

I've heard good things regarding their Lenovo Legion laptops. Having owned a thinkpad here's my thoughts
1. The keyboard will no doubt be top notch, but it seems many (all?) of the legion models have a numpad - for 15" laptops, I don't like this, laptop keyboards with numpad have felt constrained.
2. cooling/fan control and noise - my Thinkpad Extreme is a loud laptop and the fans spin up for few reason that make sense. I'd be concerned the Legion will do this.
3. If I were to buy a laptop in 2022, it would have to be for a 12th gen Intel. I am a bit of an intel fanboy and so I'm not considering AMD right now.

 

[maflynn]

One more thing regarding the Razer, and its really an aha moment. The razer like most 12th gen Intel computers, it uses DDR5 memory and right now that memory technology is extremely expensive, so while it does seem like I'm giving Razer a pass, that could very well account for some of the price hike. Plus it is the bleeding edge.

Still with that said, 3k is just too much

 

[dmr727]

Still with that said, 3k is just too much

It's a lot of money, but I think the bleeding edge comment is spot on. Razer also has built a nice reputation for their laptops looking/feeling more premium than the typical gaming machine, which appeals to old farts like me. Since we're a little further along in our careers we tend to have more disposable income - thus the Apple tax. They know we'll bitch about it, yet still open our wallets.

 

[dmr727]

Although now that I typed that out and thought about it a bit more - that pricing still gives me pause. Hmmm...

 

[maflynn]

that pricing still gives me pause

You and me both

 

[LeeW]

If I needed a high-end laptop today, I would be more willing to give $3k to Razer than Apple.

 

[GoldfishRT]

I like that they're laser etching the speaker grills this go around, the previous ones always seemed a bit cheap to me. Kind of disappointed there's no update to the Stealth - wouldn't surprise me if they deprecate it.

 

[TSE]

If I needed a high-end laptop today, I would be more willing to give $3k to Razer than Apple.

May I ask what your reasons are?

 

[maflynn]

May I ask what your reasons are?

I can't answer for that member, but I can reasons why I would put money towards the Razer over the Mac.

1. Windows platform - better fit for my needs.
2. X86 platform - more options to select an operating system of your choice
3. Razer upgradeability, i.e., add more ram/storage (15" only)
4. Better cooling, from what I've seen (and I'm not expert) but it seems sustained loads seem to cause the Mac to throttle or run into issues with heat. I've not really read up on this, I could be wrong but I've stumbled upon some info on this.
5. More software choices
6. Gaming
7. Better looking

Now with that said, if I started a thread in the MBP forum, many of the active members there will give a long and comprehensive list of why the M1 MBP is a better use of 3,000 dollars and I won't dispute that. While there are some objective bullet points my list is mostly subjective.

 

[LeeW]

May I ask what your reasons are?

Whilst most of my needs are OS agnostic some are not. Windows will do everything I need to do, macOS does most so if forced with a choice it would need to be Windows.

Points 3,5 and 6 from @maflynn above are also factors.

For me, I have no particular allegiance to Apple, Microsoft, Razer or anyone else. I will use what works best for me.

 

[TSE]

I can't answer for that member, but I can reasons why I would put money towards the Razer over the Mac.

1. Windows platform - better fit for my needs.
2. X86 platform - more options to select an operating system of your choice
3. Razer upgradeability, i.e., add more ram/storage (15" only)
4. Better cooling, from what I've seen (and I'm not expert) but it seems sustained loads seem to cause the Mac to throttle or run into issues with heat. I've not really read up on this, I could be wrong but I've stumbled upon some info on this.
5. More software choices
6. Gaming
7. Better looking

Now with that said, if I started a thread in the MBP forum, many of the active members there will give a long and comprehensive list of why the M1 MBP is a better use of 3,000 dollars and I won't dispute that. While there are some objective bullet points my list is mostly subjective.

All those are incredibly valid except for #4 and #7. I have the most extreme example of how great Apple's cooling is - I have the 32-Core M1 Max 14" and this machine's thermals are still better than ANY PC laptop or Mac laptop I've ever had. And I use programs that stress the GPU 100% all day. No thermal throttling here. It has made set a new benchmark and precedent for me when it comes to thermals.

#7 is completely subjective. Personally I loved when Razer laptops came in the silver, but even then, that logo is fugly - but that's picking at it. Razer laptops look nice.

Whilst most of my needs are OS agnostic some are not. Windows will do everything I need to do, macOS does most so if forced with a choice it would need to be Windows.

Points 3,5 and 6 from @maflynn above are also factors.

For me, I have no particular allegiance to Apple, Microsoft, Razer or anyone else. I will use what works best for me.

I do agree - the one thing I'm missing out on since switching back to Mac with this ARM MacBook Pro is how much of a walled garden it is - but I was willingly going into it knowing that and for the benefits.

I know Windows fans will say that it never happens to them, but I can't help but take from my very own experiences, that Windows for me always got bloated, slow, buggy, and unusable overtime. I love the interface of Windows. I love how fast and snappy and functional it is when you do a fresh install. But I found myself having to format and do a fresh install twice a year. I don't know what it was, but that is for every PC I've ever owned. And for that reason among others I decided Macs were the better tool for me.

 

[LeeW]

how much of a walled garden it is

I actually buy into the walled garden because it is convenient and works for me. I use the iPhone, iPad Pro, Apple Watch, M1 Mac Mini. The seamless integration between them provides more pros than cons but I can see how that would not be the case for many. My wife has an M1 MBA, iPad, iPhone and Watch, kids have iPhones, watches and iPads so app sharing is a big cost win.

I prefer macOS over Windows, I just like the clean and properly integrated look of all the apps in macOS vs the more chaotic scenes in Windows.

Most of my time is spent on the M1 Mac Mini, I switch over to PC when I need to.

 

[maflynn]

#7 is completely subjective.

Yep, as I said, the list contains a number of subjective opinions, I personally find the look of the MBP to be very dated, and making it thicker (which has other positive aspects) just made it worse for me. Just my opinion, and clearly being on a Apple fan site I'm most likely in an extreme minority.

I'm liking the Lenovo Legion 5, as well (aside from the numbpad keyboard thing I already mentioned. Once these Alder lake laptops hit the streets and we get actual reviews, I'll see what fits my budget and taste.

 

[mi7chy]

Agree numpad-less is better but still a little rich compared to, for example, Legion 7 5800H/3070/16GB/1TB on sale for $1500 (~$1400 with ID.me) vs Razor equivalent for $2600.

https://slickdeals.net/f/15565177-l...r4-1tb-ssd-1500-2-5-sd-cashback-free-shipping

 

[coffee06]

I married an accountant. She wouldn’t be caught with a laptop that didn’t have a numerical pad it’s on her must list always. And I enter a lot of data at work (academia) and need those numbers more myself. I’m guessing they do configure those for these markets...e.g. CPAs in the field. But I can see where it’s just cramping up the keyboard if you don’t need that.

 

[TSE]

I married an accountant. She wouldn’t be caught with a laptop that didn’t have a numerical pad it’s on her must list always. And I enter a lot of data at work (academia) and need those numbers more myself. I’m guessing they do configure those for these markets...e.g. CPAs in the field. But I can see where it’s just cramping up the keyboard if you don’t need that.

Yeah, it's one of those features that if you need it, you need it and you know you need it. But for the rest of the users, it actually impedes the clean look and feel alongside being annoying to have as it moves the trackpad left when most people are right handed.

 

[mi7chy]

Accountants don't buy relatively expensive gaming laptops with dGPU. There should be a business/accountant line of laptops with numpad separate from gaming laptops or at least provide a way to disable the numpad to prevent accidentally hitting them since main keyboard keys on the right side are shrunken to accomodate the numpad. Most use top row number keys so the rare time someone needs numpad they can use an external USB numpad.

 

[maflynn]

Pre-orders are open for the Razers with an expected delivery of end of February. My current laptop is only a few years old, there's no way I can justify spending that much money. I know I don't need the performance, its just one of those geeky/nerdy things.

The numbers though for alder lake are showing some phenomenal increases in performance. Being a gaming laptop, battery life isn't something that I'm all that worked up. Either way, I'll be sitting out this year's model.

 

[LeeW]

Accountants don't buy relatively expensive gaming laptops with dGPU.

Accountants can be gamers as well

 

[diamond.g]

Accountants can be gamers as well

Lies

 

[LeeW]

Lies

Didn't say good gamers though