That is it, a glimpse on the larger echelons of gaming laptops in 2022. This new model of the Razer Blade 17 will not be solely the primary machine to hit the PC Gamer labs packing Intel’s cellular Alder Lake CPU but it surely’s additionally dwelling to Nvidia’s new top-end Ampere GPU. You are wanting on the Intel Core i7 12800H alongside the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti. Severe, high-end {hardware} that may go toe-to-toe with most desktop rigs.
This being a Razer laptop computer, it not solely appears beautiful however boasts an attractive display screen and a well-rounded spec too. It will value you a fairly penny after all, however high-end laptops are hardly ever reasonably priced. Nonetheless, with an inventory value of $3,999, that is costly even at these rarified heights. Is it definitely worth the cash? Do the enhancements from Nvidia and Intel warrant that form of price ticket? Time to search out out.
Let’s begin with Alder Lake, this is not only a regular generational improve. Not solely does Intel’s newest structure signify a complete new paradigm for processors, but it surely brings with it help for loads of the most recent applied sciences too. You are help for DDR5 RAM and Thunderbolt 4, though, not like the desktop chips, PCIe 5.0 is missing from the specs checklist—though PCIe 4.0 is current and proper for some speedy SSD shenanigans.
The Core i7 12800H lays declare to a complete of 14 cores, made up of six efficiency cores and eight environment friendly ones. That equates to twenty threads in complete because the E-cores do not boast multi-threading. These efficiency cores have a max turbo of 4.8GHz, whereas the environment friendly cores prime out at 3.7GHz, making for a succesful general package deal that brings with it loads of effectivity good points over earlier generations.
This Alder Lake chip is a hungry beast although, notably with the Max Turbo Energy rated to 115W. In testing, it is able to simply hitting 100°C when pushed, which makes for a loud machine when encoding video and 3D rendering. Nonetheless, not less than the efficiency is there when you want it.
It’s a supremely succesful chip, posting among the greatest benchmark outcomes we have ever seen from a laptop computer, with efficiency that actually does problem desktop programs. The one potential fly within the ointment is AMD’s Ryzen 6000 chips are imminent too and from the early numbers we have seen issues are fairly shut, notably if you think about energy effectivity. Intel is forward, but it surely’s a close-run factor.
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti & 4th Gen Max-Q
The image is a bit clearer on the GPU aspect of issues, with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti being largely unchallenged within the laptop computer area. Boasting 7,424 CUDA Cores and a Enhance Clock of as much as 1590MHz, the RTX 3080 Ti leapfrogs the earlier king of laptop computer gaming, the RTX 3080 (6,144 CUDA Core with a Enhance of 1,710MHz), by an honest margin.
This being an RTX GPU means you’ve entry to the double whammy of DLSS and ray tracing help, so your video games look superb and can run easily in supported titles too. And in terms of gaming, this factor completely smashes it, persistently topping the charts in a variety of video games.
Razer Blade 17 Specs
CPU: Intel Core i7 12800H
GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti (165W) 16GB GDDR6
RAM: 32GB DDR5-4800
Show: 17.3-inch QHD, 240Hz, G-Sync
Decision: 2560 x 1440
Storage: 1TB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
Battery: 82Wh
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, 2x Thunderbolt 4 (USB Kind-C), 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Kind-C, 3x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Kind-A, 3.5mm combo-jack
OS: Home windows 11 House 64-bit
Dimensions: 0.78 x 10.24 x 15.55-inches
Weight: 6.06lbs (2.75kg)
Guarantee: 1 12 months
Worth: $3,999 | £4,299
Not solely does the 3080 Ti convey critical gaming grunt to proceedings, but it surely additionally has some aces up its sleeve to assist make gaming on a laptop computer a extra satisfying expertise. These 4th Gen Max-Q applied sciences embody CPU Optimizer, Speedy Core Scaling (extra aimed toward creators than avid gamers), and Battery Enhance 2.0, and will be discovered alongside current tech like Dynamic Enhance, WhisperMode, and Superior Optimus.
Of those, Battery Enhance 2.0 needs to be of curiosity for anybody seeking to sport on the go, because it balances the GPU and CPU to squeeze extra out of the battery. Whisper Mode 2.0 can be neat, because it retains the noise from the followers to a minimal whereas nonetheless knocking out spectacular body charges—the fun of getting an extremely highly effective GPU within the first place. It really works properly with the Razer Blade 17 too, though the followers nonetheless kick in when pushed laborious.
The brand new CPU Optimizer, in the meantime, makes use of an AI-powered algorithm to coordinate between the CPU and GPU to enhance effectivity, together with offloading some low-level work from the CPU to a devoted command processor on the GPU. This all occurs within the background, and you do not have direct management over it, so it is not precisely simple to see what impression that is having, but it surely’s good to know Nvidia is working with Intel and AMD to enhance issues.
Any laptop computer is extra than simply the CPU and GPU after all, and Razer has kitted out the Blade 17 with a wholesome specification. You are 32GB of DDR5-4800MHz, which needs to be sufficient for gaming for a number of years not less than, plus a 1TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD, and also you get a terrific display screen too.
You’ve gotten a few choices on the show entrance, with the 240Hz QHD display screen as seen on this assessment mannequin making a bit extra sense than the 360Hz 1080p various, which prices precisely the identical. Esports devotees could lust after that additional 120Hz, however given this can be a 17.3-inch panel, I a lot desire extra pixels and a tighter pixel pitch for the overwhelming majority of video games. The 3080 Ti would not precisely battle to hit foolish numbers on the native 2560 x 1440, both.
The keyboard is spacious and comfy to kind on, though the cursor keys are unusually cramped for such an enormous laptop computer. I am not a fan of the big touchpad, which feels unresponsive and troublesome to click on, however that is undoubtedly a machine you may wish to use a correct gaming mouse with anyway. It’s primarily a gaming laptop computer in any case.
Razer Blade 17 Efficiency
The Razer Blade 17 is a monster by way of efficiency. It is both the quickest or very near the quickest in nearly each benchmark you possibly can throw at it, and that is true whether or not you are centered on gaming, or crunching these pesky numbers. For those who’re in search of a beastly powerhouse, then the Razer Blade 17 delivers.
The numbers above had been garnered from operating the machine utilizing the ‘Balanced’ efficiency profile in Razer Synapse. In principle, this could provide you with loads of uncooked grunt with out it sounding prefer it’s about to take off. In apply, there is no apparent distinction in noise ranges between this profile and a customized profile with the whole lot maxed out. Operating such a customized profile does enhance CPU efficiency in Cinebench R23, however not wherever else, and importantly not within the video games.
Whichever profile you utilize, it may be a surprisingly noisy machine, hitting 55dB when taking part in video games. That might not be the loudest laptop computer we have had within the labs, but it surely’s definitely annoying sufficient for anybody round you.
Whisper Mode drops this all the way down to 50dB, which is notably quieter. This eases again on the fan pace, making it a lot gentler on the ear than leaving the followers unchecked. This does have an effect on the efficiency after all, though not as a lot as you would possibly suppose—it had a much bigger impression on the CPU than the GPU too, as proven in 3DMark Time Spy, which noticed the GPU rating drop from 12,694 to 11,010 (a 13% drop) whereas the CPU went from 12,174 down to five,389 (down 56%).
For those who’re simply gaming, then there’s nothing actually however excellent news right here. Any sport goes to run silky easy on the prime settings and on the display screen’s native 1440p decision. The numbers listed here are taken at 1080p for comparability’s sake, however as you possibly can see, there’s body fee to spare, and you are still not less than 60fps
One attention-grabbing consequence right here is the similarly-priced Gigabyte Aorus 17X, which is fairly shut in loads of exams, though given that’s dwelling to a 165W RTX 3080 and the top-end of Intel’s last-gen CPU, that is not too stunning. It is value noting that the Razer Blade 17 does higher within the Metro Exodus ray tracing check, because of all these additional cores. Additionally, the Aorus 17X is extra of a conventional gaming laptop computer, so it has extra room to let that GPU breathe—it will be attention-grabbing to see simply how fast the 3080 Ti will probably be in a extra historically chunky gaming chassis.
Razer Blade 17 Battery Life
The Achilles heel of many a high-end gaming laptop computer is battery life, and the brand new Razer Blade 17 is not any totally different. For those who’re seeking to sport away from an influence socket, then I’ve acquired some dangerous information for you—you are not going to take action for lengthy. It took simply 51 minutes to run the battery down from full in Unigine Heaven.
That is completely a worst-case situation after all, and you’ll anticipate to get much more out of it if you’re doing extra mundane duties like working or just watching movies, however given that is aimed toward avid gamers, it would not really feel outrageous to hope for extra stamina from a bang updated machine.
There’s a potential resolution in the truth that the Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti helps Battery Enhance 2.0. This hopes to enhance battery life by limiting the body fee. By default, this caps the motion at 30fps, however you possibly can elect to go as much as 60fps for extra body rate-sensitive video games (or you choose something in between the 2 when you need.) As we have seen from the Steam Deck, limiting the body fee could make an considerable distinction to battery life, though right here it solely bumps it as much as 68 minutes with a 30fps lock. It is an enchancment, however not essentially one value capping your body fee for.
Razer Blade 17 Verdict
General, the Razer Blade 17 is a powerful gaming laptop computer, there is no doubt about that. Whether or not you are seeking to sport, work, or combine the 2, this units the bar fairly excessive. No less than it does when it is plugged in. If you’d like one thing with a bit extra stamina, then there are a lot better choices round—the Razer Blade Superior for one presents double the battery life that you’re going to get from this, though you will not get the identical form of efficiency.
It is a sensible showcase for Intel’s new cellular Alder Lake processors and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, although the slim chassis does imply it would not fairly leapfrog beefier gaming machines just like the Aorus 17X, extra an incremental enchancment. Nonetheless, hitting RTX 3080 efficiency in a chassis this skinny is spectacular.
The remainder of the system is properly spec’d out and appears like a premium piece of {hardware}. It’s a 17-inch laptop computer although, and for a lot of, that is a bit too massive, particularly if you’ll want to carry it round with you—it is nowhere close to as transportable as our favourite gaming laptop, the Razer Blade 15.
There is a barely greater drawback right here after all, and that is the worth. $4,000 is a critical chunk for a laptop computer, even one that’s as highly effective as this. There are many laptops that value lots lower than this that may sport virtually as properly, albeit at decrease resolutions, and perhaps not look fairly so good. In the end although, if you would like the perfect, and at present that is it, you are going to should pay for it.
