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Razer Inc. Blade 2014 128GB

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#1 ·
Razer Inc. Blade 2014 128GB

Description:
For a long time, I used my late 2010 MacBook Pro. I fell in love with the design, but despised the dual core and the software included. If you love the design of MacBooks, then you should most likely stay put for the duration of this review. For this, I'll split this up into 5 sections:

1. Exterior/Appearance
2. Keyboard/Mouse/Touchscreen/Display
3. Gaming and Daily Use
4. Included Software Issues
5. Pros/Cons

So I hope you find this informative

1. Appearance
Everyone knows the standard flat-topped and fairly light design of the recent MacBooks. Razer, much like Apple is a recipe company in this case. They take the best of two different designs and have married them together- high performance and a stunning display with a thin and light profile. Let's start with the actual finish on the laptop; Razer decided to do a textured black finish which covers the entirety of the laptop, save for the two rubber strips on the bottom, the keyboard, screen, and surrounding bezel. If anyone cares about their main system being dusty, then you won't like the reality of this finish- dust shows up immediately. Meaning if you have dandruff or live with pets, and are particular about keeping your system clean, prepare for a challenge. The finish is also very easily scuffed, but the scratches (assuming they are not gouges or very deep) will buff out. Deeper scratches will definitely stand out, since the computer is a textured black- the contrast between the silver aluminum and black is very noticeable. The edges are also very prone to having the finish chipped off, albeit the only chips on mine are very small. Fingerprint wise, the matte finish doesn't attract a whole lot of them, but if you have sweaty hands or they are wet in some way, then prints will definitely be left, but luckily they come out right away with a little bit of rubbing. The Razer logo on the lid of the notebook does in fact light up whenever the computer is on. Keeping on the lid of the computer, there are two slightly raised scallops on each side of the Razer logo. While the two raised features on each side of the logo aren't very high, they do span the length of the laptop (front to back), and are slightly convex. On the front right of the laptop (similar to a Mac), there is a small circular light which is capable of displaying several different colors. The breathing white light shows the laptop is asleep, a green light shows the laptop is on, a dimmer red shows that the battery is at or below 10%, and a remarkably bright red shows the computer will shut down shortly as the battery is at or below 3%. Moving to the bottom of the laptop, there are two rubber strips of equal lengths running the length of the computer (left to right). They are very grippy, and in my every day use and occasional gaming, they do not get dirty or things stuck in the rubber. Between the two strips (closer to the one near the back/hinge for the screen) lie two cooling fans. Covered by a metal grate, they effectively block any sizable debris from getting into the cooling system, but do not impede airflow enough to be a detriment to the cooling system. At idle they are remarkably quiet, and only really come to life when the laptop is under a heavy load. Moving to the right side, the Blade features a single USB 3.0 port along with a single HDMI port. Going to the left, there are two USB 3.0 ports which are spaced nicely, allowing the laptop to accommodate large USB drive or wide plugs, and the headphone jack is located far away enough to allow large 3.5mm jacks with the closest USB port occupied. Closest to the hinge on the left side is the power input, which fits in very snugly and requires a stiff tug to remove- giving it a quality feel. Overall, the laptop looks remarkably nice, but the paint could use refining.

2. Keyboard/Mouse/Touchscreen/Display/Speakers
Right off the bat, the display is beautiful. The screen is capable of being very bright, allowing it to be used in daylight or outside. With a resolution of 3200X1800, the screen looks amazing while playing games such as Galaxy on Fire 2 (HD) or watching a movie. Lower resolution games or movie scale nicely to the size of the display, and won't look bad like they do on larger monitors. The colors the screen is capable of displaying are very nice, as I haven't seen much "banding", or inability to display a larger amount of colors. Coming back to brightness, if you are coming from a Mac, prepare to get used to a screen that doesn't go anywhere near as dark as you might expect. With the limited brightness options, it does drain the battery more than it should- but that's a minor bug. Surrounding the screen is a highly glossy, almost reflective. It is a complete fingerprint magnet along with the rest of the screen, but luckily the computer includes a nice micro-fiber cloth which can be used to clear off any fingerprints left from daily use. Touchscreen wise, it is right on par with the several Lenovo, Dell, and Asus laptops I've used. With the stock calibration, it is quite accurate and is capable of having multiple fingers on the screen at once without any issue. While the keyboard is remarkably similar to a Mac keyboard, the keys aren't quite as "squishy" as a Mac's. The keyboard is has a very wide amount of brightness options, and unfortunately doesn't have the option to make WASD and the arrow keys a different color. Each key is fully lit with the exception of the space key. On each side of the keyboard lie the speakers covered by mesh metal grills. The only issue with this approach is the lack of an option to remove the grates for cleaning, so any dust or debris that gets in the grate will show up immediately. This lends to an almost dirty/dusty look after a lot of daily use, so the capability to take the grates out for cleaning would be a welcome addition. The speakers get remarkably loud for their size, and fire upwards, which is a welcome change to my old Mac's speaker configuration. Headphones work great with the laptop, despite the lack of an equalizer. The touchpad works smoothly, but the software completes the package. Using the included Synaptics software, the option for two finger scrolling is a very convenient feature for scrolling through lots of OCN pages or a whole lot of notes. Both left and right touchpad buttons have a very nice, quick, and positive click to them. Neither of them require a lot of force to trigger.

3. Gaming and Daily Use
Taking notes, browsing OCN, watching movies, and surfing Reddit are a breeze. There's no lag when a lot of programs are open, despite only 8GB of memory available for usage. Windows 8.1 has a lot of convenient features such as splitting the screen for multitasking. Where your hands sit while typing remains cool even when the fans ramp up to meet the increased cooling needs, and this is especially helpful while playing games. The gaming aspect is somewhat lacking, as the enormous display resolution paired with a mid level mobile GPU requires lowering the settings. Playing Tribes Ascend, TF2, Battlefield 4, and Galaxy on Fire 2 HD are a blast on this laptop. The only issue I've found over the past few months of daily use is the space bar is not perfectly centered with the touchpad (it is off slightly to the left), so if you type with your hands resting all the way down, it is easy to make the cursor jump and move what you are typing to somewhere else on the page. Other than these minor inconveniences, the way Razer has allowed this laptop to both be a light-duty gaming rig and daily driver.

4. Included Software Issues
Okay- here's the only advice I will offer in terms of software. TAKE OFF SYNAPSE. I uninstalled Synaptics accidentally, but fortunately it was available in a Synapse package for the Blade. Once Synaptics was back, I ditched Synapse. Other than that, the standard Windows 8.1 features are welcome as I run Windows 8.1 on my desktop gaming rig, and all the features sync quickly between my two rigs.

5. Pros/Cons
Price is the first and biggest con of this laptop. Second is the internal layout, which doesn't allow the PC to accept a second internal drive. If you opt for the 128GB model like I did, just get a 64GB+ thumb drive for all your music and movies, and that problem is solved. I bought mine from Razer when it was slightly used, so I got a good $300 chopped off the price and it came with a stack of accessories. If you want a laptop that is both thin and very powerful, this is one of the best options out there if you want a Mac look and feel. There are lots of pros to having this as a daily driver or specifically a gaming laptop, but the best are the screen and how well all the software is integrated into this very light and thin package.

This has without a doubt been the single best laptop I've ever gotten the change to have or use period. It meets all the requirements: thin, light, awesome screen, but the only thing it lacks the ability to upgrade the internals even a little, just like I did with my Mac. I hope everyone learned about this product form my review and if you chose to buy one, congrats!

-Zepp
 

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#2 ·
Close to perfect blend between a gaming and daily use laptop.

review by ledzepp3

For a long time, I used my late 2010 MacBook Pro. I fell in love with the design, but despised the dual core and the software included. If you love the design of MacBooks, then you should most likely stay put for the duration of this review. For this, I'll split this up into 5 sections:

1. Exterior/Appearance
2. Keyboard/Mouse/Touchscreen/Display
3. Gaming and Daily Use
4. Included Software Issues
5. Pros/Cons

So I hope you find this informative

1. Appearance
Everyone knows the standard flat-topped and fairly light design of the recent MacBooks. Razer, much like Apple is a recipe company in this case. They take the best of two different designs and have married them together- high performance and a stunning display with a thin and light profile. Let's start with the actual finish on the laptop; Razer decided to do a textured black finish which covers the entirety of the laptop, save for the two rubber strips on the bottom, the keyboard, screen, and surrounding bezel. If anyone cares about their main system being dusty, then you won't like the reality of this finish- dust shows up immediately. Meaning if you have dandruff or live with pets, and are particular about keeping your system clean, prepare for a challenge. The finish is also very easily scuffed, but the scratches (assuming they are not gouges or very deep) will buff out. Deeper scratches will definitely stand out, since the computer is a textured black- the contrast between the silver aluminum and black is very noticeable. The edges are also very prone to having the finish chipped off, albeit the only chips on mine are very small. Fingerprint wise, the matte finish doesn't attract a whole lot of them, but if you have sweaty hands or they are wet in some way, then prints will definitely be left, but luckily they come out right away with a little bit of rubbing. The Razer logo on the lid of the notebook does in fact light up whenever the computer is on. Keeping on the lid of the computer, there are two slightly raised scallops on each side of the Razer logo. While the two raised features on each side of the logo aren't very high, they do span the length of the laptop (front to back), and are slightly convex. On the front right of the laptop (similar to a Mac), there is a small circular light which is capable of displaying several different colors. The breathing white light shows the laptop is asleep, a green light shows the laptop is on, a dimmer red shows that the battery is at or below 10%, and a remarkably bright red shows the computer will shut down shortly as the battery is at or below 3%. Moving to the bottom of the laptop, there are two rubber strips of equal lengths running the length of the computer (left to right). They are very grippy, and in my every day use and occasional gaming, they do not get dirty or things stuck in the rubber. Between the two strips (closer to the one near the back/hinge for the screen) lie two cooling fans. Covered by a metal grate, they effectively block any sizable debris from getting into the cooling system, but do not impede airflow enough to be a detriment to the cooling system. At idle they are remarkably quiet, and only really come to life when the laptop is under a heavy load. Moving to the right side, the Blade features a single USB 3.0 port along with a single HDMI port. Going to the left, there are two USB 3.0 ports which are spaced nicely, allowing the laptop to accommodate large USB drive or wide plugs, and the headphone jack is located far away enough to allow large 3.5mm jacks with the closest USB port occupied. Closest to the hinge on the left side is the power input, which fits in very snugly and requires a stiff tug to remove- giving it a quality feel. Overall, the laptop looks remarkably nice, but the paint could use refining.

2. Keyboard/Mouse/Touchscreen/Display/Speakers
Right off the bat, the display is beautiful. The screen is capable of being very bright, allowing it to be used in daylight or outside. With a resolution of 3200X1800, the screen looks amazing while playing games such as Galaxy on Fire 2 (HD) or watching a movie. Lower resolution games or movie scale nicely to the size of the display, and won't look bad like they do on larger monitors. The colors the screen is capable of displaying are very nice, as I haven't seen much "banding", or inability to display a larger amount of colors. Coming back to brightness, if you are coming from a Mac, prepare to get used to a screen that doesn't go anywhere near as dark as you might expect. With the limited brightness options, it does drain the battery more than it should- but that's a minor bug. Surrounding the screen is a highly glossy, almost reflective. It is a complete fingerprint magnet along with the rest of the screen, but luckily the computer includes a nice micro-fiber cloth which can be used to clear off any fingerprints left from daily use. Touchscreen wise, it is right on par with the several Lenovo, Dell, and Asus laptops I've used. With the stock calibration, it is quite accurate and is capable of having multiple fingers on the screen at once without any issue. While the keyboard is remarkably similar to a Mac keyboard, the keys aren't quite as "squishy" as a Mac's. The keyboard is has a very wide amount of brightness options, and unfortunately doesn't have the option to make WASD and the arrow keys a different color. Each key is fully lit with the exception of the space key. On each side of the keyboard lie the speakers covered by mesh metal grills. The only issue with this approach is the lack of an option to remove the grates for cleaning, so any dust or debris that gets in the grate will show up immediately. This lends to an almost dirty/dusty look after a lot of daily use, so the capability to take the grates out for cleaning would be a welcome addition. The speakers get remarkably loud for their size, and fire upwards, which is a welcome change to my old Mac's speaker configuration. Headphones work great with the laptop, despite the lack of an equalizer. The touchpad works smoothly, but the software completes the package. Using the included Synaptics software, the option for two finger scrolling is a very convenient feature for scrolling through lots of OCN pages or a whole lot of notes. Both left and right touchpad buttons have a very nice, quick, and positive click to them. Neither of them require a lot of force to trigger.

3. Gaming and Daily Use
Taking notes, browsing OCN, watching movies, and surfing Reddit are a breeze. There's no lag when a lot of programs are open, despite only 8GB of memory available for usage. Windows 8.1 has a lot of convenient features such as splitting the screen for multitasking. Where your hands sit while typing remains cool even when the fans ramp up to meet the increased cooling needs, and this is especially helpful while playing games. The gaming aspect is somewhat lacking, as the enormous display resolution paired with a mid level mobile GPU requires lowering the settings. Playing Tribes Ascend, TF2, Battlefield 4, and Galaxy on Fire 2 HD are a blast on this laptop. The only issue I've found over the past few months of daily use is the space bar is not perfectly centered with the touchpad (it is off slightly to the left), so if you type with your hands resting all the way down, it is easy to make the cursor jump and move what you are typing to somewhere else on the page. Other than these minor inconveniences, the way Razer has allowed this laptop to both be a light-duty gaming rig and daily driver.

4. Included Software Issues
Okay- here's the only advice I will offer in terms of software. TAKE OFF SYNAPSE. I uninstalled Synaptics accidentally, but fortunately it was available in a Synapse package for the Blade. Once Synaptics was back, I ditched Synapse. Other than that, the standard Windows 8.1 features are welcome as I run Windows 8.1 on my desktop gaming rig, and all the features sync quickly between my two rigs.

5. Pros/Cons
Price is the first and biggest con of this laptop. Second is the internal layout, which doesn't allow the PC to accept a second internal drive. If you opt for the 128GB model like I did, just get a 64GB+ thumb drive for all your music and movies, and that problem is solved. I bought mine from Razer when it was slightly used, so I got a good $300 chopped off the price and it came with a stack of accessories. If you want a laptop that is both thin and very powerful, this is one of the best options out there if you want a Mac look and feel. There are lots of pros to having this as a daily driver or specifically a gaming laptop, but the best are the screen and how well all the software is integrated into this very light and thin package.

This has without a doubt been the single best laptop I've ever gotten the change to have or use period. It meets all the requirements: thin, light, awesome screen, but the only thing it lacks the ability to upgrade the internals even a little, just like I did with my Mac. I hope everyone learned about this product form my review and if you chose to buy one, congrats!
thumb.gif


-Zepp

ProsCons
Very light, thin, great screen, has a touchscreen, keyboard is nice.Price and Razer barring the ability to upgrade the internals.

Ratings
Overall4
 
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