Kind of disappointed that Razer is still sticking with Intel and avoiding AMD CPUs. I'm in the market for a new reasonably portable work/gaming laptop, but with how good the current Zen2 mobile CPUs are compared to Intel, and the fact that they just announced Zen3 for mobile it feels like these machines are really missing out by not using AMD.
Agreed. Razer does not know how to read a room nor care about CPU performance. It'd be like putting Bulldozer CPUs into high-end laptops: it's ugly for your reputation and far worse than it hurts Intel. It is just silly stupid on Razer's part: a 45W TDP 8C/16T Intel CPU in 2021? Just what fools does Razer think we are? Or what fools should we think Razer actually is?
I don't know what ridicoulous Market Development Funds Razer gets from Intel, but it's not enough to offset the silliness of these choices. These will run extremely hot, throttle, and be slower to boot versus perhaps even 28W Zen3 configurations.
Some key "features" of the 2019 Razer Blade Pro 17, running the significantly cooler i7-9750H (6C/12T @ 4.5 GHz; versus this year's i7-10875H 8C/16T @ 5.1 GHz):
- 12% drop in multi-core performance immediately after first-use (the largest of any 17"-class laptop) - single-core performance within 10% of the ancient, low-end i5-8300H - ^^ both require high-performance mode, which forces the fans to peak at 50 dB(A), a foot or so from your face - in gaming, a keyboard between 31C to 44C, a power supply peaking at 66C, and a bottom at its hot-point grazes 48C.
How laptop manufacturers accepted Intel's x86 and Intel's CPUs chincanery is almost wholly through MDF & other anti-competitive measures now. Simply having more money sloshing around to throw at partners shouldn't dictate CPU design wins.
Congrats on the likely-Intel 2.5 GbE NIC, though, Razer. Games are the only reason I see x86 laptops having a genuine foothold for many years down the road, but Razer will bask in their multi-grand laptops while their users slowly toast.
There actually doesn't seem to be an egregious difference in performance between the 10875H and the 4800H or 4900HS. Only the 4900H has a clean win.
That said, the Ryzen chips attain that performance with less wattage and better thermals. No doubt, the best Ryzen offerings would be preferable. And obviously Zen3 offerings will be even better. Regardless, this is a moot point and hardly Razer's fault since there is literally no such hardware design that incorporates the Ryzen CPU's and Nvidia GPU's higher than the 2060. I don't know if this has changed with Zen3 and RTX 3000-Series for Laptops, but... Probably not. So fingers are pointed in the wrong place most likely. It's a bureaucratic decision that has nothing to do with Razer. Unfortunate. Well we can hope that maybe designs will exist sometime this year or that Razer opted out and others opted in.
As you can see the Advanced model is even thinner than before. Obviously less heat from the CPU is a big plus allowing higher maintained performance of the GPU and/or quieter fans.
"hardly Razer's fault since there is literally no such hardware design that incorporates the Ryzen CPU's and Nvidia GPU's higher than the 2060. I don't know if this has changed with Zen3 and RTX 3000-Series for Laptops, but... Probably not."
You're commenting this today, after a bunch of Zen 3 + 3070/3080 laptop designs have already been announced. 🤦♂️
It's absolutely Razer's choice, and it's because they're an Intel house. Other OEMs will have Zen 3 offerings that provide higher single-core and multi-core performance with better thermals.
I wish they would put numeric keypads on these things. Some of us still play FPSs this way (kidding). Seriously though, it's an instant disqualifier on an otherwise great machine. I just use the numpad way too much in both games and every-day stuff.
Finally someone is coming out with a good 1440p option. A shame that it is all Intel and there is no number pad (I use mine a lot). Would have loved a mechanical keyboard as well at that price tag. Baby steps.
Not really a controversial opinion, but Razer laptops are overpriced. I have the 2019 9750H + RTX 2080 Blade 15 and it was a terrible purchase. After a *month*, I had burn-in on my screen and weird graphics artificats. I'm waiting to upgrade and was hoping they'd jump ship to TGL-H or Cezzane but nope.
I have the same system I've been using since release in Summer '19. I also have minor burn in but only on the bottom Windows taskbar. Most noticeably the Windows start menu icon, Cortana icon and the power status icon. This is only noticeable on a pure white screen. I was also hoping for a major CPU upgrade as I'm sure you're aware, trying to game in 4K is mostly bottlenecked by its CPU and VRAM amount (This early 2021 update will fix that VRAM point). Have you reached out to Razer regarding the burn-in? I have not. I'm going to wait one more year to upgrade as I am waiting for 12th Gen Alder Lake and maybe speaker/webcam improvements, I'd love a 120Hz 4K OLED display option as well. Also, what graphical artifacts are you experiencing? Anyway, Happy New Year and I hope Razer can improve these systems sooner rather than later.
That said I'm surprised at how bad laptop OLED panels still are in terms of burn in, phone screens have been basically immune for 3-4 years now, so the panel tech for laptops has to be at least that old, if not older.
Doesn't that come down to usage? It seem that laptops on average have their screens turned for much longer periods of time than phones, which would make burn-in happen much faster.
lol what? I thought people are glued to their phones these days. If you look beyond people who actually need a laptop to do most of their work, which isn't a majority, the rest of the people should have much more phone screen time(the difference in sales tells), but still AFAIK phone screen burn in is considered universally resolved.
The system comes with that option turned on by default. It really is minor burn-in that can only be seen against a bright white image. Ideally it would not exist.
Razer: Would you like a 1080p screen instead of your 1440p display? It's only $100 more! 🤡 It has 360Hz, but you'll never see that because we're still using Skylake CPUs in 2021! 🤡🤡 We made the "advanced" model thinner, too. We hope you like heat! 🤡🤡🤡
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JustAnotherPCEnthusiast - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Kind of disappointed that Razer is still sticking with Intel and avoiding AMD CPUs. I'm in the market for a new reasonably portable work/gaming laptop, but with how good the current Zen2 mobile CPUs are compared to Intel, and the fact that they just announced Zen3 for mobile it feels like these machines are really missing out by not using AMD.kozz_man - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Just wanted to say I agree. Why is Razer avoiding AMD options? Special agreement with Intel?Arsenica - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Even more disappointing is that they are offering $2K+ laptops with a 10-gen Intel processor in 2021.At the very least they should be offering the 8 core Tiger lake-H or the 35W 4 core Tiger lake at those prices.
vladx - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
The design process probably started before Intel had TGL samples, either that or they didn't want to delay the release.s.yu - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
1185 has been available for quite some time now.Eulytaur - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
The Stealth has the i7-1165G7.Spunjji - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
It's that last bit. 8-core TGL won't be available until March, and Razer are an Intel house, so this is the best they can do.s.yu - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
Wow 2 months is as good a chance as any to actually catch up, it's the difference between being 2 months late...or well over a year late.ikjadoon - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Agreed. Razer does not know how to read a room nor care about CPU performance. It'd be like putting Bulldozer CPUs into high-end laptops: it's ugly for your reputation and far worse than it hurts Intel. It is just silly stupid on Razer's part: a 45W TDP 8C/16T Intel CPU in 2021? Just what fools does Razer think we are? Or what fools should we think Razer actually is?I don't know what ridicoulous Market Development Funds Razer gets from Intel, but it's not enough to offset the silliness of these choices. These will run extremely hot, throttle, and be slower to boot versus perhaps even 28W Zen3 configurations.
Some key "features" of the 2019 Razer Blade Pro 17, running the significantly cooler i7-9750H (6C/12T @ 4.5 GHz; versus this year's i7-10875H 8C/16T @ 5.1 GHz):
- 12% drop in multi-core performance immediately after first-use (the largest of any 17"-class laptop)
- single-core performance within 10% of the ancient, low-end i5-8300H
- ^^ both require high-performance mode, which forces the fans to peak at 50 dB(A), a foot or so from your face
- in gaming, a keyboard between 31C to 44C, a power supply peaking at 66C, and a bottom at its hot-point grazes 48C.
How laptop manufacturers accepted Intel's x86 and Intel's CPUs chincanery is almost wholly through MDF & other anti-competitive measures now. Simply having more money sloshing around to throw at partners shouldn't dictate CPU design wins.
Congrats on the likely-Intel 2.5 GbE NIC, though, Razer. Games are the only reason I see x86 laptops having a genuine foothold for many years down the road, but Razer will bask in their multi-grand laptops while their users slowly toast.
ikjadoon - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Source for the 2019 Razer Blade Pro 17 numbers: it's just abysmal and far more embarassing for Razer, who actually had a very clear choice.https://www.notebookcheck.net/So-much-better-than-...
shanugadgetsbuying - Saturday, October 16, 2021 - link
Your articles are perfectly .
gadgetsbuying.com
aenews - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
There actually doesn't seem to be an egregious difference in performance between the 10875H and the 4800H or 4900HS. Only the 4900H has a clean win.That said, the Ryzen chips attain that performance with less wattage and better thermals. No doubt, the best Ryzen offerings would be preferable. And obviously Zen3 offerings will be even better. Regardless, this is a moot point and hardly Razer's fault since there is literally no such hardware design that incorporates the Ryzen CPU's and Nvidia GPU's higher than the 2060. I don't know if this has changed with Zen3 and RTX 3000-Series for Laptops, but... Probably not. So fingers are pointed in the wrong place most likely. It's a bureaucratic decision that has nothing to do with Razer. Unfortunate. Well we can hope that maybe designs will exist sometime this year or that Razer opted out and others opted in.
s.yu - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
As you can see the Advanced model is even thinner than before. Obviously less heat from the CPU is a big plus allowing higher maintained performance of the GPU and/or quieter fans.Spunjji - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
"hardly Razer's fault since there is literally no such hardware design that incorporates the Ryzen CPU's and Nvidia GPU's higher than the 2060. I don't know if this has changed with Zen3 and RTX 3000-Series for Laptops, but... Probably not."You're commenting this today, after a bunch of Zen 3 + 3070/3080 laptop designs have already been announced. 🤦♂️
It's absolutely Razer's choice, and it's because they're an Intel house. Other OEMs will have Zen 3 offerings that provide higher single-core and multi-core performance with better thermals.
Jer Stryker - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
I wish they would put numeric keypads on these things. Some of us still play FPSs this way (kidding). Seriously though, it's an instant disqualifier on an otherwise great machine. I just use the numpad way too much in both games and every-day stuff.vladx - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Same here, no numpad no go.Rookierookie - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
I don't need a numpad, but I do need dedicated navigation keys.BlakLanner - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Finally someone is coming out with a good 1440p option. A shame that it is all Intel and there is no number pad (I use mine a lot). Would have loved a mechanical keyboard as well at that price tag. Baby steps.s.yu - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
They had a mechanical keyboard at this price point a few years ago, but backtracked.s.yu - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Interesting. The 15" tables are missing the weight and the 17" table is missing the battery capacity.Prestissimo - Monday, January 18, 2021 - link
Meaning: the 15" is heavier than the competition with Ryzen, and the 17" has worse battery life than the competition with Ryzen.Eulytaur - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
Not really a controversial opinion, but Razer laptops are overpriced. I have the 2019 9750H + RTX 2080 Blade 15 and it was a terrible purchase. After a *month*, I had burn-in on my screen and weird graphics artificats. I'm waiting to upgrade and was hoping they'd jump ship to TGL-H or Cezzane but nope.baggwell - Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - link
I have the same system I've been using since release in Summer '19. I also have minor burn in but only on the bottom Windows taskbar. Most noticeably the Windows start menu icon, Cortana icon and the power status icon. This is only noticeable on a pure white screen. I was also hoping for a major CPU upgrade as I'm sure you're aware, trying to game in 4K is mostly bottlenecked by its CPU and VRAM amount (This early 2021 update will fix that VRAM point). Have you reached out to Razer regarding the burn-in? I have not. I'm going to wait one more year to upgrade as I am waiting for 12th Gen Alder Lake and maybe speaker/webcam improvements, I'd love a 120Hz 4K OLED display option as well. Also, what graphical artifacts are you experiencing? Anyway, Happy New Year and I hope Razer can improve these systems sooner rather than later.aenews - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
Yeah the taskbar is the main burn-in concern on Windows. I recommend auto-hiding the taskbar on an OLED Display.s.yu - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
Lucky for me I already auto hide the taskbar on Windows, I mean why not? Do you have extra screen height lying around on 16:9?s.yu - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
That said I'm surprised at how bad laptop OLED panels still are in terms of burn in, phone screens have been basically immune for 3-4 years now, so the panel tech for laptops has to be at least that old, if not older.ZoZo - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
Doesn't that come down to usage? It seem that laptops on average have their screens turned for much longer periods of time than phones, which would make burn-in happen much faster.s.yu - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
lol what? I thought people are glued to their phones these days. If you look beyond people who actually need a laptop to do most of their work, which isn't a majority, the rest of the people should have much more phone screen time(the difference in sales tells), but still AFAIK phone screen burn in is considered universally resolved.baggwell - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
The system comes with that option turned on by default. It really is minor burn-in that can only be seen against a bright white image. Ideally it would not exist.Spunjji - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
Razer:Would you like a 1080p screen instead of your 1440p display? It's only $100 more! 🤡
It has 360Hz, but you'll never see that because we're still using Skylake CPUs in 2021! 🤡🤡
We made the "advanced" model thinner, too. We hope you like heat! 🤡🤡🤡
Spunjji - Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - link
(I've seriously wanted something like the Blade Pro 17 for years now, but they keep messing up more and more of the design with every passing year)