Consumer electronics company Razer has unveiled its latest flagship gaming laptops, the Razer Blade 16 and Razer Blade 18, ahead of CES 2024. The new laptops focus heavily on groundbreaking display technology to deliver best-in-class visuals for gamers and creative professionals.
Blade 16 Touts World’s First 240Hz OLED Laptop Display
The star of Razer’s CES lineup is the refreshed Razer Blade 16, now featuring the world’s first 16-inch 240Hz OLED laptop display.
| Specifications | Razer Blade 16 Display |
|---|---|
| Size | 16 inches |
| Resolution | QHD+ (2560 x 1600) |
| Refresh Rate | 240Hz |
| Panel Type | OLED |
| Touch Enabled | No |
| Factory Calibrated | Yes |
| VESA Certified | DisplayHDRTM 500 True Black |
With a blazing fast 240Hz refresh rate combined with OLED’s true blacks and ultra-low response times, the Blade 16 is primed to offer unprecedented fluidity and image quality for high-framerate gaming and content creation.
Early hands-on testing from digital trends described the display as “drop-dead gorgeous” and “in a class of its own”, with inky blacks and vibrant, accurate colors. The OLED panel is factory calibrated for color accuracy and also VESA DisplayHDR 500 certified.
Razer emphasized this laptop display is optimized specifically for gaming, unlike OLED panels used in TVs and phones. Response times as low as 0.2ms eliminate smearing and motion blur almost completely.
The Blade 16 chassis has also gotten a slight redesign, with thinner screen bezels allowing an immersive 16:10 aspect ratio display to fit the notebook footprint. Up to 32GB DDR5 RAM, 2TB PCIe Gen 4 storage, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 40-series GPU will provide cutting edge performance.
Blade 18 Sets New Bar with 4K 165Hz Gaming Panel
In addition to the Blade 16, Razer unveiled the upcoming Blade 18 model which pushes boundaries even further with the “world’s first 18-inch 165Hz 4K laptop display”.
| Specifications | Razer Blade 18 Display |
|---|---|
| Size | 18 inches |
| Resolution | 4K UHD (3840 x 2160) |
| Refresh Rate | 165Hz |
| Panel Type | IPS LCD |
| Touch Enabled | No |
| Factory Calibrated | Yes |
| VESA Certified | DisplayHDRTM 400 True Black |
While not OLED, the combination of 4K resolution and buttery-smooth 165Hz refresh rate is a first for laptops. The 17% faster refresh delivers heightened responsiveness for AAA gaming and graphics work compared to 144Hz.
The larger screen real estate amplifies immersion for gamers and also multitasking capabilities. Razer emphasizes the Blade 18 is still portable at just 0.89 inches thick thanks to narrow bezels and expert thermal engineering.
Nvidia RTX 4080-class graphics, desktop-grade i9 CPU, and vapor chamber cooling ensure optimal performance is maintained even under heavy loads. Up to 64GB DDR5 RAM and 4TB PCIe Gen 4 storage provide room for the most demanding games and media projects.
What This Means for the Gaming Laptop Market
Razer has made clear they intend to dominate the 2024 gaming laptop landscape with these new visually-focused machines. The specs leave competitors in the dust – no other manufacturer has managed to combine next-gen display technologies with elite gaming performance in such slim and sleek chassis.
The bar has been raised substantially – viewers can expect a race by other brands to catch up with 240Hz OLED and 165Hz 4K panels over the next couple years. For now though, early hands-on impressions are glowing for the new Razer Blade laptops. They are poised to provide best-in-class visual fidelity for AAA gaming, creative workloads like video editing, and passive viewing of movies and videos.
Both models are expected to launch by Q2 2024. Specific pricing details have yet to be announced but will likely start around $2,500 based on the previous generation pricing.
While catering directly to gamers and creators, the ripple effect of advancing display technology cannot be understated. Razer’s heavy investments to bring these displays to market could accelerate OLED and high refresh rate adoption across other Windows laptop manufacturers. More affordable options for mainstream consumers would likely follow in coming years.
For now, aspiring buyers should brace for a price premium but those able to splurge are in for a visual treat with the next Blade 16 and Blade 18 later this year. Between scintillating OLED or buttery 165Hz 4K, Razer seems poised to continue pushing the gaming laptop space into new frontiers.
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