An Unfortunate Realization

So I am one of the many who have been holding off on the Razer blade (14) because of its screen. Like the other people in my boat I've been hoping for a Q1 release of the 8 series gpu's that will give Razer a reason to upgrade to an R2 and with that a new screen.

My unfortunate realization is that even with a screen refresh the chance of the panel being a 1080p display is marginally slim (see native resolution argument) and the chances of getting an IPS display option is almost not worth considering. Every laptop Razer has made has used a TN panel, so it would be a pretty dramatic change for them to go with an IPS here..

I am a UX Architect so I need a lappy with some serious power, while having a high quality display for mid level visual design. I play a lot of older games and will eventually be taking up EQ Next once its released, but there is plenty of time to get ready for that one.

So my question is, having never used a TN panel should I hold out hope for the R2 to have a quality 1080p TN panel which wont make me with it were an IPS panel?

 

Well one of the main reasons Razer allegedly chose a TN panel is response time. IPS has a typical response time of 14-25ms. There are no 14 inch HD+ IPS panels. Right now the best 14" Full HD TN panel with the same Razer's 8ms response time is this one:

AUO B140HTN01.0 Overview - Panelook.com

That would still be a substantial improvement over the one currently used. Here is a comparison:

Better colors and contrast although still poor viewing angles. There are some excellent 14" HD+ TN panels too, one of them was attempted to be modded in by one of the RB14 owners here. However they all seem to be discontinued at the moment.

So nobody knows for sure, you can wait and see what Razer does or get an alternative that might come short in other aspects.

 

Thanks for the response sir,

Yeah I understand why they chose to go with a ton panel. The response time coupled with the battery savings make sense. It just sucks that a 1080p IPS panel (I believe the alienware 14 has a pretty decent one) isn't an option.

Coming from someone who has only used IPS panels its a tough pill to swallow that I need to choose between a quality high res, high viewing angle display with a mediocre ulv processor or the Razer blade, which exceeds in everything except the screen.

If only voodoo PC had not been bought out by HP, we might have other options lol

 

You can look into Gigabyte P34G, which is significantly lighter than Blade, just a bit thicker and has 1080p IPS screen with GTX 760M. Only 4 hours on battery or so though.

 

Don't forget louder and probably hotter.

 

And likely not as well built though I haven't researched that model

 

And it doesn't even have a Razer logo on the lid, what a horrible thing. P34G actually is cooler to the touch, much cooler in handrest/touchpad area under load.

No two laptops are the same, every laptop will have its drawbacks. For example I'm pretty sure than Blade 14 performs worse in games than Blade Pro, AW14, and W230ST although it has the same GPU. I'd love to see more testing done, but there aren't many active owners here.

I personally can't imagine using Blade without an external screen, some people might be fine with it though. P34G makes up for that though while keeping a similar slim frame, so that's why I recommended it. Here is a nice comparison for you:

You can guess which one is which I assume.

 

Sorry I don't look at my laptop at those angles. Not saying the panel is good, but I'll take a 900p 765M over a 1080p 760M any day for gaming. These two units are not trying for the same market. Depends on what your main use case is.

 

You can look at the laptop at any angle, Blade doesn't display black colors, doesn't have color accuracy and will color shift as you move your head slightly. That's a fact. I have my Lenovo Y470 with cheap 720p screen, it's very similar in its atrocious black levels, everything is gray. P34G displaying in 900p will still look miles better than Blade, while the performance gap is about 10% for Blade and a bit more for other GTX 765M laptops.

Those 2 laptops are exactly the same market, they are gaming portable laptops. Each one has positives and negatives, some of them might be a dealbreaker for certain people.

 

True, is still think it's the best all around unit right now as fan noise is very important to my needs (sitting next to the wife on the couch with a lap desk) I'm holding out for the next revision of the blade 14, I suspect there will be one as if there was a better panel it would be running away with the 14" and below gaming category. I'm still dealing with this heavy Sammy 7 right now. The weight is a pain but the display is awesome. I'd be willing to take a step back in display quality as I have a MacBook pro for work, but I don't want to have to break native res or step down in perf. Like you say, everyone has their own priorities.

 

What kind of technology is behind the new QHD / QHD+ displays (same as Mac retina display)? Do those screens have low response times?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/wha...1-any-laptops-qhd-qhd-screen-resolutions.html

 

I've heard a rumor that the next Blade 14" will have a Sharp IGZO 3,200 x 1,800 (WQHD+) display:
Sharp to Produce 3 Types of IGZO LCD Panels for Notebook PCs | Press Releases | Sharp Global
It would likely come out along with a bump in the Nvidia GPU, which my guess would be early next year.

 

Not that Razer has any set pattern for product releases.... but I don't actually expect the new blades to be available for pre-order until March of 2014.... Remember I ordered the 14'' blade within 4 weeks of it being available, and still did not receive one until end of July early August... I just don't see them releasing a new model soo quickly it would cannobalize their current gen's sales....

With that being said I hope your right, as soon as the new blade comes out I am pre-ordering and than selling my current gen once I receive it....

I will gladly pay $1k a year "Typically getting a new razer blade every year will net me a $1k loss" to keep current with these Razer Blades. I only have one laptop for "work, gaming,multimedia, and travel", I even hook my blade up to my 55 inch smart tv to play NBA 2k13 when my friends come over.... I literally can not justify purchasing an Xone or PS4 this blade is soo convenient....

Sorry for the rant, I just can't speak more good about this laptop. I know the screen sucks but I never use it unless I am away from my desk or Smart TV... just can't get over how much power they have pact into such a sexy and portable design.

 

Where did you hear this rumor exactly? I mean it makes sense as long as there's a GPU in it that can do half rez (1080p) justice on the downscale that will be needed to play games.

Actually nevemind, 765M would be enough half rez is 1600x900.. 2:40AM math. .. Time to sleep..

 

And there it is: Razer refreshes its Blade gaming laptops with NVIDIA Maxwell GPUs, multitouch support

 

Props to you sir!