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    Razer Blade (2014) Owner's Lounge

    Discussion in 'Razer' started by Xanterra, Mar 13, 2014.

  1. Xanterra

    Xanterra Notebook Enthusiast

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    The new Razer Blade looks amazing. Figured we might as well start this thread to answer constructive questions and provide feedback from owners of the notebook. Also, until it finally comes out we might as well have a centralized location to share information and post reviews (especially professional reviews when they come out).

    Collected Info

    The 10% discount can be received at this page, even though the original page is down.
    http://www.razerzone.com/partner/education
    Note that this requires that your school to be on the list.
    Edit: Razer claims that the discount has been discontinued temporarily, and says to watch their Facebook page for updates.
     
    Xanterra, Mar 13, 2014
    #1
  2. aaronjb

    aaronjb Notebook Consultant

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    I've placed my preorder for a 256GB variant.

    Does anyone know if these will be shipped on 4/4?
     
    aaronjb, Mar 13, 2014
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  3. tallen1331

    tallen1331 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Placed my order yesterday for the 256GB version as well.

    Now time to play the waiting game...
     
    tallen1331, Mar 13, 2014
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  4. eL777

    eL777 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Future owner of the 256gb version as well. Here's to hoping everything gets shipped out on time. I'm pretty excited for this, giving my wife the 2013 razer.
     
    eL777, Mar 13, 2014
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  5. jl0329

    jl0329 Notebook Guru

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    Anyway to get the 10% even if you are not in school anymore :D

    I am going to order as soon as they confirm it has a 2nd slot for SSD (non-m2)

    Fingers crossed
     
    jl0329, Mar 13, 2014
    #5
  6. johnnobts

    johnnobts Notebook Deity

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    Would've used my seminary email address if I knew it would work.
     
    johnnobts, Mar 13, 2014
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  7. qinxian

    qinxian Notebook Enthusiast

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    preordered the 256gb blade. looking to sell my blade 2013 soon.

    it's written "pre-ordered release date:Thu Apr 03 11:00:00 CDT 2014" on my order form. will make such a great birthday present from me to me! hahaha
     
    qinxian, Mar 13, 2014
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  8. Xanterra

    Xanterra Notebook Enthusiast

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    If it's on the following list, it'll work. My son already has a college email address, and I'd use his, but his school isn't on the list.
    Academy of Art University
    Arizona State University
    Art Center College of Design
    Art Institute
    Austin Community College Game Development Institute
    Boston University
    Carnegie Mellon University
    Digipen
    Drexel University
    Full Sail
    Georgia Institute of Technology
    Luther College
    Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    Nanyang Polytechnic
    New Jersey Institute of Technology
    New York University
    Purdue University
    Republic Polytechnic
    Rochester Institute of Technology
    Saddleback College
    Singapore Management University
    SUNY Oneonta
    University of Florida
    University of Illinois
    University of Michigan
    University of Louisiana
    University of Washington
     
    Xanterra, Mar 13, 2014
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  9. Natadiem

    Natadiem Notebook Evangelist

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    Thanks for starting the thread :). Ordered the 128gb. I will switch to 1tb.
    I could order thanks to us address renting service. I am so happy to see a 14inch with high end gpu.
     
    Natadiem, Mar 13, 2014
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  10. IceStorm

    IceStorm Notebook Consultant

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    Hmm. Mine says the release date is April 4th at 00:00 CDT. I ordered the 512GB version.
     
    IceStorm, Mar 13, 2014
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  11. jl0329

    jl0329 Notebook Guru

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    Btw, since it's touch screen. Does anyone know if it has a digitizer?
     
    jl0329, Mar 14, 2014
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  12. imelectronic

    imelectronic Notebook Geek

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    seems like a feature they would promote if it was. everything seems to state basic capacitive
     
    imelectronic, Mar 14, 2014
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  13. johnnobts

    johnnobts Notebook Deity

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    looks like 256gb is the popular order. that's what my last blade 14 was. but with so many games from steam and origin, need the extra space so 512GB it is. Hope those of you looking to upgrade afrter buying are able to track down other M2 SSDs at a reasonable price. I haven't seen any.
     
    johnnobts, Mar 14, 2014
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  14. Natadiem

    Natadiem Notebook Evangelist

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    The m2 sata offer will be coming in q2, q3. If u can t wait it s better to take razer option.
     
    Natadiem, Mar 14, 2014
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  15. fayth

    fayth Notebook Evangelist

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    so is better to get 512 from factor rather than 256 for now?
     
    fayth, Mar 14, 2014
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  16. Natadiem

    Natadiem Notebook Evangelist

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    I suppose because only crucial m.2 exists at 480gb. Kingston m.2 1tb was just shown at ces 2014. But no availability date ...But are we really sure it s m.2? The old one had msata x2 no? And which m.2 size? The safer bet is to take the razer option for now.
     
    Natadiem, Mar 14, 2014
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  17. hfm

    hfm Notebook Prophet

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    Do you need more than 256GB? Only you can answer that.
     
    hfm, Mar 14, 2014
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  18. aaronjb

    aaronjb Notebook Consultant

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    I read some of the cursory "hands on" treatments out there, and I'm excited. The screen was the major bummer for me with last year's iteration. Support treated me well when I complained, and I eventually returned the Blade. The GPU and CPU upgrades are the icing on the cake, as far as I'm concerned.

    They've done right by us in listening to the feedback, and have gone a step beyond in my opinion.

    Hopefully this will get to my house in time to use it as my rig at PAX East. I added priority shipping, so I'm hopeful that 4/4 is the actual ship date.
     
    aaronjb, Mar 14, 2014
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  19. Xanterra

    Xanterra Notebook Enthusiast

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    Assuming that it's just a mSATA drive, we should be able to upgrade it ourselves.
    I'm personally getting a 128GB version and upgrading it with a Samsung EVO mSATA 1TB.
    Amazon.com: Samsung 840 EVO MZ-MTE1T0BW 1TB mSATA Internal SSD Single Unit Version: Computers & Accessories
    Total cost should be about the same as the 512GB and I'll get 1TB of storage as well as a 128GB drive to use in something else.
    If it only fits M.2 drives, then I'll have to go with the 560GB crucial instead, but it's a similar idea.
     
    Xanterra, Mar 14, 2014
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  20. GeraldNunn

    GeraldNunn Notebook Consultant

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    I assume the RAM will not be upgradeable as per the last 14?
     
    GeraldNunn, Mar 14, 2014
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  21. jl0329

    jl0329 Notebook Guru

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    Wait, so it's confirmed it uses M2? Not mSata? Source please. I really want to know this. Because I've heard people saying it will be mSATA.

    Can anyone provide source for this? Because if it's M2, I might go for 256gb. Otherwise anything above 128gb is a waste to me.
     
    jl0329, Mar 14, 2014
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  22. ygohome

    ygohome Notebook Deity

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    Razer's website says M.2 Sata

    I think some people are saying mSATA because that is what was used in the previous version. The new Razer Blade is marketed as using M.2 SATA for storage.
     
    ygohome, Mar 14, 2014
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  23. johnnobts

    johnnobts Notebook Deity

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    yeah, the razerzone website lists the tech specs as an m2 sata... pretty sure that's not a typo. and wouldn't necessarily hold fast to the idea the low res image of the internals are for this new generation blade, either (as in may not be an msata slot at all).
     
    johnnobts, Mar 14, 2014
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  24. johnnobts

    johnnobts Notebook Deity

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    can't wait to try titanfall in 3k. will have to dial down everything else obviously.
     
    johnnobts, Mar 14, 2014
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  25. jl0329

    jl0329 Notebook Guru

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    Oh CRAP! If both slots are M.2, then I might wait a little longer before pulling the trigger. I seriously think the whole M.2 standard is just to rip us off (as the price of mSata or normal SATA are finally dropping to a reasonable level).

    Btw, just read an article about Razor spending $380K on R&D to make their USB port green. Interesting....
     
    jl0329, Mar 14, 2014
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  26. mturkel99

    mturkel99 Notebook Consultant

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    I was under the impression that M.2 had two advantages over mSATA: its form factor made it easier to use in smaller laptops (like the Razer) and it used less power. Aren't these both good things?
     
    mturkel99, Mar 14, 2014
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  27. hfm

    hfm Notebook Prophet

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    Let's just wait for the inevitable disassembly and review and we will see what is available internally. The previous had a free mSATA, we won't know about the new one unless someone takes it apart or Razer tells us.
     
    hfm, Mar 14, 2014
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  28. jl0329

    jl0329 Notebook Guru

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    Definitely, but the price isn't that good. It's going to be harder to replace/upgrade
     
    jl0329, Mar 14, 2014
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  29. jl0329

    jl0329 Notebook Guru

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    I guess you are right. The waiting game... fingers crossed :D
     
    jl0329, Mar 14, 2014
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  30. Devenox

    Devenox Notebook Evangelist

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    Nobody concerned about heat? The 2013 model can get very hot after some hours of gaming (i mean case temps) now they are adding 1mm to cool an extra 40W?? (gtx765m vs 870m) I would liked it with a more moderate MAXWELL gtx860m that would only use half the TDP (and so heat) with just <20% performance loss...
     
    Devenox, Mar 14, 2014
    #30
  31. IKAS V

    IKAS V Notebook Prophet

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    That's the million dollar question for sure, but I'm with you about the 860M Maxwell and to tell you the truth I think RAZER may have overreached with the 3200 x 1800 screen res for especially for gaming. Don't get me wrong I think it's great that RAZER is using this incredible screen but I would have been fine with just an improved 1080p screen.
    Can't wait for user reviews to start rolling in before spending my hard earned money on this beauty,it's gonna be interesting for sure.
     
    IKAS V, Mar 15, 2014
    #31
  32. ryajso

    ryajso Notebook Consultant

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    Pretty sure Razer meant for gamers to run games at max 900p, which wouldn`t look too bad at all considering its only 14inch and the pixels would scale perfectly. 1800p would be difficult to push even for an 870m, maybe next year, until then deal with it cause this is an amazing laptop and you guys know it.
     
    ryajso, Mar 15, 2014
    #32
  33. IKAS V

    IKAS V Notebook Prophet

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    OK buddy I will deal with it but you are right about one thing it is an amazing laptop on paper but until we see how it handles a 100W GPU without throttling or be gimped in anyway then I will truly be amazed.
     
    IKAS V, Mar 15, 2014
    #33
  34. mario64

    mario64 Notebook Evangelist

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    Having previously used a RMBP, I can tell you that gaming at exactly 1/2 native screen resolution still looks fuzzy compared to native.
     
    mario64, Mar 15, 2014
    #34
  35. Quadzilla

    Quadzilla The eye is watching you

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    1680x1050 and 1920x1200 looked better on the RMBP then 1440x900 which was exactly half the res. Everyone expected the half resolution to look best but yeah it didnt.

    Either way with all the resolution choices you will have from 3200x1800 down to 1600x900 i am sure there will be some that look good and still offer some decent clarity while giving a bucket load more performance then native will.
     
    Quadzilla, Mar 15, 2014
    #35
    be77solo and dajohu like this.
  36. doctorandrew

    doctorandrew Notebook Enthusiast

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    Just place my pre-order for the 512GB version. Going to put my razer blade 2013 512GB on craigslist soon for $500. Hopefully the laptop will get her early next month.
     
    doctorandrew, Mar 16, 2014
    #36
  37. Waru

    Waru Notebook Consultant

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    Only $500? What'd you do to the thing? o_o
     
    Waru, Mar 16, 2014
    #37
  38. doctorandrew

    doctorandrew Notebook Enthusiast

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    Nothing. Just trying to get some value back towards upgrading to the new one.
     
    doctorandrew, Mar 16, 2014
    #38
  39. hfm

    hfm Notebook Prophet

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    It's worth at least double that...
     
    hfm, Mar 16, 2014
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  40. fusoyaii

    fusoyaii Notebook Guru

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    no, no it isn't. i'll give you $400.

    jk, yea you can definitely get more for it.
     
    fusoyaii, Mar 16, 2014
    #40
  41. Waru

    Waru Notebook Consultant

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    Exactly...I knew I wasn't going crazy. Definitely not $500...
     
    Waru, Mar 16, 2014
    #41
  42. jl0329

    jl0329 Notebook Guru

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    I'd glady pay $500 for it :D
     
    jl0329, Mar 16, 2014
    #42
  43. Natadiem

    Natadiem Notebook Evangelist

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    Natadiem, Mar 16, 2014
    #43
  44. hfm

    hfm Notebook Prophet

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    hfm, Mar 17, 2014
    #44
  45. mturkel99

    mturkel99 Notebook Consultant

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    I was thinking exactly the same thing...
     
    mturkel99, Mar 17, 2014
    #45
  46. Skillz

    Skillz Notebook Consultant

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    I also really hope the fans aren't that much louder compared to last year's model.
    On a more positive note the article claims the speakers have been 'boosted' with Dolby, which hopefully solves the "smartphone" like speaker quality on 2013's model.
     
    Skillz, Mar 17, 2014
    #46
  47. Devenox

    Devenox Notebook Evangelist

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    Why couldnt they listen and put a gtx860M into it.. Still more performance than prev gen, less heat and lower noise as a consequence...
    The shell didnt change and the internal space was already close to perfection for cooling. So adding a higher TDP gpu wil directly translate into more heat and noise
     
    Devenox, Mar 17, 2014
    #47
  48. Natadiem

    Natadiem Notebook Evangelist

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    I have a 24 4k dell monitor and a r290x can barely run max diablo3. So 870m is really minimum. Therefore, they wanted to be the best performing 14inch. You will find 860m in msi, gigabyte etc.
     
    Natadiem, Mar 17, 2014
    #48
  49. Devenox

    Devenox Notebook Evangelist

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    That +15% performance difference wont let it suddently run smooth... You can still game @ 1600x900..
    You dont find ANY GTX860M in any 14''er..

    You also know the prev gen blade was already quite warm. Still acceptable, but it was playing on the edge with it, now it has crossed that line. Not everybody lives in Siberia or the North pole

    About the diablo 3 stuff, I dont know what the rest of your specs are but at; 2560x1440 it already runs smooth @ 60FPS on an 7870, considering the R290X is about double as fast, I dont see you getting dips below 50/60FPS on 4K res.
    Source: high-2560.png
     
    Devenox, Mar 17, 2014
    #49
  50. ijozic

    ijozic Notebook Deity

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    Can you tell me where did you get the 15% performance difference from? I just saw some rough 3dMark numbers, but IIRC 870M numbers were getting close to 780M (e.g. roughly 6800 points for 870M vs 5100 for the 860M). Perhaps I missed something?

    Regarding the TDP, I presume this is where the battery boost comes into play to limit the FPS and detail level and/or play in 16x9 mode (to limit the GPU usage) in case you're using it on the move and you have the extra power in case you're at home and connected to some larger monitor (some notebook cooling pad wouldn't hurt here, too). It all depends how you look at it and what are your needs. I currently use two laptops (small 13" for mobile use and a larger 17" workstation for everyday work/gaming) as it's not convenient for me to have a desktop currently. But with this Razer I could perhaps have just one laptop with an external monitor (would have to see how it handles the heat and if hopefully some external cooling would help with the heat dissipation).

    Preferably, the 860M would have been a customization option, but they don't offer those (probably because of a low volume produced).
     
    ijozic, Mar 17, 2014
    #50
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