Razer Blade 15 RTX update

RTX 2080 Max-Q? I am glad I refunded my 2018 one .

Things that are still a concern:

- No Windows hello mention?
- That right FN key which everyone mistakes for a right key arrow seems to still be there
- Confirmation of secondary keys being backlit? Or same as previous version?

I'll probably wait for the 10nm CPU upgrade before getting a laptop. The 14nm Coffeelake CPU's just run too hot naturally.

 

Still the odd up arrow placemat but now with backlit f keys!

Stills keeps the 8750H processor, 2666mhz RAM and SSD. But adds RTX 2060, RTX 2070 or RTX 2080 (all max-q).

They will still sell the 1060 model as a budget version.

They're working on both a 240hz screen as well as a 4k OLED.

Pricing is:
1060 - $1599
2060 - $2,299
2070 - $2,599
2080 - $2,999

I spent $2400 (£1919) on the blade 1070. So pricing is a little spicier as expected.

 

If they added secondary key back-lighting, that would be a huge upgrade. I didn't realise how much I missed it as I use my Blade 15, which a lot of the times are in dark rooms.

 

Naaw, they won’t change that “fundamental feature” as it was not possible to have both the individually lit keys and display secondary function, at least that was the explanation they provided.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Apparently the 240hz and OLED are meant as a technical exercise, or is it something reserved for the most expensive 17 incher that they would develop and display in may/jun 2019


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

But you got to hand it to them, they really know how to market. Their laptops might not be backed by technical experts or have the QC most other companies deploy, but their laptops are gorgeous and a “hot” ,sexy and technical feat unto themselves.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

ready to purchase ;-)

 

There’s some new features beside rtx:
-Motherboard can support up to 3200 ddr4 ram
-Double speaker
-Yes Windows hallo
-Function keys backlight
On Ces i heard that they will introduce 240Hz Panel one, even though on web specifications it’s 144Hz, not quite sure about this.
Complete pricing

 

Yes Blade is always sexy, like girls, you don’t know what inside

 

Were the 2060 Advanced priced at $1,999, I'd pre-order today. As it sits, though, I can't justify the effective $1,000 price premium over what I spent on my open-box Base model.

 

Can you already pre order it? All models?

 

It is not only Razer going full retard by putting a 2080MQ into these thin designs, can't imagine the results (performance and thermals) being appropriate for the price tag.

 

Was thinking the same thing. I think the thermals are going to be a disaster.

 

Apparently not. Maybe it will happen with the retail release of the desktop RTX 2060. Who knows?

Speaking of, I'd be curious to see how a 2060 performs in an eGPU environment. Should be a nice boost over the 1060 Max-Q, and it wouldn't break the bank like a RTX 2070 or high potentially could.

 

This is the reason i went 1070 over 1060. as i knew the RTX models were likely to arrive soon. So i'll still be happy when the 2170 is announced! Plus RTX might actually be worth it by then!

 

Since it’s literally 1070ti with extra new features it’ll be some advantages over 1060maxq under some condition, not on games that already get high FPS at 1080p, that’s egpu big weakness. The difference with my 2070 Black actually €150 with around 15% performance difference, so before 2070 was the best value for the performance but now maybe 2060 but not by much. Personally I would go directly to 2070 non OC like evga Black, since on egpu setting due PSU limitation you won’t get same OC value like desktop. But on 2070 Black I use mostly 2040 MHz clock with manual afterburner OC, way higher than its default 1600mhz boost clock and it’s stable and never crashed since I owned it, unlike other cards i tried. Fe is always bad on this department even on Turing that is already factory OC, and due metal cassis, the temperature is also not as good as Evga cards (tried xc 2080 gaming before) that make Fans Sensor on egpu enclosure keep running.

 

Is there a release date for these? I just picked up a MW 1060mq version and am still in the return window time.

 

rtx 2080 in that form factor is a nuclear meltdown waiting to happen. desktop rtx 2080 runs hot enough as is, never mind in a thin-light laptop. Eager to see thermal results, no doubt they will all require liquid metal to keep things under control.

 

Only bad cooling one runs hot my xc 2080 never leave 70ish, Black 2070 never leave 60ish with max OC both above 2000mhz frequency, 2070 even stay mostly on 2040 way over its default 1600mhz boost clock on any game I throw. It’s egpu setting though but must be similar, Asus Turbo 2080ti and 2080fe easily stay on 80ish.
On a laptop we don’t know yet...Nuclear boom count down .

 

Rather it will just throttle down really fast. I think the 2060 version might be the best one to get, as the 2070/80, although will provide improvements, may not be that BIG of an improvement factoring in throttling?

 

Likely will be able to counter the throttle with liquid metal since they will be using vapor chamber. Undervolt CPU + GPU should also be able to help, but won’t know until somebody gets a hold of the actual machine

 

I think it's unrealistic for liquid metal to be mandatory in order for a laptop to function as advertised. Not only does it void the warranty it puts the machine at risk. For many people it simply isn't worth it.

 

Razer rep on reddit confirmed it didn’t void warranty, so long as you do not damage anything in the process of doing the repaste. I also think it’s sillu to have to resort to galinstan to make things work right, but that’s just the nature of the beast when it comes to performance laptops, regardless of make. Thermal envelope and conductivity is brand agnostic, science is science. That being said, some solutions are more clever than others but they are largely the same across manufacturers. The heatsink itself as well as the fans tend to be good, but the compound tends to be garbage and even high performance non-galinstan compounds cannot saturate the heatsink fast enough to effectively cool the CPU/GPU.

 

Wow really. So, if repasting with liquid metal does not void the warranty, what if the liquid metal leaks at some point in the future, due to gravity or something along those lines? I will be traveling back and forth between a hot country, so, the laptop will experience hotter ambient temperature on average and will always find itself in my backpack. I'm concerned the hotter ambient temps plus position will cause a leak, which may short my computer. I tend to agree with you regarding galinstan and how effective it can be, CPU's and GPU's are powerful and will produce a lot of heat no matter what. It would have been nice to see a 3rd fan in the refresh as in the MSI GS65. Finally, do you own one of the new blades? I've heard that they are not as well built as initially suspected, do you have any info regarding that?

 

This guy doesn’t know even Blade 1070maxq is already capable playing overwatch on 4K 60fps

 

I use liquid ultra on my rb2016/1060 and rbp2017/1060, I carry both around and neither have “leaked” liquid metal. I used t carry around much heavier Alienware and never had a problem with their liquid metal applications either. Liquid metal likes to stick to itself, it doesn’t magically fly out so long as you haven’t used excessive amounts and your heatsink is tightened down all the way, provided it fits well. Heat has nothing to do with the state of the liquid metal, so long as you do not exceed the rated temperature, which is far beyond anything you would ever encounter short of a fire. I have no protection in any of my systems, I just know not to apply globs and globs of liquid metal, just a tiny dot on the die and another tiny dot on the heatsink, spread both out, tighten down the heatsink, then remove the heatsink again to check how it has spread out after a day or so.

New “advanced” RB models are equipped with a vapor chamber heatsink that covers all the critical components, but can further be improved with usage of liquid metal compounds and better quality thermal pads provided they are exactly the same thickness. The “base” models should be avoided at all costs as they do not use a vapor chamber heatsink and also leave the PCH completely uncooled, which is a recipe for disaster.


On the top of all this, every blade should be undervolted on every possible setting, preferably in the BIOS (which you have to custom unlock and reflash to access those features) so that the value is always in effect. I use throttlestop to find the stable values then apply them in the BIOS.

In the case of my RBP, my fans are not active at idle or web browsing, and they never enter jet mode when gaming. CPU/GPU temps never exceed 70C even when fully loaded. It’s the only way to prolong the life of your blade.

 

I think recently I saw somewhere, maybe on Reddit some Blade 15 user found a hole in his mobo or cpu after checking his LM result, don’t remember exactly due liquid metal and become paperweight when I’m not wrong, wrong repasting job? Or maybe there’s no enough room inside that for a proper LM?

 

Very interesting, thanks for sharing all the info. Truly appreciate it.

 

Very good post. Would this need to be done for every BIOS update that Razer pushes out? Any good source for Advanced Unlock for the Razer?

 

There is absolutely no way galinstan will make a hole in a CPU or his motherboard, its just not chemically possible. You would have heard widespread reports by now of LM putting holes in CPUs if that were the case, which it is absolutely false. The only way I can imagine a "hole" forming is if he was sloppy with his job and got it on some aluminum component somewhere and corroded it, creating the "hole", and it had to be there for some prolonged period of time, exposed to heat and air which would accelerate the corrosion process.

Mod has to be applied to any subsequent BIOS updates in case of EC reset, which would wipe out the values and you'd have no way to re-assign the values in the BIOS.

 

I just found that thread, here. I’m not repasting master but it’s pretty bad for sure(not read entire tread yet)

 

I saw that thread, that guy was an idiot. Why would you sand down and poke (read:chisel) away at the new copper galinstan alloy? It forms a new compound altogether, you cannot simply remove one from the other if it has alloyed like that. He had the LM solidify, which I’ve had happen to me exactly ONCE: the fit between heatsink and die was not airtight, causing rapid oxidization of the LM and it turning to solid material (gallium component gets leeched into the copper, leaving behind the tin as the “dust”). In my case, I removed the offending thermal pad that has caused the air gap, used a thinner pad, cleaned the solid residue by slowly wiping with 91 alcohol, then adding more LM and screwing everything back together, never had a problem again. The reduced thermal conductivity of the new alloyed material is negligible in the case of laptops.

That computer is the M18x R1-> R2 in my signature. It is still working perfectly fine ever since that thermal pad was removed and new LM was added.

 

I have a RB15 repaste with liquid metal by HIDevolution, i carry the RB15 daily, lug it around in my messenger bag, no problems with the LM leaking out or anything like that, after 2 months the performance remains constant. I live in a country where the ambient temp is at a constant 30-35C with high humidity (trophical weather). That said, no one knows what are the long term effects of LM on the laptop.

 

I do. One of the computers in my signature has had liquid ultra on it for 5 years now, no change in temperature, still cools very very well.

 

Can you setup a manual fan curve for the RB 15(0 rpm minimum)?

 

No. And till now seemly no one who accessed the bios successfull unlock even overclocking menu like bios undervolting. If it’s needed I’ll try at my risk to dive the bios at day one...and l if also the price was like overpowered wallmart laptop

 

Thanks for the reply, saved me registering on the Razer forums... it's a shame some of these laptops are so locked down even for settings that don't have potential for damage

 

Unfortunately, most notebooks nowadays have the fan curve controlled by the EC firmware, so even if it is possible to unlock the Bios menus, it won't help.

 

I'm surprised Razer isn't having a sale price on the outgoing 1070 and 1060 models. Seems like a good way to keep units on the shelf and not sell.

Did they release pricing on the new models?

 

The Microsoft Store is selling the 1070 model for $2,200.

 

And on Razer store, Mercury 1060 and some turkey bundle...
https://www.razer.com/promos/gift-guide/laptops

 

So on Razers site it's €2880 for a RTX 2060(doesn't mention Max Q like the 2070/2080 versions) with Full HD 144Hz display and 512GB SSD, don't even get Windows 10 Professional lol.

 

Depends the country, poor countries pay only for €2499,99 And Student get 5% discount.
Razer never give 10 pro, even to 4,5K Blade Pro, you can get it on eBay for €20 or maybe less. Windows Hello and other hardware update is more important, you can’t but those things on eBay lolol
Btw all maxq architecture. It’ll melt if they put full 2060

 

Ah didn't know about the student discount I wonder what the difference will be like, over €600 difference between a 1060 and 2060 with other hardware kept the same

Why >.<, MSI does it too and others :s Does upgrading the key override the one saved in the BIOS that it comes with? True about the hardware lol

WHY NO 2 YEAR WARRANTY even in the eu

 

Good point, with base Model? Base model comes with no windows hallo. Last advanced 1060 144Hz 512gb cost 2150...in poor country So difference only 300.
I never need Pro on Blade, so idk, but if you upgrade why still need home?
Hmm Warranty is seemly vary, dude from UK said 1 with extra EU protection like 5 year, but from my experience I got always 2 years due EU import law, have proof from their cs mail and free repair experience after over a year usage maybe because poor country lol.

 

Nah the Advanced was with the 144Hz + 512GB SSD was 22xx and the Advanced with 2060 with 144Hz + 512GB SSD was 28xx lol.

I know about the laws/directives but simply seeing 2 years warranty at least for the models sold in the EU would increase confidence when considering buying one lol, especially since you can't buy extended warranty like other regions. You didn't pay anything for the repair?

Really surprised ASUS didn't announce a GM501 refresh with RTX tbh

 

Not in German or France store, idk why on other countries, I think last time I check Scandinavia (EU store) are higher, maybe due costumes on specific country?
Before buying I asked cs, there answered 2, and I bought. From retailers like Media-Saturn here, you can buy their extra hardware protection. It was my old Blade 14, it stated because within guarantee period Razer took all fee, shipping was also free btw (this also seemly vary, some didn’t get shipping label)

 

I'm picked Ireland in the store so not sure ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

Added some info above. Yeah Irland is also rich Upper EU area is like high income Area lol, Swiss maybe exception.
BTW my old Blade 2015 was bought from UK store it had 2 years guarantee according germany CS per phone and e Mail, maybe there’s some changes after.