14-inch Razer Blade gets more power, 1080p matte display, and a lower price

Razer’s high-class gaming laptop is bringing VR power in a small package with a more sensible display.

The company’s Blade laptop now features the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 graphics processor. That’s almost the exact same chip as the desktop 1060, and it means that the Razer Blade can handle the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive VR headsets and nearly any game at full HD and 60 frames per second. To maximize performance and battery for discerning gamers, Razer is also introducing a model with a 1080p matte display. That’s a lower resolution than the previous generation of this laptop, but it’s one that makes more sense for gaming on a 14-inch portable screen. That lower resolution means the company is also starting the Blade at $1,800 for the 256 GB version as opposed to $2,000. Starting at $2,100, you can get a model with the QHD+ IGZO touch screen.

Razer’s new Blade is available for preorder today, and it ships in October in the United States. You can grab one worldwide in November.

I’ve already had some experience with the GTX 1060 in a laptop, and it is an incredible leap forward for mobile graphics. A 14-inch machine, like the Blade, can now produce the kinds of visuals that you previously required a 17-inch 9-pound behemoth just last year. Razer is taking full advantage of that.

“There has never been a better balance of performance and portability in a PC,” Razer boss Min-Liang Tan said in a statement. “Five years ago, the idea of managing this level of heat in a small chassis was thought to be impossible, but we did just that with the original Razer Blade. Since then, we’ve continued to listen to our community and improve upon that design and thermal management. In many ways, this is the perfect laptop that was designed for gamers by gamers.”

Other improvements to the Blade include an option for 1TB of storage in a PCIe SSD drive. You can get that either in the 1080p version for $2,400 or in the 1800p model at $2,700.