Thanks to its reliable gaming performance and a 13-inch screen with a 120 GHz refresh rate, skilled Esports players (or aspiring ones) can find something to enjoy with the Razer Blade Stealth 13. Just don’t expect the resource-demanding games published over the past few years to have revolutionary success figures.
Quick Review: Razer Blade Stealth 13 Gaming Laptop
The Razer Blade gaming laptop 15 to the Razer Blade Pro and even to the Razer Blade 15 Studio. The Razer Blade 13 is the newest Razer gaming laptop that consistently delivers efficiency.
The late 2019 Razer Blade 13 expands on the original, which Razer called “the world’s first gaming Ultrabook.” However, this Ultrabook was designed for games that do not require high device specifications, including the lightweight size, system specs, and feature set.
The Razer Blade Stealth 13 shines, such as video and photo editing, are with eSports titles and efficiency. Just don’t expect hardware challenging gaming and battery life up to Ultrabook levels to be involved.
Specifications:
- CPU: 11th Gen Intel Core i7 Quad-Core 2.80GHz
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GDDR6 VRAM
- RAM: 16GB
- Screen: 13.3″ Full HD Matte 120Hz
- Storage: 512 SSD
- Ports: 3.5 mm jack, USB 3.1 Type-A x2, Thunderbolt USB C x2
- Connectivity: Intel Wireless-AX 201& Bluetooth 5.1
- Camera: Windows Hello built-in IR HD webcam (1MP)
- Weight: 1.41 kg
- Size: 0.60×8.27×11.99/15.3 mmx210 mm x 304.6 mm
- Price: $1,395.99
The Stealth 13 Razer Blade starts at $1,599 and tops out at $1,999. Differences in prices depend on the type of display you are looking for.
A 13-inch, 60Hz screen is provided for the entry-level Razer Blade Stealth. From there, a higher refresh rate, resolution, and touch capability depend on price increases. Users can receive a 60Hz OLED Full HD touch display at the best $1,999 price point. The Razer Blade Stealth 13 comes with a 4K touch option for $100 less if you don’t want to use the 4K touch option, though, which we will explain later on.
The $1,699.99 model we received for review has a 120Hz Full HD display (1,920 x 1,080), which is phenomenal for an Ultrabook. This is more like 13-inch laptops like the Macbook Pro or Surface Book that are similarly priced and defined. Both lack the same lightweight size, options for customization, and gameplay with competitive refresh rates.
Design: Razer Blade Stealth 13 Gaming Laptop
Packed within the unibody frame of the 3.11 lb (1.41 kg) Razer Blade Stealth 13 is an Intel i7 quad-core 2.80GHz processor with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650. This Ultrabook is ready for competition with 16GB of RAM, 512GB SSD, and a stunning 13-inch screen offering a 120Hz refresh rate.
Thanks to the all-black aluminum build, featuring Razer’s trademark green accents on its USB-A ports, the Razer Blade Stealth 13 is an attractive hardware piece. The clean lines are lovely on this Ultrabook. Plus, it is small enough to keep in one hand and thinner than a penny when closed.
A remarkable 3.5 mm headphone/mic combo jack sits on the left, in addition to housing one pair of USB-A and Thunderbolt 4ports on either side. To use a mouse and headset, that should be just enough. It’s just too bad there isn’t an SD-card slot, given that in one of the promotional images, Razer uses Lightroom.
The touchpad on the Razer Blade Stealth 13 is super comfortable to the touch during general use, while serious gamers will opt for a standalone mouse for gaming. Pressing the touchpad feels fine, but you will always want to grab a mouse during serious gaming sessions.
The keys are perfectly spaced for a small Ultrabook keyboard wedged between two speakers, and it is tactile enough that you won’t feel the need to grab a gaming keyboard. Some might be disappointed that the RGB lighting doesn’t apply to individual keys, but via Razer Synapse, there is still some lighting customization.
A 13-inch 120Hz display that reaches 100% of the sRGB spectrum rocks the Razer Blade Stealth 13, and it’s beautiful despite the bottom bezel with the Razer logo, which feels a little distracting. The screen colors vary from gaming to tasks such as video editing or picture editing with exceptional detail. Adding the high refresh rate lets games pop and, where it counts, undoubtedly offers a competitive advantage. There is a 4K 60Hz touch-display option available for a few hundred more bucks, but given the machine; the specifications are the same; 4 K gaming is a no-go.
In an adequately lit space, the 720p webcam performs well enough. There shouldn’t be anything to complain about for users who want to live stream games or attend Zoom meetings. It’s not the best cam in the world, but at least Windows Hello facial recognition is sponsored by the Blade Stealth 13-it doesn’t work as well as other Ultrabooks like Asus ZenBook 13.
Performance: Razer Blade Stealth 13 Gaming Laptop
The Razer Blade Stealth 13 gaming laptops can run popular esports games such as Fortnite and League of Legends competition-spec specifications, ideal for the 120Hz display. Given that most esports games do not go beyond 100 GB unless you play Call of Duty or NBA2K21, low storage is also not a concern.
However, you’re going to have to mess with the graphics settings to hit the 120 fps frame maximum. So, you may want to choose something bigger and more vigorous if you’re looking to play beyond 1080p. On ultra settings at 1080p, Running Total War: Three Kingdoms and Metro Exodus produce average frame rates in the low 20s. You’re only getting by with about 80 fps even at the lowest settings, but that’s still playable, at least.
Advanced features like DLSS and Ray-tracing are not available because of the weaker GTX GPU. This means that demanding AAA games such as Death Stranding, Cyberpunk 2077, or Power on the Razer Blade 13 will not impress. You can buy the $299 (€299.99, AU$579) Razer Core X if you have the expendable cash to drive it further, but then you would still need to purchase one of the better graphics cards, which can cost hundreds of dollars, so it is probably easier to get a more powerful laptop.
Check out: The 6 Best Gaming Laptops to Buy in 2021
Battery Power
The immense measure for an Ultrabook is its battery life. Battery life is only merely average, although changes have been made. It lasted nearly 10 hours in the PCMark 10 battery life test, and with almost 9 hours of life, our local video playback test was about the same. Attempts to play Metro Exodus and Razer Blade Stealth 13 games can only last an hour and a half. You should be able to breathe comfortably if you’re flying around the world, just as long as you’re not trying to play games. Fortunately, with the USB-C charger that Razer provides, it also charges quickly.
A handful of output settings are also available via Razer Synapse. Plugged setups are divided between “Balanced,” Battery Saver, which prioritizes battery life, and “Gaming,” which prioritizes processing power for graphics. Fan speed can also be set to 5600 RPMS from 2500 RPMs. The Ultrabook remains relatively quiet even at its highest setting. Prolonging use does not leave a hot lap feeling uncomfortable.
Features and apps
Via Synapse, outside of RGB lighting, there are many ways to personalize your experience. You can completely customize each key on the keyboard with macros and even set keys to activate programs. Users can also change RGB lighting profiles when the Razer Blade Stealth 13 is plugged in or not. Of course, you can use Razer’s Chroma Studio if you want to take your RGB customization experience to another stage.
The Blade Stealth 13 is bundled with THX Spatial Audio for both the external speakers and headphone output. In games that involve positional audio and communication, this is ideal for using gaming headsets. The four speakers and smart amplifier sound crisp and straightforward; do not expect much. A lot of the sufficient detail in the audio dissipates readily in a relatively noisy room. In addition to custom EQ settings, there’s also a separate Spatial Audio application to further improve one’s audio experience between pre-EQed settings such as gaming, audio, and video. However, it doesn’t fit Razer’s own THX Spatial Audio.
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