I've been using a Razer Blade Stealth for 2.5 years now. Based on that experience, I have a certain wishlist for the next Razer Blade Stealth which is probably going to be released in fall 2019.

1 RAM

The Razer Blade Stealth is an extremely powerful ultrabook. In its current top configuration, it features 16 GiB RAM. Yet, regarding RAM, I regularly reach its limits. I use Docker and VirtualBox a lot. 16 GiB RAM is too little to run virtual machines without having to worry about memory.

Because I reach the limits of 16 GiB RAM, I wish for a model that features 32 GiB RAM instead. As far as I know, Intel's latest ultrabook CPU series, the 10th generation Comet Lake, can handle 32 GiB RAM even for the LPDDR3 memory used in ultrabooks for their low power consumption.

I also wish that instead of LPDDR3, LPDDR4 would be used. But that's not possible, because LPDDR4 is not supported by current Intel Comet Lake ultrabook CPUs yet, even in the 10th generation.

Update: There are two families of Intel Core i7 10th generation Ultrabook CPUs:

• Comet Lake, the U series, which continues the traditional Ultrabook CPUs in 14nm process.
• Ice Lake, the G series, which is a new category.

And Ice Lake supports LPDDR4 memory.

2 CPU

Razer typically chooses the fastest CPU available within a reasonable TDP range. I expect the Razer Blade Stealth Late 2019 model to have another CPU upgrade. I expect it to feature the newly released Intel® Core™ i7-10710U Processor [Intel10710U]. It was launched in Q3 2019, and features 6 cores, 12 threads, at a base frequency of 1.1 GHz and a maximum turbo frequency of 4.7 GHz, with 12 MB cache at a TDP of 15 W. The memory supported for the ultrabook-relevant LPDDR3-2133 is up to 32 GB.

Some people might wish for an AMD CPU instead of an Intel CPU. I love AMD. And most of my IBM-compatible Desktop PCs have had AMD CPUs, all my life. But as long as AMD does not support Thunderbolt-3, AMD is not an option in any ultrabook or laptop for me.

Update: Razer actually went for the newly released Intel® Core™ i7-10710U Processor [Intel1065G7] instead. It was also launched in Q3 2019, features 4 cores, 8 threads, at a base frequency of 1.3 GHz and a maximum turbo frequency of 3.9 MHz, with 8 MB cache at a TDP of 15 W.

3 Display

From the Late 2016 model to the Late 2017 model, the display was a side-step. The size was an upgrade from 12.5″ to 13.3″, delivering much thinner bezels. But the resolution was a downgrade from UHD/4K 3840×2160 to only QHD+ 3200×1800. The resolution is still good, but I can no longer record 4K screencasts from the laptop display.

The Late 2018 model fixed that problem by going up to UHD/4K 3840×2160 again. I expect the Late 2019 model to stay at that resolution and display. I prefer Full HD 1080p 1920×1080 and 4K 2160p 3840×2160 resolution displays because of screencast production. I like to consistently record in 4K 2160p, and if I have to fall back to a lower resolution, it should be Full HD 1080p.

And I wish the display to be non-glare. I know, a 4K non-glare display may still be a wish only. I don't know if anyone makes 4K non-glare displays.

4 Keyboard

My experience with Razer keyboards was always good. I like the individual backlight on the Late 2016 and Late 2017 models. Besides being an eye-catcher, this can be quite useful in some games. And I'm wondering if integration of an IDE like IntelliJ IDEA with Razer Chroma could be an interesting feature for programmers.

The Late 2018 does not feature individual backlight. For me, that's a significant downgrade, and I'm very disappointed by this step. And I think it's inconsistent. The Late 2018 model is the first Razer Blade Stealth to feature a powerful GPU compared to the built-in Intel® UHD Graphics 620. This makes the Razer Blade Stealth Late 2018 model much more suited for mobile gaming than the previous models. It puzzles me that at the same time, the keyboard is less attractive for gamers now.

Therefore I wish that the Late 2019 model brings back individual backlight.

Update: Razer did not bring back individual backlight, the entire keyboard is disappointingly a single Chroma zone only.

5 Case

The case of the Razer Blade Stealth always looks stylish. It's very robust, sturdy, and light-weight. The Late 2017 model which I currently use weighs only 1.35 kg. That is so light-weight that I never ask twice whether I should take the laptop with me. I just do it.

But the Late 2018 model has done away with the green-lit Razer logo. I know that some people complained that it is too fancy for an ultrabook. It makes them feel uncomfortable using the Razer Blade Stealth in professional environments. Here's my opinion on this. Whoever sits with a Razer Blade Stealth in a business meeting and is worried about the green Razer logo looking too fancy does not deserve to use any Razer products at all, ever. In fact, there's nothing cooler than a thread-headed snake sitting between 3 bitten apples.

Regarding the case, my wish for the Late 2019 model is clear. Razer should bring back the green-lit Razer logo. Or even better, have the Razer logo with Chroma RGB features.

6 Storage / SSD

The Late 2016 model was available in a configuration with 1 TB SSD. I obviously went for that configuration. Docker images, Virtual Machine images, OS storage inside the Virtual Machines, music, photos, videos, and screencasts all need a lot of memory. Since the Late 2017 models, the maximum SSD offered by Razer is only 512 GB. That is not enough. While I can upgrade the SSD easily myself, this is not convenient. Why pay for an SSD which I don't use because it's too small?

My wish for the Late 2019 model of the Razer Blade Stealth is to feature a configuration with 2 TB SSD.

7 Webcam

The Late 2016 model had a 1080p Full HD webcam with 1920×1080 pixels resolution. The newer models only have a 720p HD webcam with 1280×720 pixels resolution. That's a downgrade, and I wish for the Late 2019 model to go back to a 1080p Full HD webcam with 1920×1080 pixels resolution.

Also, I wish that the camera itself is capable of encoding its video stream in H.264. This is not an expensive feature. Even the Raspberry Pi camera board can record 1080p30 and encode it as H.264. I don't see why the camera of the Raspberry Pi should be more powerful than the webcam of my Razer Blade Stealth ultrabook.

8 Operating System

Whenever I buy a computer from Razer, I'm paying for an operating system from Microsoft which I do not use. I always install Kubuntu. Unwanted preinstalled software is also known as crapware. For me, a preinstalled Microsoft Windows is crapware. Therefore I wish that Razer would offer their laptops with an option without operating system, or even better, Kubuntu preinstalled.

9 Battery Quality

Razer needs to put more pressure on their battery vendor or switch the vendor. Of both Razer Blade Stealth that I own, the battery suffered from battery bulge after about a year of use. The good thing is that it was possible for me to order replacement batteries online and replace the battery myself. Still, for a product of the price of a Razer Blade Stealth, such quality issues are unexpected and inconvenient. Therefore I wish that Razer will improve their battery quality.

10 Ports

Of the current Razer Blade Stealth V5, ports is the biggest woe. With the previous Razer Blade Stealth models, I could make fun of the Apple MacBook users that have to carry dongles to connect to projectors. In the Razer Blade Stealth V5, Razer have removed the HDMI port. Razer, what were you thinking?! Bring back that HDMI port! I don't want to carry dongles!

11 Comparison Table

12 Conclusion

The Razer Blade Stealth is a lovely device. But despite having an NVIDIA® GeForce® MX150, the Razer Blade Stealth V5 (Late 2018) wasn't attractive enough to me. In some ways, upgrading from the Razer Blade Stealth V4 to V5 would've felt like a downgrade. I hope that Razer goes back to its roots and undoes some of the changes on the Razer Blade Stealth that removed "the cool".

And, Razer, bring back that HDMI port!

13 Conclusion (Update)

The Razer Blade Stealth has been updated to be the first true gaming Ultrabook by giving it an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650. That is great. But Razer has forgotten other qualities which had made the Razer Blade Stealth so unique: It was a great all-rounder, leading in many ways. Now, there's no HDMI port, the Chroma is only single-zone, the logo is not lit, USB hasn't been updated to USB 3.2, there's no 32 GiB RAM option, the options for different SSDs are less, and the camera is still just HD only, not Full HD.

Hello, Razer, what's up?