Just like every year, Razer is stealing the limelight at CES 2023 with its gaming-centric gear and peripherals. They’ve revealed gaming laptops, PC soundbar, cloud gaming handhelds, advanced webcams and a geeky headrest. Let’s have a look at what caught our attention from the Razer camp.
This webcam has the biggest camera sensor (as per Razer) ever, the Sony 1/1.2″ STARVIS 2 sensor with (2.9 μm pixel size) to offer DSLR comparable detail. The accessory has an f/1.7 aperture lens for superior low-light performance, and streamers with a low-light setup will want to own it. Razer claims that the webcam is capable of capturing four times more light than other options on the market.
In-built features on the Kiyo Pro Ultra include AI-powered face tracking, autofocus and background blur. It supports HDR at 30FPS and the inbuilt processor can directly convert 4k 30fps footage to uncompressed 4K 24fps, 1440p 30fps or 1080p 60fps. The peripheral connects to your setup via USB 3.0 port. It is the predecessor to the Kiyo Pro that was launched a couple of years ago, so yes, this one is a worthy upgrade at $300.
2. Leviathan V2 Pro soundbar
Again Razer etches the “world’s first” tag onto this accessory for gamers and streamers. The beamforming soundbar is a unique offering with head-tracking AI that always keeps listener in the sweet spot no matter how much you move around. This fancy feature is achieved via the IR camera that monitors the position and beams the audio accordingly.
The sound system on this one is developed by THX and the beamforming technology comes courtesy Audioscenic. The soundbar has two modes for 3D audio – THX Spatial Audio Virtual Headset for stereo content, and the THX Spatial Audio Virtual Speakers for multi-channel audio. Leviathan V2 Pro demands a price tag of $400 with availability from February 2023 onwards.
3. Razer Edge
Gaming handhelds are here to stay and Razer Edge cloud gaming system wants to cash-in on the trend. The compact Android-powered handheld console is powered by the Snapdragon G3x Gen 1 Gaming Platform (with an active-cooling system) mated to 8GB RAM and 128GB storage. The device gets a 6.8-inch AMOLED display with 2400 x 1080 resolution (144Hz refresh rate) and HyperSense haptic feedback for immersive gaming on the go.
Razer Edge has a couple of digital mics, a 3.5mm headphone jack and stereo speakers loaded with Verizon Adaptive Sound. The gadget comes in two variants, a Wi-Fi-only version for $400 and a 5G model that’ll be Verizon Wireless exclusive for $600 – both up for grabs from 26 January 2023. Just so that nerds don’t complain, the handheld has Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2 and Verizon 5G Ultra Wideband support for the respective variants.
4. Project Carol
The most interesting accessory from the lot is this geeky head cushion designed specifically to elevate in-game immersion. Currently in the concept stage, Project Carol brings audio and tactile response right to your gaming chair with near-field surround sound and haptics.
The audio beaming from this unique accessory comes courtesy the HyperSense technology, delivering 7.1 surround sound made possible by intelligent near-field surround sound tech. This will come really handy while playing FPS games where you need to be spot-on with the sound source. The accessory can be paired with your mobile device or PC via the 2.4 GHz wireless connection. Razer estimates a battery life of about 8 hours before a recharge, and it fits any gaming chair out there just for the records.
Razer has just hopped onto the PlayStation 5 hype with an advanced gamepad for high-end gaming targeted towards casual as well as competitive gamers. Dubbed Wolverine V2 Pro, the gaming controller is a worthy addition to the Wolverine console lineup. The premium components and customization options make the controller worth owning but at a demanding value.
It looks similar to the V2 Chroma controller, albeit in a slightly larger size. The gaming accessory is going to work for the Xbox too, but being an official PS5 and PC accessory, the lack of Adaptive Triggers, internal speaker and haptic feedback is going to bite dedicated gamers.
Everything aside, let me tell you, this controller has a steep price tag of $250, and I hope it delivers up to the expectations. There are perks that’ll keep buyers interested, for instance, the Xbox-styled analog stick orientation, wherein, the sticks are positioned diagonally rather than sitting adjacent to each other. Like some of the cool concept gaming controllers we’ve seen so far, this one has a couple of swappable stick caps. One of them is short and convex while the other is tall and concave.
Add to this the six remappable buttons – (on each side near shoulder buttons and four back paddles) and we are basking at strategic gaming advantage. For this function, Bluetooth connection is required via iOS or Android devices, to get all the customization done via the Razer Controller Setup app. Additionally, the macro buttons can be mapped to be a sensitivity clutch by increasing or lowering the analog stick sensitivity.
Razer Wolverine V2 Pro has HyperTriggers that bring customized FPS shooting prowess to a controller just like a mouse or keyboard controls. What I like are Razer’s Mecha-Tactile buttons that emulate the touch and responsiveness of high-end mouse clicks. Also, the eight-way D-pad brings microswitches for each input to get precision accuracy in supported gaming titles.
Coming from Razer’s camp, this controller was destined to get the Chroma RGB lighting effects that can be toggled via the app. The cool lights run along the handles and add X-factor to the controller design. Overall a cool gamepad to own for gamers who want to try out different setups to gain a lasting advantage in e-sports gaming.
Environment conservation is the top agenda for all watchmakers. Italian luxury timekeeper Panerai is no different. It has been working on inculcating watchmaking ways to preserve the oceans. Gaming giant Razer is a prominent force handholding Panerai in this journey, which continues into the second year with the launch of the new Panerai Luminor Quaranta Razer Special Edition watch.
Developing on the existing line of Luminor Quaranta watches, the Luminor Quaranta Razer is a timepiece that merges Panerai’s horology genius with Razer’s signature aesthetics. The critical point of this collaborative watch, as mentioned earlier, is the commitment to sustainability. Therefore, the watch is made using recycled materials as part of #GoGreenWithRazer initiative. It primarily supports marine species research focusing essentially on the manta ray.
The Luminor Quaranta Razer is sustainably crafted using brushed eSteel (recycled steel) with black DLC coating. Featuring the iconic Razer triple-headed snake (THS) logo on the dial at 6 o’clock and also emblazoned on the caseback; the watch has black Arabic numerals and hour markers filled with Super-LumiNova to light the dial in electric green. The dial makes space for a date window at 3 o’clock while a small green seconds hand circles around a subdial at 9 o’clock.
The interesting timepiece is powered by P.900 caliber movement offering 72 hours of power reserve. It beats at 28,800 bph and is packed within an anti-shock casing for durability. Water resistant up to 100 meters, the Panerai Luminor Quaranta Razer is a limited-edition timepiece with only 500 examples for purchase through the Panerai webstore. This $8,400 special edition luxury watch is paired with a set of two interchangeable straps: a recycled PET strap with green stitching and a swappable rubber strap. To satisfy the ones keeping a record, the Panerai Luminor Quaranta Razer will come in packing made from 72% recycled material.
Gaming accessory giant Razer has finally taken off the veils from its newest device, which borrows its name from an ill-fated gaming handheld launched almost a decade ago. The original Razer Edge might have sadly been too far ahead of its time but would probably have a better chance today in light of the Valve Steam Deck. Unfortunately, that’s not the direction that the company decided to take for this revival, and it has designed the new Razer Edge to be a proper mobile device. Rather than just adding to the slowly growing number of Android-powered gaming handhelds, however, the Razer Edge’s design does try to offer something a little bit more practical, which coincidentally puts it in direct competition with the Nintendo Switch.
While many in the new breed of handheld gaming devices are trying to recreate the magic and the success of the Nintendo Switch, almost all of them follow the design of the Switch Lite instead. That means that the controllers of these devices are fused to the main body and can’t be removed, unlike the Switch’s Joy-cons. That does simplify the design a bit, but Razer isn’t content to settle on that trend. Fortunately, it has the experience and expertise to change the game a bit.
The Razer Edge is, in reality, an Android tablet that comes with a new version of the company’s Kishi V2 controller, now with a “Pro” attached to it. It’s a rather chunky tablet by today’s standards, but that’s mostly because of things like built-in active cooling. Regardless of the form it has taken, it’s still an Android tablet at heart, which could actually be its biggest selling point compared to rivals like the Logitech G Cloud.
The Razer Edge has access to an expansive suite of games and apps coming from streaming services and Google Play Store. Xbox Game Pass, NVIDIA GeForce NOW, and Steam Link are all pre-installed, covering the majority of these services. The outgoing Google Stadia is, of course, tragically absent. More than just the games, though, you can also use the Edge as a normal tablet for both games and anything else, with or without the controllers attached. The latter opens the doors to more use cases beyond entertainment, including reading, browsing, checking emails, or social media.
Admittedly, the Razer Edge will still be a hard sell for people with gaming-worthy smartphones already, especially ones that are compatible with Razer’s own Kishi V2 controller (or the upcoming Kishi V2 Pro when it becomes widely available). For those with less powerful phones, however, it makes a better proposition than something like the Logitech G Cloud, precisely because it can be used as a normal but chunky Android tablet. The flexibility of its functions, on top of having access to games from almost all major platforms, gives it a very sharp edge (pun intended) against the Nintendo Switch. The Wi-Fi model of the Razer Edge is launching in January for $399, while a Verizon-exclusive Razer Edge 5G will also be arriving with still undisclosed availability details.
Gaming laptops are the true Transformers of the PC world: They’re powerful enough to play your favorite titles, but you can also harness their speed for media creation or extreme multitasking, like streaming high-resolution gameplay to Twitch. Today, you can even find a few that weight less than the smallest MacBook Pro, making them solid options for daily drivers as well. For the demanding Apex Legends player, or the power user just looking for a capable GPU to handle video encoding, it’ll be easier than ever to find the best gaming laptop to suit your needs — but sorting through the seemingly endless number of options can be taxing. We've tested and reviewed plenty of gaming laptops and we continue to do so as new models become available. Here, we outline our top picks for the best gaming laptops, along with everything you need to know before purchasing one.
What to look for in a gaming laptop
Price
Your laptop buying journey starts and ends with the amount of money you're willing to spend. No surprise there. The good news: There are plenty of options for gamers of every budget. In particular, we're seeing some great entry-level PC gaming choices under $1,000, like Dell's G15 lineup. A cheap gaming laptop in this price range will definitely feel a bit flimsier than pricier models, and they'll likely skimp on RAM, storage and overall power. But most cheaper laptops should be able to handle the majority of video games running at 1080p at 60 frames per second, which is the bare minimum you'd want from any system.
Things get interesting when you start looking at the best gaming laptops in the mid-range space, with prices at $1,000 and higher. At that point, you'll start finding PCs like the ASUS Zephyrus ROG G14, one of our favorite gaming notebooks. In general, you can look forward to far better build quality than budget gaming laptops (metal cases!), improved graphics power and enough RAM and storage space to handle the most demanding games. These are the gaming machines we'd recommend for most people, as they'll keep you gaming and working for years before you need to worry about an upgrade.
If you're willing to spend around $1,800 or more, you can start considering more premium options like Razer's Blade. Expect impeccably polished cases, the fastest hardware on the market, and ridiculously thin designs. The sky's the limit here: Alienware's uber customizable Area 51m is an enormous beast that can cost up to $4,700. Few people need a machine that high-end, but if you're a gamer with extra cash to burn, it may be worth taking a close look at some of these pricier systems.
CPU and GPU
The answer to this question used to be relatively simple: Just get an Intel chip with an NVIDIA GPU. But over the last few years AMD has stepped up its game with its Ryzen notebook processors, which are better suited for juggling multiple tasks at once (like streaming to Twitch while blasting fools in Fortnite). Intel responded with its impressive 12th and 13th-gen chips, but it’s nice to have decent Ryzen AMD alternatives available, especially since they’re often cheaper than comparable Intel models.
When it comes to video cards, though, AMD is still catching up. Its Radeon RX 6000M GPU has been a fantastic performer in notebooks like ASUS’s ROG Strix G15, but it lags behind NVIDIA when it comes to newer features like ray tracing. (We’re still waiting to test AMD’s new Radeon 7000 series mobile graphics.) At the very least, a Radeon-powered notebook can approach the general gaming performance of the NVIDIA RTX 3070 and 3080 GPUs.
If you want to future-proof your purchase, or you’re just eager to see how much better ray tracing can make your games look, you’re probably better off with an NVIDIA video card. They’re in far more systems, and it’s clear that they have better optimized ray tracing technology. NVIDIA GeForce RTX GPUs also feature the company’s DLSS technology, which uses AI to upscale games to higher resolutions. That’ll let you play a game like Destiny 2 in 4K with faster frame rates. That’s useful if you’re trying to take advantage of a high refresh rate monitor.
You’ll still find plenty of laptops with NVIDIA’s older RTX 30-series GPUs these days, and they’ll still give you tremendous performance. But to be safe, it’s probably worth opting for the newer RTX 40-series systems, since they support the newer DLSS 3 technology and offer a wealth of performance upgrades. (If you’re looking out for the best deals, you can probably find some killer RTX 3070 laptops out there.) The entry-level RTX 4050 is a solid start, but we’d suggest going for a 4060 or 4070 if you’re aiming to maximize your framerates on faster screens. The RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 are both incredibly powerful, but they typically make systems far too expensive for most users.
It’s worth noting that NVIDIA’s mobile graphics cards aren’t directly comparable to its more powerful desktop hardware. PC makers can also tweak voltages to make gaming performance better in a thinner case. Basically, these laptops may not be desktop replacements — don’t be surprised if you see notebooks that perform very differently, even if they’re all equipped with the same GPU.
Screen and refresh rate
Screen size is a good place to start when judging gaming notebooks. In general, 15-inch laptops will be the best balance of immersion and portability, while larger 17-inch models are heftier, but naturally give you more screen real estate. There are some 13-inch gaming notebooks, like the Razer Blade Stealth, but paradoxically you'll often end up paying more for those than slightly larger 15-inch options. We’re also seeing plenty of 14-inch options, like the Zephyrus G14 and Blade 14, which are generally beefier than 13-inch laptops while still being relatively portable.
But these days, there is plenty to consider beyond screen size. For one: refresh rates. Most monitors refresh their screens vertically 60 times per second, or at 60Hz. That's a standard in use since black and white NTSC TVs. But over the past few years, displays have evolved considerably. Now, 120Hz 1080p screens are the bare minimum you'd want in any gaming notebook — and there are faster 144Hz, 240Hz and even 360Hz panels. All of this is in the service of one thing: making everything on your display look as smooth as possible.
For games, higher refresh rates also help eliminate screen tearing and other artifacts that could get in the way of your frag fest. And for everything else, it just leads to a better viewing experience. Even scrolling a web page on a 120Hz or faster monitor is starkly different from a 60Hz screen. Instead of seeing a jittery wall of text and pictures, everything moves seamlessly, as if you're unwinding a glossy paper magazine. Going beyond 120Hz makes gameplay look even more responsive, which to some players gives them a slight advantage.
Steve Dent/Engadget
Not to make things more complicated, but you should also keep an eye out for NVIDIA's G-SYNC and AMD's FreeSync. They're both adaptive sync technologies that can match your screen's refresh rate with the framerate of your game. That also helps to reduce screen tearing and make gameplay smoother. Consider them nice bonuses on top of a high refresh rate monitor; they're not necessary, but they can still offer a slight visual improvement.
One more thing: Most of these suggestions are related to LCD screens, not OLEDs. While OLED makes a phenomenal choice for TVs, it's a bit more complicated when it comes to gaming laptops. They're mostly limited to 60Hz, though some models offer 90Hz. Still, you won’t see the smoothness of a 120Hz or 144Hz screen. OLEDs also typically come as 4K or 3.5K panels – you'll need a ton of GPU power to run games natively at that resolution. They look incredible, with the best black levels and contrast on the market, but we think most gamers would be better off with an LCD.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
Other things to remember when buying a gaming laptop:
Get at least 16GB of RAM. And if you're planning to do a ton of multitasking while streaming, 32GB is worth considering.
Storage is still a huge concern. These days, I'd recommend aiming for a 1TB M.2 SSD, which should be enough space to juggle a few large titles like Destiny 2. (If you can afford the jump to a 2TB SSD though, just do it.) Some laptops also have room for standard SATA hard drives, which are far cheaper than M.2's and can hold more data.
Get your hands on a system before you buy it. I'd recommend snagging the best gaming laptop for you from a retailer with a simple return policy, like Amazon or Best Buy. If you don't like it, you can always ship it back easily.
We review gaming laptops with the same amount of rigor as we approach traditional notebooks. We test build quality by checking cases for any undesirable flexible spots, as well as the strength of screen hinges during furious typing and Halo Infinite sessions. We benchmark every gaming notebook with PCMark 10, a variety of 3DMark tests, Cinebench and Geekbench. We also use NVIDIA’s Frameview app to measure the average framerates in Cyberpunk 2077, Halo Infinite and other titles. For media creation, we transcode a 4K movie clip into 1080p using Handbrake’s CPU and GPU encoding options.
Displays are tested under indoor and outdoor lighting with productivity apps, video playback and gameplay. We also try to stress the full refresh rate of every gaming notebook’s screen by benchmarking Halo Infinite, Overwatch 2 and other titles. Laptop speakers are judged by how well they can play back music, movies and the occasional game session with detail and clarity, and without any obvious distortion.
When it comes to battery life, we see how long gaming systems last with a mixture of real-world productivity apps and gameplay, and we also test with PCMark 10’s “Modern office” battery test. In addition, we’re judging the quality of a machine’s keyboard with typing tests as well as relative accuracy and comfort during extended gaming sessions.
Other gaming laptops we’ve tested
Framework Laptop 16
We were eager to test the Framework Laptop 16 since it promised both modular customizability and a decent amount of gaming power. But while we appreciated just how repairable and upgradeable it is, its actual gaming performance was middling for its high price. You could always buy it without the additional GPU, but that makes it more of a daily workhorse than a gaming system.
MSI Stealth Studio 14
On a brighter note, we were pleased to see MSI return to form with the Stealth Studio 14, which is far faster and more attractive than the previous model.
Razer Blade 16 and 18
We were amazed to see a genuine 4K/1080p native screen in the Razer Blade 16, but it’s far too expensive and impractical, even for such a pricey brand. Similarly, we found the Razer Blade 18 to be both oversized and overpriced.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/best-gaming-laptops-172033838.html?src=rss
Although it has been a while since the last Nintendo DS and PS Vita sold on the market, handheld gaming devices haven’t really disappeared. One might say that the somewhat niche market has grown even bigger than before, thanks to the confluence of several factors. Mobile games on smartphones have formed a billion dollar industry, and the success of the Nintendo Switch has spurred many new devices, including Valve’s rare Steam Deck. While handheld PCs are now sprouting up left and right, there seems to be another current that’s building momentum. Handheld gaming devices powered by the mobile Android platform seem to be making a comeback, and the latest to show their vision include three of the tech industry’s biggest names.
Razer made a name for itself with its cool-looking, high-performance computer accessories designed for gamers. Over time, it has also produced gaming laptops so that everything will look coherent and function together properly. Razer has even dabbled in making its own gaming smartphone, using Android, of course, but that fell by the wayside quickly. It’s not throwing in the towel just yet, though, and its partners just teased a new mobile gaming device that will be fully unveiled next month.
The Razer Edge 5G is a collaboration with Verizon, which will be power the 5G experience, and Qualcomm, whose silicon will be powering the device. The name actually comes from a much older product from Razer and one if its first attempts at mobile gaming. That ill-fated Razer Edge, however, may have been far too ahead of its time, offering a PC tablet that could be equipped with a gaming controller and a keyboard.
In contrast, the Razer Edge 5G will be more familiar to mobile gamers in more ways than one. Late last year, Razer and Qualcomm already announced a partnership that created a development kit for Qualcomm’s new gaming-centric processor. This “dev kit” came in the form of a gaming handheld not unlike the Nintendo Switch Lite in appearance, though with a more interesting curvature on top that makes it look more like a gigantic “Game & Watch” of old. At this point in time, gaming handhelds with a large screen in the middle flanked by buttons, D-pads, and joysticks are no longer a novel appearance.
The teaser of the Razer Edge 5G that Verizon shared suggests something that looks less like that prototype and more like a Switch with flat top and bottom edges. The design of the buttons and shoulder triggers are also different, and the branding definitely leans more towards a Razer device. Nothing else has been mentioned, and we’ll be hearing all the details on October 15th at RazerCon.
Although such a design is familiar by now, it still raises the question if it will be a commercial success. This wouldn’t be the first time someone tried to sell an Android device dedicated to gaming, and previous attempts all died out in favor of plain smartphones with some accessories or gaming gimmicks. Perhaps the time is ripe, now that there is an abundance of handheld gaming devices, so we’ll have tow wait for the Logitech G Cloud and Razer Edge 5G to hit the market to see if that’s the case.
There is no shortage of mobile games that push our phones’ hardware to the limits, and all of them are designed primarily to be controlled through the touch screen. After all, there is nothing more off-putting than having to scramble to pull out a game controller from your bag and attach it to your phone in order to spend a few minutes of free time on your favorite title. At the same time, however, There has also been a rise in the sophistication of mobile games as they try to compete with consoles and PCs for attention and profits. Fortunately, controllers have also become more sophisticated as well, and the latest version of Razer’s Kishi tries to upgrade the gaming experience for more Android phones.
The Razer Kishi, both V1 and V2, fall under the class of telescopic game controllers that can expand horizontally to accommodate phones of varying heights. Unlike most of its kind, however, the Kishi connects to a phone not via unreliable Bluetooth but through the phone’s USB-C port. That makes the connection more stable and faster and has the added bonus of saving Razer from having to put a bulky and heavy battery inside the controllers. The Kishi is powered by your own phone, while the phone can be charged via a passthrough connection.
The problem with the initial Razer Kishi is that it was designed to fit smartphones of a specific design and size. The Kishi V2 corrects this by using a flatter bridge so that it can tightly embrace more phones in a tight snug. It might even fit foldable phones like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 if one is so inclined to pair the two together. That’s not the only thing that has changed, however, and the Razer Kishi V2 has more features that try to improve the mobile gamer’s quality of life.
For one, the latest Kishi controller may look like it has the exact same buttons as its predecessor, but underneath, it switched away from using membranes to new microswitches. What this means in practice is that buttons will have a more tactile feel when you press on them, making them feel more clicky and giving a more believable console-like experience. If avid typers are very particular about the switches that their keyboards use, gamers can be equally picky about button switches inside their controllers.
Razer also throws in two customizable multi-function buttons beside the trigger buttons. The functions of these buttons can be set using Razer’s app, where most of the controller’s extra features can also be accessed. Speaking of software, the controller has a dedicated button to launch the Nexus app, Razer’s hub that collects games installed on your phone as well as those available through game streaming services like Xbox Game Pass and NVIDIA GeForce NOW.
Unlike the previous Kishi, the Razer Kishi V2 is currently available only for Android phones, though the list of supported phones has grown quite a lot thanks to that new design. One designed for iPhones is promised to come later this year, though no estimated launch window has been revealed. Despite recent big news about the company’s two eco-friendly mice, the Razer Kishi V2 is a bit silent on the sustainability front, showing that Razer still has a long way to go in making environmental awareness the rule, not the special exception.
Razer has long been a name trusted in the tech industry. It is known for its reliable keyboards and mice that offer speed and comfort. We’ve been giving the brand attention for its numerous remarkable products and services in recent years.
We will learn more about Razer’s campaign to reach environmental sustainability in the coming days. More brands and companies are pushing to go green to make the planet ready for the future. To start, two eco-friendly products are being introduced: the DeathAdder Essential and the Basilisk V3.
The two new mice accessories come with the UL’s Ecologo certification. They are the first from Razer to get this honor. You will see the certification in their packaging once they are out in the market just before the year 2022 ends.
Razer’s Basilisk V3 and DeathAdder Essential passed the certification, specifically, UL2710. The global safety certification company has been established to check and approve the safety of devices and peripherals. UL2710 investigates the many processes that go into producing a device, including the manufacturing materials, use of energy, corporate practices, packaging, manufacturing, operations, end-of-life management, and even extension of useful life.
With this milestone, Razer is also the first gaming manufacturer to get a certification. As a result, you will soon see the Ecologo mark in future Razer products. It tells us the quality of a product and that it offers less environmental impact.
Razer’s Sustainability Manager, Kenneth Ng, had this to say about the new products and certification: “What better way to celebrate World Environment Day than to share with our community that the very mice that help them win in games are also a win for the environment.” Ng also said: “Unlike companies making their own claims about their products being sustainable, we go the extra mile to prove to our fans that our products are truly sustainable.”
The new Razer products receiving the Ecologo Certification have gone through testing and passed a comprehensive list of criteria. This move is very beneficial to Razer and then consumers and the planet Earth in the long run. Sustainable products are the future of manufacturing and gaming. Several industries need to catch up by coming up with standards for measuring sustainability. There wasn’t much effort in the gaming industry until Razer made the first step. UL and Razer teamed up to work and produced the industry-level standards. Hopefully, other companies and manufacturers will follow suit by also measuring and monitoring the criteria.
It’s not really surprising that Razer has partnered with UL for this project. The brand has since been making several steps to going green. That Razer x Cariuma collaboration, which brought us the Sneki Snek Sneakers, were part of the #GoGreenWithRazer campaign. The ECOLOGO Mark achievement is just one of the brand’s many efforts to deliver greener products and services.
Razer remains a formidable brand when it comes to computer peripherals and accessories. We know Razer for its pure-performance mouse, keyboards, speakers, and webcams. Now we’re introduced to a new wireless mouse that is very lightweight and powerful.
The Razer Viper V2 Pro weighs 58g, and for a gaming mouse, that’s light and efficient. It’s ideal for those into esports who want an optical mouse that is fast, thanks to the Focus Pro 30K Optical Sensor and Optical Mouse Switches Gen-3 technologies. In addition, the mouse was designed with consideration of feedback from esports professionals.
The mouse is lighter by 20% than the Viper Ultimate. The new Viper V2 Pro boasts improved battery life and speed to deliver top-notch mouse performance. So yes, the new Razer mouse is lighter, faster, and even deadlier.
Head of Razer’s PC Gaming Division Head Chris Mitchel said, “We carefully considered each gram of the Viper V2 Pro to ensure that, in exchange for a lower weight, it wasn’t at the cost of other features. The new mouse design doesn’t just have reduced weight because every surface and corner has been optimized.” It actually seems like an extension of the body as you can almost not feel the mouse.
Razer has implemented a new Focus Pro 30K Optical Sensor, which results in 99.8% resolution accuracy. There are also AI functions like Asymmetric Cut-off, Motion Sync, and Smart Tracking. The Razer Optical Mouse Switches Gen-3 feature which is what makes the no debounce delay and zero double-clicking issues.
The Razer Viper V2 Pro also boasts a more tactile feel. A longer click lifespan can also be expected (up to 90 million clicks!). That’s about 25% longer than the lifespan of the previous model. The mouse comes with more customization features like a lift-off or landing distance. The Asymmetric Cut-off feature has been improved to support up to 26 granular levels of height adjustment.
The Razer gaming mouse costs $149.99 (159.99€) and is now up for purchase. This lightweight wireless gaming mouse can be available in either white or black. It’s also rechargeable now, so there is no need for batteries. There is the DPI control button for flexible sensitivity and a Razer Speedflex charging cable. There is no RGB lighting, unfortunately.
Razer seems to be venturing into more consumer electronics these days. It sells mouse, keyboards, phones, and other computer peripherals. It has also released headsets and speakers, with the most notable, the Leviathan Soundbar, getting a follow-up. The new Razer Leviathan V2 is ready to illuminate your sound. The new soundbar is ideal for gaming, especially with its multi-drivers.
The Razer Leviathan V2 features Razer Chroma RGB and THX Spatial Audio. It also comes with low-latency Bluetooth 5.2 for seamless and uninterrupted mobile and PC use. Expect deep bass and clear trebles as made possible by the down-firing subwoofer and two full-range drivers. The all-in-one sound system promises an elevated audio experience with high-fidelity and full-range sound.
The Razer Leviathan V2 Soundbar delivers advanced 7.1 surround sound with pinpoint accuracy. This results in a detailed and more realistic soundstage, especially when watching movies, playing games, and listening to music. With Razer Synapse and compatible Razer mobile apps, you can customize the soundbar, RGB lighting, and audio settings to suit your needs and a more personalized experience. The software offers better and more control for your audio-listening experience. This allows you to enjoy the Razer speaker’s full potential by simply enabling the 360° positional audio.
Design-wise, the new Razer soundbar boasts a very compact desktop form factor. It’s small but it can fill a whole room with excellent sound but with a minimal footprint. Furthermore, it can fit right under your monitor as it doesn’t take much space. It even has detachable rubber feet so you can adjust the angle or height.
Razer’s new Leviathan V2 Soundbar connects with most PCs via the USB Audio Input. In addition, it works with a Nintendo Switch and smartphones over Bluetooth connectivity. It features 18 lighting zones, dynamic in-game lighting effects, and numerous patterns for full RGB customization.
