Razer launches direct-to-consumer sales model for its Razer Blade Stealth Ultrabook

Source: Razer. The Razer Blade Stealth Ultrabook will be sold directly to consumers.

Razer, a connected devices and software provider for gamers, has announced the Razer Blade Stealth Ultrabook as well a new direct-to-consumer model that allows the new Razer Blade Stealth to be sold with premium configurations, but at a lower price point relative to the competition.

Featuring a sleek form factor, the latest Intel Core i7 processor and a 4K display, the ultra-thin notebook also gives gamers the option of desktop-level gaming performance with the help of the Razer Core via Thunderbolt 3.

The Razer Blade Stealth is 0.52" thin and weighs 2.75 pounds, about 1.2 kg. Its chassis is CNC-milled out of aircraft-grade aluminum, and the 12.5" touch display comes in an Ultra HD variant with 4K (3,840 x 2,160) resolution and 100% coverage of the Adobe RGB colour space, and a Quad HD (2,560 x 1440) resolution version. Both displays feature wide viewing angles and high-colour saturation.

PCIe SSD technology offers up to three times faster speeds than traditional solid-state drives. All models will feature 8 GB of dual-channel system memory. Additionally, a compact USB-C port offers speeds of up to 40 Gbps for fast connectivity.

The Razer Blade Stealth's hardcore gaming chops are unlocked via the plug-and-play external desktop graphics enclosure, the Razer Core. The Razer Core contains four additional USB 3.0 ports and Ethernet connectivity. A single Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) cable supplies both data and power and is all it takes to connect Razer's Ultrabook with the Razer Core. The device can accommodate virtually every popular desktop graphics card from both AMD and NVIDIA. Physical installation of GPUs takes seconds with the Razer Core. Plug-and-play support with validated graphics cards means that there is no need to reboot the PC, and the graphics cards are easily swappable as new components become available.

"Before today, gamers needed a portable system for everyday work and a separate desktop computer to power their PC games at the highest level possible," says Min-Liang Tan, Razer co-founder and CEO. "For the first time ever, there is no need for two separate systems. The Razer Blade Stealth offers the portability of an Ultrabook with the scalability to play hardcore games with desktop graphics performance thanks to the Razer Core. Furthermore, the Razer Blade Stealth starts at just $999, which is significantly lower than any other comparable laptop in its class."

In addition, the Razer Blade Stealth will be the first laptop in the world equipped with individually backlit RGB keys. Millions of colour options for the keyboard are available thanks to Razer's Chroma technology. All Razer Chroma products - which include mice, keyboards, headsets and a mouse mat – feature 16.8 million customisable colours and a range of effects such as spectrum cycling, breathing, reactive and more, enabled through Razer's Synapse software. Synapse allows the synchronisation of lighting colours and patterns between Chroma devices with the click of a button. An SDK is available for developers to integrate effects in-game, and it is already supported by AAA game titles including Call of Duty and Overwatch.

Razer separately announced the Razer Stargazer desktop webcam. The Razer Stargazer revolutionises webcam use as the first device of its kind suitable for quality streaming content production, the company said, capturing video at 60 frames per second (fps) at 720p, a magnitude better than the 30-fps limit of common webcams, and can provide high-definition 1080p video at 30 frames per second.

Source: The Razer Stargazer.

Powered by the Intel RealSense SR300 camera, the Razer Stargazer is also enabled with features that push the boundaries on what a consumer-grade webcam is capable of. Razer Stargazer's Dynamic Background Removal capability eliminates the need for full-scale green screen setups. The webcam's Intel RealSense Technology enables the camera to intelligently sense depth to separate foreground from background. This feature works with popular broadcasting software like OBS, XSplit and Razer Cortex: Gamecaster.

The Dynamic Background Removal capability also opens possibilities beyond gaming. Video conferences using Skype with Personify will be able to remove or swap backgrounds. FaceRig, QQ Video and ooVoo are also supported by the camera. Face and object 3D scanning will work out-of-the-box, and users can accurately port real-life objects into the digital world in full-HD. This holds promise for game development, as captured 3D scans can quickly be ported directly into development engines like Unity.

The Razer Stargazer also offers the most advanced facial and gesture recognition in a consumer camera. Up to 78 points on the face and 22 points on each hand can be tracked by the webcam. With this sensor advent, users can unlock their computers via Windows Hello's face security system, launch applications with gestures, and play games that track facial expressions and hand movements like Nevermind and Laserlife for a new level of immersion. The Windows 10-only Razer Stargazer also includes an automatic noise-cancelling, dual-array mic.

"Webcams have not had any real innovation in several years, beyond resolution quality," says Tan. "There are exponentially more people streaming and video conferencing than ever before and their needs are constantly evolving. The Razer Stargazer can revolutionise work done by game streamers, YouTube personalities, 3D designers and game developers with additional benefits to the average computer user. Simply stated, this is the webcam of the future."

Game streaming - where a gamer plays a game live online, so fans can watch and comment in real-time - in particular has seen major growth in recent years. A 2015 report by SuperData says that gaming-related streaming content and their studios are worth US$3.8 billion worldwide with more than 480 million tuning in.

The Razer Stargazer joins Razer's one-stop-shop for streaming hardware - including the Razer Seiren and Seiren Pro microphones and related accessories - and will be available in Q216. Razer plans to send out a limited number of Razer Stargazer units free to streamers via its Sponsored Streamer Program.

Interested?

The Razer Stargazer, which comes with a flexible clip for laptops and desktop monitors, is priced at US$199.99 and will be available worldwide Q216. 

The Razer Blade Stealth base model will start at US$999, while the highest-end version will sell for US$1,599. Available through Razer's physical and online stores, preorders are open now and units will ship in January. In February, the Razer Blade Stealth availability will be expanded to Microsoft Stores.

Razer Core will ship in the first half 2016 at all outlets. Pricing has not been announced.

Read the WorkSmart Asia blog post about the new Razer Nabu smartwatch

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