The Razer Blade 15 is the newest 15.6-inch gaming laptop from the Taiwanese hardware company. It’s a sleek, high-performance laptop that’s designed with gamers in mind, but it’s also capable of serious workhorse duty.
The Razer Blade 15 is a beautifully crafted, high-performance laptop with an innovative design and fantastically high specs. It’s a laptop that’s been designed, created and engineered with a specific audience in mind: gamers.
It was a sad day when I received the written message that my Razer Blade 15 Advanced review (mid-2024 models, RTX 3080 and 3060, QHD 240Hz) has been rejected.
Now that I’ve finished evaluating the Razer Blade 14, it’s time to turn my attention to the Razer Blade 15. Razer’s latest AMD 14″ model impressed me much. But I believe one of the things I missed was the 15-inch screen. Particularly considering I’ve been using those or 17″ displays for over a decade.
I’m also quite acquainted with the new Advanced Razer Blade 15 model, which will be released in mid-2021, since I’ve had the old model for many years. However, there are several major improvements to this year’s model that entice me to upgrade.
And, because to a little issue with the screen on one of my review devices, I was able to test both the RTX 3060 and the RTX 3080. You’d think the GPU was the only change, but the 3060 model’s chassis is actually much smaller, which I found to be very impressive.
Since a result, the following evaluation will be a mix of both units, as I spent approximately a week with each of them separately.
Razer Blade 15 Advanced specifications as reviewed
| Razer Blade 15 Advanced | |
| Screen | 15.6 inch, 2560 x 1440 pixels, IPS equivalent, 240 Hz, matte, 100% DCI-P3, 2ms responsiveness with Advanced Optimus/GSync |
| Processor | Intel Core i7-11800H 8C/16T Intel Core i7-11800H 8C/16T Intel Core i7-11800H 8C/16T Intel Core i7-11800H 8C/16T Intel Core i7-11800H 8C/16T Intel Core i7-11800H 8 |
| Video | Advanced Optimus with Intel iRis Xe iGPU NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 with 6GB GDDR6 VRAM 70-80W NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 with 8GB GDDR6 VRAM 90-105W |
| Memory | DDR4 3200Mhz 16 GB (2x8GB DIMMS) |
| Storage | On the 3080 model, a 1TB M.2 NVMe (Samsung PM9A1 PCIe 4.0) with a spare PCIe 4.0 x4 slot is available; on the 3060 model, a single SSD slot is available. |
| Connectivity | Wifi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 Intel AX210 |
| Ports | 3x USB-A 3.2 gen2 ports, 2x USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4 and PD 3.0 compatibility, 1x HDMI 2.1 port, UHS-III card reader, microphone/earphone, Kensington Lock |
| Battery | 230 W charger, 65Whr (3060 model), 80Whr (3080 model). |
| Size | For the 3060 model, the dimensions are 355 mm or 13.98” (w) x 235 mm or 9.25” (d) x 15.88 mm or.62” (h). The 3080 model has a diameter of 16.99 mm (.67”). |
| Weight | 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) for model 3060 For the 3080 model, the weight is 2.1 kg (4.6 lbs). |
| Extras | RGB keyboard with unique lighting, Windows Hello FHD webcam, and stereo up-firing speakers |
Exterior and interior design
Full disclosure: I now possess a Razer Blade 15 and have been evaluating Blades for many years. I’m acquainted with them, and their design hasn’t been updated in a long time. As a result, I’ll probably talk about what has changed/improved a lot more than if this were my first time viewing the gadget.
However, the general design of this year’s Razer Blade is almost similar to that of the 2019-2024 Razer Blade 15s. That isn’t always a negative thing. It’s difficult to alter what works when the Blade has always had a simple design that mimics the Macbook in many aspects.
This year’s main adjustment is the laptop’s overall thickness. The RTX 3070 and 3080 are now available. 67” thin, with the RTX 3060 model becoming much thinner. 62” in width. That’s incredible!
I held both the 3060 and 3080 versions in my hands and was able to see the difference between them straight away. In reality, I was unaware of the distinction until I received the RTX 3080 model, which prompted me to check it up.
The construction quality is the same as it has always been. It’s made of a single piece of aluminum and has a unibody design. Everything fits together well since the clearances and tolerances are precise. There were no creaks or weak spots on the case.
The laptop is extremely straightforward and simple to use. The weight of the laptop is about 4.4 pounds for the 3060 model and 4.6 pounds for the 3070/3080 versions, and it’s nicely balanced, so picking it up from an edge feels quite natural.
Because the laptop is black, fingerprints will show up quickly when you touch it. However, Razer added an anti-fingerprint coating to the chassis this year. After prolonged usage, I still notice smudges on the metal, but they aren’t as terrible as they were previously.
The only disadvantage of this coating is that it makes the chassis a bit more slick than it was before. I’m assuming it’s some kind of Teflon coating, which would make sense since Teflon is often used to decrease friction on aluminum. It’s simply something to keep in mind while dealing.
Let us now turn our attention to the design.
With the exception of the usual flashing green Razer emblem, the laptop lid is rather basic. If I were to purchase this laptop, I would probably cover it with a Dbrand skin since I don’t like having a green logo and it certainly doesn’t like shining. However, if you want to, you can turn off the logo illumination in Synapse.
It just takes one finger to open the lid. The hinge is just strong enough to hold the lid while still allowing it to be easily maneuvered. You shouldn’t be disappointed if the touchscreen model has the same hinge.
With its small bezels, you get a nice view at the screen once it’s opened. Although the bottom bezel is somewhat thicker than the others, it is still acceptable. If Razer could fit a 16:10 16” screen in there, that would be incredible.
The camera is located in the top bezel, which is now FHD and supports Windows Hello. Very great update, particularly since the epidemic is causing me to use my camera a lot more.
With your keyboard and trackpad, the palmrest is fairly typical. Later on, I’ll go over them. Both sides of the keyboard include stereo speakers. A power button may also be found in the top part of the right speaker. Finally, keep in mind that on this type, part of the exhaust from the fans is placed between the hinges.
In terms of IO, we have a USB-C connector on the right that supports Thunderbolt 4 and PD 3.0 charging. A USB-A port and an HDMI 2.1 port are also included. Finally, a full-sized SD memory card reader is included.
Another USB-C connector is located on the left, which supports Thunderbolt 4 and PD charging. There are two additional USB-A ports on this site, as well as a headphone/mic combo and a proprietary power port.
For a long time, I’ve been using this port. It’s a bit stiff, but it’s really sturdy. It’s my second favorite feature, behind Lenovo’s reversible connection, and that’s saying a lot. Traditional barrel connections are much less durable than these reversible connectors.
The laptop’s bottom is almost identical to that of the previous Razer Blade 15s. The laptop is raised high enough for excellent air intake thanks to the long, robust feet. The bottom plate’s apertures are directly above the fans. Finally, on the opposite side of the foot, near the radiators, there are exhaust cutouts. It’s a nice design that seems to function nicely.
Normally, I chastise companies for sticking to the same design for longer than a few years. However, the current design seems to function well, so I understand why Razer is hesitant to change it. Rather of making dramatic changes, they are focusing on little improvements, which I believe is the correct decision.
Trackpad and keyboard
The keyboard is similar to last year’s model, so if you’ve used a Razer keyboard before, you’ll be acquainted with it. I’ll confess that I quickly became used to this keyboard — but I’m a long-time Razer Blade user, so my opinion may be skewed.
The shorter keyboard will most likely take some getting accustomed to for new Blade users. In comparison to other rival brands, the feedback is also a bit lighter. Once you’ve gotten accustomed to it, typing becomes extremely fast. However, your mistake rate may be greater till then.
This is something I stated about the Razer Blade 14 and will repeat again here. Razer’s keyboard needs to be updated, in my opinion. Maybe not the feedback, but at the the least, deepen the keystrokes. This is preferable than shaving another millimeter off the chassis. But that’s just my view.
The arrangement of the keyboard is extremely intuitive, with all of the keys being evenly spaced. In my view, all of the keys are in the proper locations. The shift keys are also very big, something that some manufacturers overlook in order to suit their key agenda. The up/down arrows, which are a split shared key, are the only keys I dislike.
Through their Chroma brand, the keyboard features per-key RGB. It looks as beautiful as ever, and the Synapse software is simple to use. You may apply a variety of effects to customize the appearance of your keyboard. Fire is my favorite color combination, with purple and teal as the hot and cold hues. It seems to be really cool!
The trackpad is still amazing. It’s a glass trackpad that looks and operates just like the Razer Blade 15. It’s big, smooth, and tracks smoothly. It also functions as a clickpad, allowing you to right and left-click by clicking the bottom corners. My presses provided strong and pleasant response.
There’s nothing to alter here; it’s likely the finest Windows trackpad available.
Screen
This model’s 15.6″ QHD screen is something I’d been looking forward to seeing. And it’s a lovely sight to see. The screen has a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels and a refresh rate of 240Hz, making it both quick and crisp.
Sharp manufactured the panel, and it has a color gamut of 100 percent DCI-P3, so the colors really shine. The viewing angles are excellent, and my panel has no backlight bleed. Everything on this page is excellent.
The only improvement I would make is for the screen to be a bit brighter. When compared to the competition, it is somewhat below average at 270 nits. It’s OK for most indoor uses, but the glare becomes unbearable when you’re near a bright window or, worse, outdoors.
I ran some tests on my X-rite i1 Display Pro sensor and came up with the following results:
- Sharp LQ156T1JW03 Panel HardwareID (SHP1529)
- 153 percent sRGB, 105.4 percent AdobeRGB, and 108.4 percent DCI-P3 coverage;
- Gamma (measured): 2.2;
- On power, the maximum brightness in the center of the screen is 270 cd/m2;
- 1227:1 contrast at maximum brightness
- 5950 K (native white point);
- 0.22 cd/m2 at maximum brightness
The findings, as you can see, back up Razer’s claims. Because of the high contrast ratio, this panel may be used in low-light situations and yet provide a decent picture.
There is a flaw with this screen that I discovered, and it’s the main reason I ordered a second Razer Blade to test. I had some flickering on the 3060 Blade, which has the same screen, so Razer replaced it with the next available unit, assuming it was a faulty screen.
It turns out that the model I’m using today has the same issue. However, after some logical reasoning, I realized that the issue might be due to WiFi interference. Putting off Wifi cured my problem, however turning it back on reactivated it. Even weirder, the issue only occurred when connected to certain Wifi 6 routers. At my house, where I just had Wifi 5, it didn’t happen.
In Device Manager, I temporarily reduced the Wifi antenna strength to 3. It fixed the flickering and served as a band-aid, but it wasn’t a long-term answer. But what I can infer from this is that the Wifi antenna (which are most likely placed in the screen) is creating interference, which is causing the screen to flicker.
Of course, I contacted Razer about this, and they are looking into it and working on a solution. Hopefully, they’ll be able to come up with a solution soon. In the meanwhile, if you’re thinking about getting a new Blade 15, consider the 165Hz QHD screen, which is also 100 percent DCI-P3 and likely just as excellent.
For video producers, there’s also a 4k touchscreen option, although it’s only available on the highest-specced model. There’s also an FHD 300Hz panel for FPS players that has a fast reaction time but is restricted to 100% sRGB. If you’re dead set on getting the 240Hz QHD screen, I’d wait and see if Razer can fix the flickering first.
Performance and hardware
The octa-core Intel Core i7-11800H CPU is found in both versions of this laptop. With a base speed of 2.6GHz and a peak clock of 4.6GHz, this CPU is capable of handling virtually any task you can throw at it.
For many games and everyday activities, the CPU is really overkill. I never felt the desire for additional power throughout my time with it. The major selling point of this CPU is that Intel has finally caught up to AMD in terms of performance while also implementing PCIe 4.0.
As I previously said, I was fortunate enough to test out two models. The RTX 3060, which features 6GB of VRAM, was the first model I evaluated. This model has a TGP of 70W, however Dynamic Increase 2.0 can boost it to 80W. It came with 16GB of RAM for this variant (2x8GB sticks)
The second model I looked at has an RTX 3080 graphics card with 8GB of VRAM. The TGP of this card is 90 watts, and it can boost to 105 watts. This variant came with 32GB of RAM, divided into two 16GB modules.
On certain Blade 15 setups with the QHD screen, Razer employs Advanced Optimus and a MUX, which seems to function extremely well. This enables the system to smoothly transition between the iGPU and the dGPU, as well as establish a direct link between the internal screen and the dGPU while playing games, guaranteeing you receive the finest gaming experience possible. However, Advanced Optimus is not available on all screen choices.
I also got to examine the RAM on the 3080 model to determine whether it was dual tiered since I brought it up. The good news is that it is, therefore you won’t suffer any performance degradation as a result of utilizing inexpensive RAM. That is, at least, the case with the 32GB models. I was unable to examine the 16GB on the 3060 model due to a lack of time.
A 1TB Samsung M.2 980 Pro PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD is used in both devices. Razer isn’t messing around with this SSD; it’s a real SSD with some insanely fast speeds. For plugged-in and on-battery results, see my CrystalDisk results.
Let me preface this by saying that this is the first time I’ve seen a factory SSD on a laptop that I’d like to retain. When buying a new laptop, I generally recommend getting the cheapest model and swapping the SSDs right away. However, a lightning-fast 1TB drive out of the box is quite reasonable, particularly since you get an extra M.2 slot for another drive.
I was able to peek inside the RTX 3080 model. By removing 10 Torx screws, it comes apart exactly like all prior Razer Blades. The spare M.2 slot, which is directly on top of the current M.2 slot, is accessible from below. The RAM and Wifi modules may also be accessed simply.
So, let’s speak about performance right now.
If I had to sum it up in a single phrase, I was extremely pleased with the overall power of these devices, particularly considering their size. They can not only play well, but they can also be used for serious professional tasks.
Synapse is pre-installed on the Razer Blade 15, and it may be used to adjust the CPU’s TDP and GPU’s TGP. It’s set to Balanced by default, but if you change it to Manual, you may adjust each component separately. Here’s a table that explains what each option does:
| Balanced | Low | Med | High | Boost | ||||||
| PL1/PL2 TDP | TGP | PL1/PL2 TDP | TGP | PL1/PL2 TDP | TGP | PL1/PL2 TDP | TGP | PL1/PL2 TDP | TGP | |
| 3060 | 35/45W | 70W | 25/45W | 70W | 35/45W | 80W | 45/80W | 80W | 55/90W | 80W |
| 3080 | 35/45W | 90W | 25/45W | 95W | 35/45W | 95W | 45/80W | 105W | 55/90W | 105W |
First, I ran some synthetic benchmarks on the RTX 3060 model with the CPU in Boost mode (90/55W) and the GPU set to high (70+10W TGP). I also ran all of the tests in Advanced Optimus mode. Here’s what I came up with:
- 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 17356 points (Graphics: 18968, Physics: 24287)
- Time Spy: 7660 (Graphics – 7349, CPU – 10086); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 7660 (Graphics – 7349, CPU – 10086);
- 3DMark 13 – CPU profile: max – 7058, 16 – 7066, 8 – 5747, 4 – 3519, 2 – 1841, 1 – 939; CPU profile: max – 7058, 16 – 7066; CPU profile: 8 – 5747; CPU profile: 4 – 3519; CPU profile: 2 – 1841; CPU profile: 2 –
- Graphics: 4377 in 3DMark 13 – Port Royal (RTX);
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 4440; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Standard: 4440; Uniengine Superposition – 1080
- 1080p Uniengine Superposition 13210 (Medium);
- GeekBench 5: 1547 single-core, 8973 multi-core;
- OpenGL 170.52 fps, CPU 1984 cb, CPU Single Core 222 cb; CineBench R15: OpenGL 170.52 fps, CPU 1984 cb, CPU Single Core 222 cb;
- CPU 11295 points, CPU Single Core 1475 points in CineBench R23;
Here are the same benchmarks with the CPU undervolted by -70mV:
- 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 17211 (Graphics: 18882, Physics: 24353); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 17211 (Graphics: 18882, Physics: 24353); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 17
- 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 7619 (Graphics: 7249, CPU: 10725); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 7619 (Graphics: 7249, CPU: 10725); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy:
- 3DMark 13 – CPU profile: max: 7622, 16: 7625, 8: 6198, 4: 3515, 2: 1831, 1: 929
- Graphics: 3867 in 3DMark 13 – Port Royal (RTX);
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 4391; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Standard: 4391; Uniengine Superposition – 1080
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Medium: 13087; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p High: 13087; Uniengine Superposition – 10
- GeekBench 5: 1525 single-core, 9235 multi-core;
- OpenGL 172.23 fps, CPU 2125 cb, CPU Single Core 220 cb; CineBench R15: OpenGL 172.23 fps, CPU 2125 cb, CPU Single Core 220 cb;
- CPU 12686 points, CPU Single Core 1415 points in CineBench R23;
Finally, with Synapse set to Balanced (which has a 45W/35W TDP and 60+10W TGP), I got some results. For them, I got the following results:
- 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike (Graphics – 17807, Physics – 17065);
- 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 6629 (Graphics: 6497, CPU: 7494); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 6629 (Graphics: 6497, CPU: 7494); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy:
- 3DMark 13 – CPU profile: max – 4341, 16 – 4493, 8 – 4134, 4 – 2979, 2 – 1835, 1 – 935; 16 – 4493; 8 – 4134; 4 – 2979; 2 – 1835; 1 – 935; 16 – 4493; 16 – 4493; 16 – 4493;
- Graphics: 4168 in 3DMark 13 – Port Royal (RTX);
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 5598; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Standard: 5598; Uniengine Superposition – 1080
- 1080p Uniengine Superposition Medium: 12345 (no, it’s not a joke);
- GeekBench 5: 1521 single-core, 6119 multi-core;
- OpenGL 168.55 fps, CPU 1223 cb, CPU Single Core 226 cb; CineBench R15:OpenGL 168.55 fps, CPU 1223 cb, CPU Single Core 226 cb;
- CPU 8028 points, CPU Single Core 1491 points in CineBench R23;
I ran the same simulated benchmarks on the 3080 with the CPU in boost mode (90/55W) and the GPU set to high (90+15W TGP). However, since the CPU benchmarks would be identical, I just performed the GPU-related benchmarks this time. Here’s what I came up with:
- 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 23305 (Graphics: 27195, Physics: 24914); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 23305 (Graphics: 27195, Physics: 24914); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 23
- 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 10513 (Graphics – 10506, CPU – 10559); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 10513 (Graphics – 10506, CPU – 10559); 3DMark 13 – Time
- Graphics: 6476 in 3DMark 13 – Port Royal (RTX);
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 6636; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Standard: 6636; Uniengine Superposition – 1080
- 1080p Uniengine Superposition 19670; Medium:
Here are the same benchmarks with the CPU undervolted by -70mV:
- 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 23173 (Graphics: 27193, Physics: 24936); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 23173 (Graphics: 27193, Physics: 24936); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 23
- 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 10499 (Graphics – 10448, CPU – 10800); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 10499 (Graphics – 10448, CPU – 10800); 3DMark 13 – Time
- Graphics: 6463 in 3DMark 13 – Port Royal (RTX);
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 6610; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Standard: 6610; Uniengine Superposition – 1080
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Medium: 19735; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p
Finally, with Synapse set to Balanced (which has a 45W/35W TDP and an 80+15W TGP), here are the RTX 3080 results:
- 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 18569 (Graphics: 25103, Physics: 18314); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike: 18569 (Graphics: 25103, Physics: 18314); 3DMark 13 – Fire Strike:
- 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 9178 (Graphics: 9578, CPU: 7425); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 9178 (Graphics: 9578, CPU: 7425); 3DMark 13 – Time Spy: 9
- Graphics: 6130 in 3DMark 13 – Port Royal (RTX);
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Extreme: 6194; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Standard: 6194; Uniengine Superposition – 1080
- Uniengine Superposition – 1080p Medium: 17760; Uniengine Superposition – 1080p High: 17760; Uniengine Superposition – 10
Both units have produced some remarkable outcomes. Keep in mind that not all GPUs are created equal when comparing them to other laptops. Even though the basic specifications are the identical, many will have varying power limitations and act differently.
Because the Razer Blade 15 Advanced is one of the thinnest laptops in its class, the GPU’s power limitations will almost likely be lower than those of laptops that are less than 1.0″ thick. If you compare specifications apples to apples, you may anticipate a little lesser performance.
However, for each of these models, these findings are approximately correct. This is also my first RTX 3060 review, so it’ll be interesting to see how well it holds up despite the GPU’s low power consumption of 70W. It’s really an excellent match for the QHD display.
I decided to put these models through various gameplay tests. On all devices, the situations were similar, and I even included some benchmarks with the CPU/GPU set to low. My findings are shown below:
| GPU High, RTX 3060 QHD CPU Boost | Low RTX 3060 QHD GPU/GPU | GPU High, RTX 3080 QHD CPU Boost | Low RTX 3080 QHD GPU/GPU | |
| Battlefield V is a first-person shooter that was (DX 12, Ultra Preset, Ray-Tracing OFF) | Average frame rate is 74 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 68 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 70 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 65 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 110 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 96 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 108 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 96 frames per second. |
| Battlefield V is a first-person shooter that was (DX 12, Ultra Preset, Ray-Tracing ON) | Average frame rate is 35 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 31 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 35 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 31 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 53 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 47 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 53 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 48 frames per second. |
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is the third installment in The Witcher franchise (DX 11, Ultra Preset, Hairworks On) | Average frame rate is 57 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 54 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 51 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 45 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 83 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 79 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 73 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 69 frames per second. |
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is the third installment in The Witcher franchise (DX 11, Ultra Preset, Hairworks Off) | Average frame rate is 72 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 67 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 58 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 50 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 97 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 89 frames per second. | Average frame rate of 85 frames per second, low frame rate of 81 frames per second |
| Horizon Zero Dawn is a game that takes place in the year (Ultra) | Average frame rate is 64 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 59 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 56 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 50 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 82 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 77 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 76 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 73 frames per second. |
| Cyberpunk is a genre of fiction that is based (Ultra, Ray Tracing On, DLSS Auto) | Average frame rate is 36 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 34 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 34 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 30 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 53 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 50 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 49 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 44 frames per second. |
| Cyberpunk is a genre of fiction that is based (Ultra, Ray Tracing On, DLSS off) | Avg. frame rate: 10 fps | Avg. frame rate: 10 fps | Average frame rate is 27 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 25 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 23 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 21 frames per second. |
| Cyberpunk is a genre of fiction that is based (Ultra, Ray Tracing Off, DLSS off) | Average frame rate is 35 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 32 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 22 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 20 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 51 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 46 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 45 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 41 frames per second. |
| Valheim is a fictional world created by Valheim (Max Settings) | Average frame rate is 47 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 43 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 42 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 39 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 64 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 61 frames per second. | Average frame rate is 59 frames per second, with a low frame rate of 56 frames per second. |
Again, these are the outcomes I was anticipating. If you’re interested in the RTX 3070 model, you can probably simply look at the Razer Blade 14 post I published – the findings are likely to be quite comparable to the Razer Blade 15 3070, which sits in the center of these two units.
I’m pleased with what I observed, and it’s encouraging to see how well the RTX 3060 handles games despite its low power restriction of 70W. Given the low price, I believe many people will flock to that model, therefore it’s good to know it can perform well despite the small chassis.
Although the RTX 3080 model performs well, I find it difficult to justify its higher price. Especially because their results on thicker laptops are somewhat inferior to an RTX 3070 with a 130-140W TGP. But I can’t hold Razer responsible for this; they’re just providing the greatest performance feasible in the chassis they have.
Essentially, the 3080 model is just for people who don’t mind paying a lot more money and want the greatest power in the smallest and lightest container available. However, if it were up to me, I’d go with the RTX 3070 model.
Regardless, the Razer Blade 15’s overall performance is greater than before, and I believe they did an excellent job with this model. I particularly like all of the Synapse options for customizing the CPU and GPU.
Noise, heat, connectivity, speakers, and other factors are all factors to consider
The Razer Blade 15 Advanced utilizes the same vapor chamber cooling system as last year’s model. It works well enough, and Razer has a lot of expertise with it, so it’s only natural to stick with it.
The laptop remains reasonably cool during regular use. Most jobs may be completed with CPU temperatures in the mid to upper 40s when thermals are set to Balanced. Chrome will create spikes in the 60s, but the vapor chamber is big enough to absorb the brunt of it, keeping the fans at a minimum.
In fact, for everyday use, I’m very pleased with the fan noise. The pace is so low that it’s practically inaudible. I typically have something else going on in the background that I am completely unaware of. I could hear a faint hum in a very quiet environment, but it wasn’t bothersome, and my device didn’t have any coil whining.
I used my sound detector to establish that the lowest fan noise in Balanced was about 30dB, while the highest fan noise was around 40dB. On both machines, the most I could hear the fans ramp up to was 44-45dB while performing heavy activities, but that was just when gaming.
Synapse’s highest settings significantly alter the situation. TDP and TGP are given a boost, which substantially boosts heat output. CPU spikes as high as 99 degrees Celsius were recorded, with average CPU temperatures reaching 82 degrees Celsius and GPU temperatures averaging 75 degrees Celsius for the RTX 3060 model. In this setting, the loudest fans I measured were 48dB.
For my intensive gaming run, the RTX 3080 model was somewhat different. On this model, CPU temperatures peaked at 97°C and averaged 89°C, which is considerably higher. However, the GPU temperature remained at 76°C. The fan noise for the 3080 model peaked at 52dB, making it noisier than the 3060.
Although the CPU surges are worrisome, the average temperatures are far below 90 degrees Celsius. Given the laptop’s thinness, I was particularly pleased with the RTX 3060 model. If these temperatures are bothering you, just reduce the CPU’s speed to high or medium. You get virtually comparable gaming performance with much lower CPU temperatures.
If noise reduction is important to you, you may reduce the TDP/TGP by setting both the CPU and GPU to low. You’ll lower your benchmarks, as I shown in the last part, but you’ll also improve your thermals significantly.
I was able to play Horizon Zero Dawn on low settings with the fans leveling off at 40dB on the RTX 3060 model. Temperatures on the CPU and GPU averaged 73°C and 70°C, respectively. It’s lovely.
The RTX 3080 produced comparable findings, but with a performance boost of 35%. The fan noise for this model was 43dB, with CPU temperatures averaging 75°C and GPU temperatures average 74°C.
If it were up to me, I’d spend a lot of time playing with the CPU and GPU set to Low. Or, at the very least, in Balanced. I like to keep fan noise to a minimum if at all feasible, and the fact that the performance is still acceptable helps. Of course, for those exceptional games, I’d just turn it up to 11.
There is some undervolting headroom on this CPU if you insist on operating at maximum speeds all of the time. On my computer, I was able to get a consistent -70mV undervolt, however, your results may vary. However, it had little effect on the temperature.
The vapor chamber is, without a doubt, doing its job. This is a very small chassis with a powerful CPU/GPU combination that is difficult to cool due to the restricted space.
Now, let’s take a look at the outside temperatures. I took temperature readings while viewing a movie on battery and while playing a game for a long period of time. Here’s what I found out:
These outcomes are precisely what I was hoping for. It was perfectly acceptable for everyday usage. On the bottom, it’s a little warm, but nothing to be concerned about.
Because the temperatures for gaming were higher on the bottom, you’ll want to utilize this on a desk or lapdesk. The WASD keys, on the other hand, are excellent, and the palm rest is acceptable. The palm rest will be warmer due to the battery charging if your charge is low and you plug in and game.
Now we’ll move on to the other elements. On this device, the Intel AX210 is utilized as a Wifi module. I was able to get 514Mbps at a distance of 30 feet from my router, which is fantastic. I never lost connection or had any Bluetooth issues throughout my whole use.
The sound quality is adequate. The sound is not muffled since they are upward-facing. They, like all of the other Razer Blades I’ve tested, lack bass. The lowest frequency I was able to pick up was 120Hz.
However, the speakers’ maximum volume was enough. My sound meter reached at 82dB while listening to my favorite music, which is quite loud for me. The music sounded good, although it was confined to highs and good mids once again.
In future versions, I’d like to see some improvements with these speakers. Especially now that the Razer Blade 17 is equipped with quad speakers. I haven’t heard them yet, but if they’re any good, I’m hoping Razer incorporates them into this chassis as well.
In terms of the webcam, Razer upgraded it to Full HD this year. The images are considerably sharper than those captured by the prior camera, and the low light adjustment is adequate. This would be ideal for professional online conferencing.
Windows Hello is also supported by the camera. I activated it straight away and used it to unlock the laptop for the duration of my stay. It worked perfectly.
Life of the battery
The RTX 3060 Razer Blade 15 has a 65-watt-hour battery, whereas the RTX 3080 has an 80-watt-hour battery. I’m not sure how I feel about the lesser battery on the 3060 model, but it is what it is.
I ran a series of battery life tests with just the RTX 3080 variant, with the brightness set to 40%, or approximately 71 nits. My findings were as follows:
- Idle, Best Battery Mode, screen at 0%, Wi-Fi ON, backlighting off; 10.3 W (7 h 46 min of usage)
- 14.9 W (5 hours and 22 minutes of usage) — text writing in Word with light internet use, Better Battery Mode, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi ON;
- 15.9 W (for 5 hours and 2 minutes of usage) – 1440p 60Hz Fullscreen Youtube on Chrome, Better Battery Mode, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi on;
- 1080p Netflix fullscreen movie on Chrome, Better Battery Mode, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi ON; 14.7 W (5 h 27 min of usage)
- 21.2 W (after 3 hours and 46 minutes of usage) — intensive surfing in Chrome, Better Performance Mode, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi ON;
- 77.6 W (used for 1 hour and 2 minutes) – Gaming – Wither 3, Maximum Performance Mode, 60 frames per second cap, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi ON
To me, they are simply acceptable outcomes. You can get a lot of work done on it, but if you have long-term work to accomplish, you’ll definitely want to carry a charger with you.
However, since the RTX 3060 version has a lesser battery, I’m concerned. In fact, it uses the same hardware as the RTX 3080 version that I tested. When the identical numbers are entered into a smaller 65Whr battery, the result is as follows:
- Idle, Best Battery Mode, screen at 0%, Wi-Fi ON, backlighting off; 10.3 W (6 h 19 min of usage)
- 14.9 W (for 4 hours and 22 minutes of usage) — text processing in Word with light internet use, Better Battery Mode, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi ON;
- 15.9 W (for 4 hours and 5 minutes of usage) – 1440p 60Hz Fullscreen Youtube on Chrome, Better Battery Mode, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi on;
- 1080p Netflix fullscreen movie in Chrome, Better Battery Mode, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi ON; 14.7 W (four hours and twenty-five minutes of usage)
- 21.2 W (3 hours and 4 minutes of usage) – intensive surfing in Chrome, Better Performance Mode, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi turned on;
- Gaming — Wither 3, Maximum Performance Mode, 60fps cap, screen at 40%, Wi-Fi ON, 77.6 W (50 min of usage)
However, I believe this is enough for a gaming laptop. It’s really very typical with this CPU/battery combination, especially one as small as this.
The 230W power brick is identical to the power bricks used in earlier Razer Blade 14, 15, and 17” models. It’s little and comes with a lengthy cable. I’ve used it on my daily driver for years and it’s still going strong, albeit the braided cable is torn.
However, if it were up to me, I’d have a USB charger in my bag at all times, just in case I needed it while on the move. You won’t be able to play games on it, but you won’t have to carry about the bigger brick.
Razer also loaned me their new GaN charger to check out while we’re on the subject of USB charges. It’s really very tasty! It not only has the capacity to provide 100W through a single USB-C connection, but it also includes a spare USB-C port and two USB-A ports. The total amount of electricity that may be delivered is 130W.
I’ve been charging my phone and Razer Blade with it for a few weeks now, as well as powering a wireless charger for my Airpods. It performs as expected, which is a nice thing.
Is it, however, worth Razer’s $180 asking price? I’m not sure I can say yes to that. All I can say is that I’m not going to purchase one…yet. Perhaps if it goes on sale for about $100.
My primary motivation is because I already have a GaN charger that works well. It’s a single port model that I bought for a third of the price. I quit trying when the multi-USB GaN charger I bought on Amazon turned out to be a piece of trash. However, this Razer multi-USB charger is really useful, so there is some value in it. Just not $180, in my opinion.
I also don’t *need* multi-port chargers, so consider me prejudiced in that regard as well. If I required a charger with four USB ports, this would be an excellent choice.
the cost and the availability
The RTX 3080 model in this evaluation costs $3099, although it isn’t yet available. However, Amazon has a variant with a 360Hz FHD screen that is comparable.
The RTX 3060 variant, which starts at $2299, is considerably less costly. However, the asking price for a 3060 GPU is still very expensive. Clearly, the price is determined by the form factor and screen selection.
Other versions, especially the RTX 3070 models, which vary in price from $2599 to $2699, are also available. While the RTX 3060 is a fantastic bargain, the 3070 model is likely the sweet spot when performance and cost cease moving in the same direction. Particularly if you use my Razer Blade 14 3070 benchmarks as a guide (the Blade 15 should be very similar to that).
Finally, if you’re a serious content producer, you may wish to invest on the top model. The display is a touch panel with a 60Hz 4k OLED screen. An i9-11900H CPU, 32GB of RAM, and an RTX 3080 with 16GB of VRAM are also included. The cost is $3399.
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Finally, some ideas
So, putting the screen problem aside, the new Razer Blade 15 Advanced is once again one of the best options for getting a lot of power in the smallest and lightest package possible. Both units worked well, but the 3060 model had the advantage of being even smaller and more inexpensive than the other.
Personally, I’d go for the RTX 3070 model since I believe it offers the best value. It also offers the most form choices on the screen.
The Razer Blade 15’s primary selling point is its design, which has been relatively constant for several years – and for good reason. They’ve even enhanced it over the years by adding a memory card reader and expanding the connection choices.
The FHD camera and the PCIe 4.0 SSD were the major shocks this year. Those are nice additions that only add to the laptop’s total worth.
And this is significant given the high cost of these computers. I typically simply remark that you pay a premium for Razer because of the form factor and design. But, at the very least, I can say that you won’t need to upgrade your RAM or SSD anytime soon. This isn’t always the case with other laptops.
As a result, I give this laptop a high rating. However, I would advise anybody using the 240Hz QHD versions to wait till Razer fixes the issue. The good thing is that these models aren’t currently available for purchase, so maybe they’ll fix it soon.
I must return my loan, but I will gladly answer any questions you may have. Please feel free to leave a remark in the box below.
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Derek works as a biomedical engineer in addition to being a tech geek. He loves dismantling things, figuring out how they function, and working out how to improve them. Spending time with his family, “do-it-yourself” projects like home automation, and jogging are among his other interests.
The Razer Blade 15 was the flagship gaming laptop for the company back in 2013 and the Blade 14 was its direct successor. Now, Datery has introduced the Blade 15, which is the company’s latest high-end machine. The design of the Blade 15 is more refined this time around, and the chassis has been given a more muted black finish instead of the red that distinguished the original Blade 14 and 15 series.. Read more about razer blade 15 base (2024) review and let us know what you think.
