Product Listing

Razer Blade 14-inch (2013) - The Supermodel of Gaming Notebooks

By Kenny Yeo - 6 Aug 2013

Performance Benchmarking (I) - PCMark 8 & PCMark 7

Test Setup

To test the Razer Blade, we will be putting it through our usual benchmarks. You will find the full list below. As for comparison, the Razer Blade will be pitted against the recently reviewed MSI GE40 and other gaming notebooks that we have tested recently, namely the Lenovo IdeaPad Y500, Alienware M17X R4 and MSI GT70 0NE and the old 17-inch Razer Blade from last year.

This is the full list of benchmarks used:

  • PCMark 7
  • PCMark 8
  • 3DMark 11
  • 3DMark 2013
  • Far Cry 2
  • Crysis 2

Test Notebooks Compared
  Razer Blade 14-inch (2013) MSI GE40 2OC Dragon Eyes Lenovo IdeaPad Y500 Razer Blade (2012) Dell Alienware M17XR4 MSI GT70 0NE
  Razer Blade 14-inch (2013) MSI GE40 2OC Dragon Eyes Lenovo IdeaPad Y500 Razer Blade (2012) Dell Alienware M17XR4 MSI GT70 0NE
Processor and Chipset
  • Intel Core i7-4702HQ Quad-core Processor with Hyper Threading (2.2GHz base / 3.2GHz turbo)
  • Mobile Intel PCHM 8 series chipset, HM87
  • Intel Core i7-4702MQ 2.2GHz
  • Intel HM87
  • Ivy Bridge Intel Core i7-3630QM (2.4 GHz)
  • HM77
  • Intel Core i7-3632QM (2.2GHz)
  • Intel HM77
  • Intel Core i7-3820QM (2.7GHz)
  • Intel HM77
  • Intel Core i7-3610QM (2.3GHz)
  • Intel HM77
Operating System
  • Windows 8 (64-bit)
  • Windows 8
  • Windows 8 64-bit
  • Windows 7
  • Windows 7
  • Windows 7
System Memory
  • 8GB DDR3L 1600MHz
  • 8GB DDR3
  • 8GB RAM
  • 16GB
  • 16GB
  • 16GB
Video & Display
  • 14-inch
  • Native Resolution: 1600 x 900
  • Integrated Intel HD4600 Graphics / NVIDIA GeForce GTX 765M (2GB GDDR5 VRAM, Optimus Technology)
  • 14-inch, 1600 x 900 display
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760M 2GB GDDR5
  • 15.6-inch Full HD 1920 x 1080 display
  • NVIDIA GeForce GT650M 2GB (option for SLI configuration with interchangeable drive bay)
  • 17.3-inch Full HD
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M
  • 17.3-inch Full HD
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M
  • 17.3-inch Full HD
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX680M
Storage
  • 128GB / 256GB / 512GB SATA III SSD
  • 128GB SSD + 750GB HDD (Super RAID)
  • 1TB HDD (5400 rpm)
  • 500GB HDD
  • 64GB SSD
  • 2 x 1TB HDD
  • 750GB HDD
Connectivity
  • Killer Wireless-N 1202 (802.11a/b/g/n + Bluetooth v4.0)
  • Wireless 802.11 b/g/n
  • Bluetooth 4.0
  • RJ-45 Ethernet
  • 802.11 bg/bgn WiFi
  • 10/100/1000M Ethernet
  • Bluetooth 4.0
  • RJ-45 Ethernet Port
  • 802.11 b/g/n
  • Bluetooth v4.0
  • RJ-45 Ethernet Port
  • 802.11 b/g/n
  • Bluetooth v4.0
  • 802.11 b/g/n
  • Bluetooth v4.0
  • RJ-45
Audio
  • Dolby Home Theater v4
  • Stereo speakers (Sound Blaster Cinema)
  • 2.1 speakers (with built-in subwoofer)
  • 1 x Headphone jack
  • 1 x Microphone jack
  • 2 x speakers
  • 1 x headphone port
  • 2 x headphone port
  • 1 x microphone port
  • 1 x S/PDIF/headphone
  • 2.1 Speakers (with built-in subwoofer)
I/O Ports
  • 3 x USB 3.0 ports, Array microphone, 3.5mm microphone/headphone combo port, HDMI 1.4a audio and video output
  • 2 x USB 3.0 ports
  • 1 x USB 2.0 port
  • 1 x Ethernet
  • 1 x HDMI
  • 1 x VGA
  • 1 x SD card reader
  • 1 x HDMI
  • 1 x VGA
  • 2 x USB 3.0 ports
  • 1 x USB 2.0 port
  • 1 x 6-in-1 card reader (SD, SD-Pro, MMC, MS, MS-Pro, XD)
  • 3 x USB 3.0
  • 1 x HDMI
  • 4 x USB 3.0
  • 1 x eSata/USB 2.0
  • 1 x HDMI input
  • 1 x HDMI output
  • 1 x VGA
  • 1 x Mini DisplayPort
  • 1 x Multi-card reader
  • 3 x USB 3.0
  • 1 x USB 2.0
  • eSATA/USB combo
  • D-Sub (VGA)
  • HDMI
  • Mic/Headphone
  • SD(XC/HC)/MMC/MS(PRO)/xD Card Reader
Miscellaneous
  • Built-in 1.3-megapixel webcam
  • Razer Synapse 2.0 Enabled
  • Backlit anti-ghosting keyboard
  • 7.1 Codec support (via HDMI)
  • Razer Switchblade touchscreen UI
  • HD Webcam
Battery Type
  • Built-in 70Wh rechargeable lithium-ion polymer battery
  • 6-cell Lithium ion
  • 6-cell
  • 6-cell
  • 6-cell
  • 9-cell battery
Dimensions
  • 345 x 235 x 16.8mm
  • 339 x 239.4 x 22 mm
  • 387 x 259 x 15.5 - 36 mm
  • 427 x 277 x 22mm
  • 405 x 321 x 51-53 mm
  • 428 x 288 x 55mm
Weight
  • 1.88kg
  • 1.9kg
  • 2.7kg
  • 2.99kg
  • 5.3kg
  • 3.9kg
Optical Drive
  • DVD-RW
  • None
  • DVD-RW
  • Blu-Ray

 

PCMark 8

PCMark 8 is the latest benchmarking utility from Futuremark and was designed to measure the performance of Windows 8 systems. We will be testing the system using four different scenarios, Home, Creative, Work and Storage, which simulates different workloads that a user might subject the system to.

Scores on the “Home”, “Work” and “Creative” scenarios were all pretty comparable with the Lenovo taking the lead for “Home”; Razer coming in tops for “Creative”; and the MSI GE40 claiming first prize for “Work”.

Coming to the “Storage” scenario, the Razer and MSI notebooks left the Lenovo for dead thanks to their fast flash storage. Interestingly, despite having two mSATA SSDs in RAID 0, the Razer Blade outscored the MSI GE40 by around 9% on “Storage”.

We also included benchmarking scores determined based on real-world tasks involving Adobe CS6 applications and Microsoft Office 2010. Here, the Razer Blade outscored the MSI GE40 by around 15%.

 

PCMark 7

The Razer Blade was our top performer on PCMark 7, recorded a score of 5893 - 16% more than the second-placed MSI GE40. Looking at the results breakdown, we saw that it was the top performer for nearly every workload. Specifically, its scores on the “Creativity” and “Computation” workloads were the highest we have ever seen. 

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8.5
  • Design 8.5
  • Features 8
  • Performance 8.5
  • Value 7.5
  • Mobility 9
The Good
Well-built, compact design
Good performance
Good keyboard with cool green backlight
Killer Wireless-N connectivity
The Bad
Display is substandard
Trackpad is erratic to use
Connectivity options can be better
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