Get extra in-depth ZDNET tech protection: Add us as a most popular Google supply on Chrome and Chromium browsers.
The Blade 16 has been Razer’s flagship gaming laptop computer for years, however the thinner, sleeker design on 2025’s Blade 14 (the thinnest Blade mannequin but) offers nothing wanting a surprising first impression.
The brand new mannequin is 11% thinner and 11% lighter than its predecessor, weighing simply 3.5 kilos and 0.6 inches thick, with a slick, matte black end that appears and feels premium. The shape challenges the model’s personal aesthetic with a tool that appears extra like a Dell XPS 14 or MacBook Professional than a gaming laptop computer.
The bodily construct is actually considered one of this laptop computer’s greatest options. Regardless of its skinny and lightweight body, it feels expressly sturdy, with minimal flexing or display wobble. I additionally love the massive rubber posts on the underside of the system that hold it from sliding round and permit for extra airflow.
By highlighting this new and improved type issue, Razer is taking intention at competing 14-inch gaming laptops, significantly the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14, which reigns supreme as among the best 14-inch gaming laptops on the market (considered one of our favorites, as nicely).
There are a handful of variations between these two laptops, nonetheless, with the Blade 14 buying and selling a bit little bit of that energy for its svelte type issue, opening up a use case as a tool that is equally succesful on the Steam dashboard as it’s within the workplace.
The 3K, 120Hz OLED show is beautiful, going proper as much as the very edge with ultrathin bezels mere millimeters thick. Equally, the trackpad is massive (however not ridiculously so), going as far to the perimeters because it presumably can, exuding a exact, expertly crafted bodily aesthetic.
There are trade-offs to this design, nonetheless. The thinner type means much less strong cooling and limits {hardware}, which The Blade 14 opts for in change for the additional portability. You’ve got obtained an AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 processor paired with Nvidia’s new Blackwell structure within the GeForce RTX 50 sequence, as much as the 5070, and as much as 32GB of soldered RAM.
Positive, it is not the highly effective loadout you will get on a gaming laptop computer, however that is not actually the purpose right here. Razer scaled issues again with the Blade 14 for a succesful machine that errs on the facet of battery effectivity, relatively than making an attempt to strongarm efficiency with heavy {hardware}.
For instance, the Blade 14 helps 100W of whole graphics energy, going as much as 115W with Dynamic Increase on, so technically this laptop computer has greater than sufficient energy to help a higher-end GPU just like the RTX 5080. Nonetheless, Razer seemingly opted for the 5070 to reign in warmth and energy consumption.
To match, the 14-inch Asus Zephyrus G14 has the 5080, and that factor will get scorching. Even with the followers cranking (which aren’t quiet), the truth of gaming on a 14-inch means accounting for these elements, of which the Blade 14 mitigates with this {hardware}.
Gaming efficiency whereas plugged in is unbelievable, with clean, lag-free visuals in “Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered”, “Diablo IV”, and “Cyberpunk 2077”. The latter, at 3K decision, pushes issues to the highest finish, with a mean proper round 40 FPS and a few mild visible stuttering, however nothing that feels problematic. Swapping to a extra manageable 1200p decision drastically improved efficiency.
When it comes to benchmarking, the Blade 14 holds its personal in opposition to two highly effective 16-inch gaming laptops we have examined this 12 months, the MSI Stealth 16 AI, and the Lenovo Legion Professional 7i, however exhibits a slight dip in uncooked energy to the {hardware} in these (a lot bigger) programs.
The Blade 14 has good I/O protection, as nicely. You’ve got obtained two USB4 Kind-C ports with Show Port 2.1 and energy supply help on both facet, two USB-A ports on both facet, an HDMI port (on the suitable facet), and a MicroSD card reader.
On the left facet, you even have the proprietary charging port for the 200W energy brick. That is probably the most environment friendly type of energy supply, however it’s going to cost through USB-C so long as you’ve got the suitable wattage. Simply do not anticipate plugged-in efficiency in the event you’re gaming on this with a 65W charger.
The RGB lighting results on the keyboard do not disappoint, both. Razer does an important job at maximizing the depth and punch of every particular person key, with minimal mild leakage from the corners of the keys for a dramatic impact.
When you like per-key customization, the keyboard right here has all the results you possibly can ask for within the accompanying Razer Chroma app. If you wish to gown issues down with a extra delicate, office-ready aesthetic, you are able to do that simply as simply.
The keyboard itself feels good, with silent activation until you are actually hammering away. Nonetheless, I can see some avid gamers not being fully glad with the journey distance, as though it feels premium, it errs extra towards a MacBook or enterprise laptop computer than an specific gaming board. Conversely, the audio system are alright. They’re higher than common, however a bit missing in bass or richness.
The Razer Synapse app acts because the system’s dashboard for controlling every thing from efficiency modes to overclocking to at-a-glance metrics like working temps and CPU utilization. Nonetheless, the app itself feels a bit unfinished, and it turned unresponsive a couple of instances throughout my testing. It is helpful sufficient to handle settings, nonetheless.
Simply notice that if you’re on battery, the laptop computer forces you into Balanced mode — with no choice to modify out of it. Clearly, that is the popular setting for if you’re untethered from the outlet, however eliminating the choice for brief sprints of efficiency on battery energy is not my favourite factor.
Hopping into Balanced mode goes a good distance towards maximizing battery life, nonetheless. Turning the refresh charge right down to 60Hz and decreasing brightness to half resulted in a bit over 9 hours of runtime throughout our battery testing — superb for a gaming laptop computer.
For sustained gaming on battery, you possibly can anticipate two to 3 hours, which is kind of commonplace, though much less demanding video games will undoubtedly push that previous that to 4 to 5. The takeaway right here is that the Blade 14 can keep alive in low-demand periods or whereas idle for much longer than most gaming laptops, which are usually quite a bit thirstier.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
The Razer Blade 14 is a gaming laptop computer, however it’s not restricted to that use case. You may take it to the workplace or pack it in a journey bag simply as simply as you will get these headshots within the newest top-tier gaming titles on Steam.
It is a beautiful laptop computer, and it resonates with me personally as a “mature” gamer whose all-day gaming periods are (largely) a factor of the previous, however nonetheless enjoys an everyday portfolio of video games to log into.
I might suggest this laptop computer to anybody in search of a succesful gaming laptop computer, however who just isn’t concerned with a large 16- or 18-inch behemoth. In that sense, the Blade 14 speaks to the buyer who’s snug with the trade-offs mentioned and appreciates the light-weight type issue.
The Blade 14 is available in a number of completely different configurations, with 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB of soldered RAM and both the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 or 5070 GPU. Essentially the most high-end loadout retails often for $2,999, which is not precisely low cost and requires dedication to its area of interest use case. Nonetheless, proper now, it is on sale for $2,599 — a value that is much more palatable.
