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The 2019 Blade Stealth, the smallest laptop in Razer's lineup, strays even more than past versions from the company's image of delivering goods for hardcore gamers only.
Milled from high-grade aluminum, the 13.3-inch ultraportable has an elegant, streamlined chassis. Thinner bezels around the display helped shrink its overall footprint and further clean up its appearance. And on the iconic three-headed snake logo on the lid is now in basic black instead of glowing green.
The Stealth isn't really for gaming, either. There are three configurations, starting at $1,399 (£1,300, AU$2,449), all of which use a quad-core Intel i7-8565U processor. The base model 8GB RAM, a 256GB SATA M.2 SSD, a 1,920x1,080-pixel full HD display and integrated graphics. Another $200 doubles your RAM, swaps the SATA SSD for a PCIe M.2 and adds a 4GB version of Nividia's entry-level GeForce MX150 graphics card. (It's also the only one that comes in a limited-edition quartz pink.)
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If you're willing to go up to $1,899 for the config reviewed here (£1,800 in the UK and currently not available in Australia), storage gets bumped up to a 512GB PCIe M.2 SSD and the display changes to a beautiful UHD-resolution touchscreen (though you do get less battery life, unfortunately). That is definitely expensive, especially if you're simply after the most graphics power you can get for your money.
However, it's still not as high as a similarly configured 2018 13-inch Apple MacBook Pro, which is hundreds more and doesn't even have the option for discrete graphics. In other words, the price isn't as ridiculous as it sounds (or at least not as ridiculous as Apple's pricing) and the performance doesn't disappoint. As far as Windows alternatives for the MacBook Pro go, none quite hit the mark like this Stealth update.
| Price as reviewed | $1,899 |
|---|---|
| Display size/resolution | 13.3-inch 3,840 x 2,160 touch display |
| CPU | 1.8GHz Intel Core i7-8565U |
| PC Memory | 16GB DDR4 SDRAM 2,133MHz |
| Graphics | 4GB Nvidia GeForce MX150 |
| Storage | 512GB SSD |
| Networking | 802.11ac Wi-Fi wireless; Bluetooth 5.0 |
| Operating system | Windows 10 Home (64-bit) |
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There are two USB-A and two USB-C ports, one of which is Thunderbolt 3.
Sarah Tew/CNETMaybe it's the metal body combined with its compact size and 3-pound weight (1.38kg), but the Stealth feels sturdy. The lid is stiff and there's no discernible flex to the base, adding to the high-quality feel. Though I know there are plenty of people out there who simply don't care about what their laptop looks like, I do, and really appreciate the clean simplicity of the Stealth.