Razer Blade 16 [13950HX/RTX 4080]: Hot Performance, at a High Price

Hey guys!
Finally got to finish up my review of the Blade 16, configured with the i9-13950HX, RTX 4080, and QHD 240Hz IPS display.
I am trying an audio-enhancement tool, so any echo or background noise should be eliminated and L/R gains should be exactly equal now.
Hope y'all enjoy the video, and look forward for the next one!
Cheers!
~braxtech
Chapters:
0:00 - 1:16 Intro & Specs
1:17 - 3:06 Chassis Design and Build
3:07 - 4:08 Blade 15 vs. Blade 16 Size Comparison
4:09 - 5:36 Port Selection
5:37 - 6:59 Display
7:00 - 8:31 Trackpad
8:32 - 9:02 Speakers
9:03 - 11:49 Internals
11:50 - 14:19 Synthetic Benchmarks
14:20 - 15:23 MWII & SOTTR Benchmarks
15:24 - 18:21 AIDA64 Cross-Load Thermal Test
18:22 - 20:30 Miscellaneous Items
20:31 - 21:51 Conclusion & Summary

[@mitchellhill4739]

Thank you for the review, it was very helpful. I ended up getting the Blade 16 mini LED and I am very happy with my purchase.

[@gagehoneysette]

Always great to come back and see this latent content. Sends a chill up my spine :')

[@Allmotorzl1]

Awesome review! Your lighting is so good and you were very thorough. All the other reviewers do it in a dark room and it’s so hard to see the nice details on a laptop. I really with Razor would do the silver color again. That thing was beautiful.

[@MrZackScape]

Great video!

[@SensuAudica]

The fact that this one is not using the mini LED display actually makes me wanting it more. Lot's of issues with the mini LED display.

[@minapenguin7107]

What's the issue with mini LED?

[@SensuAudica]

@@minapenguin7107 Haloing/local dimming and weird black splodges/shadows. The backlight is for some reason very slow and it is very noticeable.

[@warlord1873]

​@@SensuAudica and the price for a problematic razer is expensive

[@AKA-hl1pv]

I wouldn’t recommend getting normal LED display in 2023. It has been there since forever and when I compared my Blade 16 to my old razer 15. Colors felt washed out. Everything in the MiniLED pops out and puts a smile to my face lol

[@qawtr9079]

I very much agree, mini LEDs are 1 big issue, best to use an ips instead@@SensuAudica

[@TheSincioco]

Good video. Nice narration ❤

[@ScottGrunwald]

@Braxtech - looking for insight here. Do you know if it's possible to get overclocks with Hyper-V enabled (I need it for work related items to run WSL 2 / Docker Desktop). From what I have done with personal testing, Throttlestop and Intel XTU both require API's to speak with the cores directly and Hyper-V adds an additional layer below the OS which doesnt allow for these software tools to communicate for Hardware Performance changes. I really wish Razer would give us some ability to undervolt and OC within the BIOS as Motherboard manufactures do.

[@nonstm4933]

I feel lucky to have found your channel. Big subscribe from me! Also, I’m not sure if it’s feasible, but it’d be great if you could review the Alienware m18. I’m looking to buy one, and I’ve seen some worrying reports on CPU thermals.

[@angelanguiano4338]

which is better Legion Pro 7i Gen 8 Intel (16") RTX 4090 or razor blade 16 with 4090??

[@FrowningTaco]

Yo Braxtech you seen the new Legion slim 7/7i. Apparantly rumors that there is gonna be a Legion slim pro coming as well. I guess we'll see what they do with that in a few days.

[@RomixV]

yeah, I have heard about big gains in temps (cooler) than stock by replacing epasting, but are there any guides to do such? I wonder, how to open the vapor chamber?

[@Romash.]

Can u give the update of legion slim 7i

[@aardee175]

Great review, what are the surface temps like during regular use? Especially the underside, thanks

[@b.c.b.-2130]

The palm rest can get a bit warm when it isn't undervolted. When undervolted, not so much. Can't speak to temps on the bottom, I don't use it on my lap.

[@AdvancedGamingYT]

Nice vid, I'm expecting great things from you in the future

[@GangStiV0uli]

they must be put mini led in the 4080 version not only 4090

[@warrenlee6847]

The razer blade logo is lit up right ?

[@alexandreviviantpiret4100]

yep

[@AndyBakos82]

Palm rejection is a huge issue on these, I am getting accidental clicks and cursor movement. I had to disable click on tap and only use the press down to click feature. This is miles away from Apple's touchpad experience it is also less "clicky" as in softer, coming from a mac this is a low grade touchpad.

[@brax-tech]

Did you update it to the latest firmware from Razer’s site? They pushed some corrections to palm rejection on it and it solved 99% of my issues while I was reviewing it.

[@AndyBakos82]

@@brax-tech thanks for the tip, i will double check, but i did use the razer updater app to bring everything up to date

[@brax-tech]

@@AndyBakos82 yeah, Razer thought it was a good idea not to deploy them through Synapse but through their convoluted website haha

[@sephiroth2195]

To be fair most people will not be using the touchpad much on a gaming laptop like this. I am assuming it can be turned off all together right?

[@lamxjason]

good review

[@warlord1873]

I want to see a bright, illuminate lime green razer for 5000

[@Cenot4ph]

Who's going to polish their laptop 😂 Other than that you're paying a premium for the chassis with sub optimal cooling and after market on site service??

[@FuTwo.0]

Funny the legion Pro 7i kicked it. Sorry not gonna pay the price just because it looks better.. Glad to see the Legion holding its own. I had the Legion Pro 7i 4090 and it’s a solid machine, the only issue I had was the display is IPS and not Mini-LED. I ended up with the Asus ROG Duo 4090 instead, which the 7945HX is no joke. 33k+ on CinebenchR23 out of the box, no tuning.

[@Vilmir]

Yep, too bad Lenovo did not add miniLed as an option. Same for XMG, they would be the best choices... Razer pricing makes no sense.

[@cockywastaken]

did your gpu hit 150W on its own?

[@keshathankarunairasan2759]

Who else wants one of these so bad Yet you know you cannot afford it

[@pranavdupati9164]

Great Job, razer improved but their price/performance ratio is still shit, better off going withe the strixes/msis/legions of the world

[@Seanjones1990]

the legion is half the price tho lol

[@gagehoneysette]

New frame, same great latency

[@thehistoricalidiots7442]

I like your video, its concise straight to the point. I like how there just that sexy ass machine for me to stare at.

[@zeflixy9814]

i dont like there small keyboars

[@aho8829]

I have the same laptop but my FPS in MWII is just around 60, I am humbly asking how you can get up to 100FPS? Is there any setting that have to do ? The laptop is new and no significant background app. Many thanks 🫡

[@PKperformanceEU]

Bruh your points are so off...the problem with this display is it contrast ratio not the peak brightness!!