Razer to Bring Switchblade to the Market?

Some readers no doubt remember the Switchblade–a concept 7-inch gaming netbook/handheld gaming console that Razer introduced at CES back in January. It was powered by an Intel Atom processor and an unknown graphics solution (although NVIDIA’s ION chip was pretty much the only candidate at the time) and came with Windows 7–a combination that would put it in the netbook segment, only this was no ordinary netbook. The unit had adaptable keys and Razer showcased it running World of Warcraft with a customized keyboard.

Razer Blade LCDAlthough it was a cool concept, not much happened after that until Razer decided to announce something entirely different, namely the 17-inch Blade gaming laptop, which used the some of the ideas from the Switchblade including customizable keys plus a track pad that doubles as a display. A couple of downsides with the Razer Blade, quickly became apparent though, when the specs revealed it to have a mere dual-core processor and an NVIDIA GT 555M. This might have been all well and good if it wasn’t for the planned $2,800 price tag–an outrageous price for that kind of hardware.

You can’t blame Razer for lacking chutzpah, though. In spite of not actually having brought any of these products to the market, the company has dubbed its Blade the “first real gaming laptop” and now it has made plans for yet another, still unnamed but smaller “gaming device” according to PCWorld. This may or may not be a variety of the Switchblade or something different altogether. At least in this case they have promised to ship it to North American markets next month and that it will be “affordable”. That effectively rules out a smaller version of the Blade if their pricing is in any way consistent.

The much hyped Razer Blade, on the other hand, will allegedly be launched in the Chinese market first and not before mid-2012. Apparently Razer has a “cult following” in China, which is why they’ve opted to release it there first.

Jesper Berg
Jesper Berg

Gaming hardware enthusiast since the 80286 era.

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