According to most sources, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro with the Touch Bar is a beautiful device. Dan Ackerman of CNET called the new Pro a second-screen dream machine.
“The inventive Touch Bar streamlines work and saves clicks, and Apple has improved almost every part of the thinner, lighter MacBook Pro, including a larger touchpad, faster components and a flatter keyboard. iPhone’s Touch ID is handy on the Mac, too.”
Many believe that the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar is overpriced. [Image by Stephen Lam/Getty Images]
As Ackerman notes, however, the price of the Touch Bar Pro — which starts at $1,799 for the Pro with an Intel Core i5 processor and 8GB of RAM — is very pricy when compared to the competition. The new MacBook Pro is considered overpriced by many who are looking for a competing ultrabook in the market. Judging by the reviews, they may want to take a look at the new Razer Blade Stealth.
The $1,399 version of the Stealth includes a 12.5-inch Quad HD screen, a 7th generation (Kaby Lake) Intel i7 processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. For $200 more, you can have a 4K screen. Tech Radar gave the Stealth a perfect five stars.
“The Razer Blade Stealth comes at a competitive price that demands attention over other higher priced Ultrabooks like the Dell XPS 13 and MacBook Pro. It performs better in a thinner and more affordable package than its competitors,” says critic Kevin Lee, who adds that the speedy Kaby Lake processor can handle heavy editing in both Photoshop and Lightroom without a hitch.
Expert Reviews calls the new Razer Blade Stealth a Kaby Lake champion.
“The Razer Blade Stealth is everything you could possibly want from an ultraportable laptop. It’s lightweight, packs a punch and is well worth showing off to the other less fortunate travellers on your morning commute.”
The review especially praises the Chroma keyboard, where each key could be displayed with one of 17 million different colors. However, despite the higher specs on paper, critic Nathan Spendelow notes that the Stealth isn’t faster than the 13-inch Touch Bar MacBook Pro.
The Razer Blade Stealth has received excellent reviews. [Image by Daryl Deino]
“The Razer Blade Stealth offers better specs for less money than the competition and includes features others lack, such as a high-res touch screen and full-size USB ports. The design is slick, the price is right, but it’s not as slim and portable as other 12-inch laptops,” says CNET columnist Dan Ackerman, adding that — like others — the thick bezel around the screen is outdated.
However, as good as the reviews have been, there have been some complaints from new Razer Blade Stealth owners on Reddit.
“So, I’m using the new Razer Blade Stealth and it’s making a buzzing sound. Not to be confused with the coiling sound that I’m aware of, but this noise sounds like a bee buzzing. Any idea on what it is?” asks user Thuggy_Puggy, to which other users answered that it is actually part of the coil whine problem.
The new Razer Blade Stealth, Lenovo Yoga 910, and Dell XPS 13 laptops that run the latest Intel 7th-generation processor have all received complaints regarding the fan noise being out of the ordinary. It’s likely that a BIOS update will make the noise on these devices controllable. For now, however, one can go into the Power settings and set the maximum processor speed to 99 percent — this has worked for many owners of all three of these ultrabooks.
It’s important to note that there may be a significant amount of Razer Blade Stealth owners with complaints on Reddit, but the same can be said about the Lenovo Yoga 910, the Dell XPS 13, and even the MacBook Pro. Those satisfied with their computers aren’t as loud as those who aren’t satisfied. Still, one should check out the Razer Blade Stealth at the Microsoft Store to make sure the ultrabook fits their needs. Judging by the reviews, the Razer Blade Stealth is certainly on its way to mainstream success.
[Featured Image by Daryl Deino]
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