Razer’s first Linux laptop is here, but it’s not for gamers

It has been a decade since the first Blade laptop was shipped, and they have all come with Windows. That isn't changing today, but a company called Lambda is trying to sell a souped-up version of last year's Razer Blade 15 Advanced with the aim of selling it.

The $3,500 machine is almost identical to a high-end version of last year's laptop. It's got an 11th-gen Intel Core i7 processor, 64GB of RAM, and a 80Wh battery, all powered by an identically sized and shaped 4.45-pound case. It also has the same speed, with two Thunderbolt 4 ports, three USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports, a UHS-IIISD card reader, and both wi-fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2.

If you pay $4, the Tensorbook is silver instead of black and comes with the latest drivers and machine learning tools. Thousands of research groups have already been provided with hardware by Lambda.

Image: Razer x Lambda

If you love the design of the laptops, it's not a bad deal if you get the faster processor, graphics card and screens in the Blade lineup. Even with a quarter of the memory and a less powerful RTX 3060 graphics card, the Blade was still very hot in our reviews. As of today, the FAQ page does not address heat.

I don't just say that because of the silver tones, but that this one is aimed at prospective MacBook Pro buyers. The main hardware comparison is a 4x speedup over Apple's M1 Max in a 16-inch MacBook Pro.

The popular Linux computing news site wrote that the plans for better Linux support had seemingly been put on hold. The recent renewed interest in Linux gaming, driven by the Steam Deck, may push Razer to consider Linux for its own core products as well.