PAX AUS 2016: Razer

Razer really needs no introduction. They are the big boys of the PC gaming world that so many others were there at PAX to compete with.

Ubiquitously known for their Chroma range of gaming mice, keyboards and Kraken headsets, there was no missing the neon rune identifying the Razer booth at PAX AUS 2016. Rather than being bombarded with their broad range of products, a candy-land I would have happily stepped into, we were instead greeted with a sleek space hosting a small compliment of only the latest Razer offerings.

Surrounded by a nearly constant hive of eager viewers, the HDK2 OSVR headset (Open Source Virtual Reality) represents the latest from Razer in the world of VR, while the Razer Broadcaster Suite was set up to show the combination of latest Razer offering for anyone looking to get into the streaming space.

During our time at the Razer PAX booth we had a chance to chat with the reps about the wide range of Razer Blade gaming laptops that were available to demonstrate to the public.

Despite presenting as barely thicker than a Macbook that’s turned to the Dark side, the Razer Blade is a serious gaming laptop. 14″ multi-touch display, Chroma keyboard, i7–6700HQ Quad-Core running at 2.6GHz at base (3.5 on turbo) 16GB DDR4, USB-C and, while the current model is rocking the Nvidia GTX 970M, the latest model, due out before the end of the year will be running Nvidia GTX 1060, practically desktop level graphics; which is a little nuts for a laptop under 2 kg.

Couple this with one of the most under-reported PC-gaming teases at this year’s PAX AUS, the Razer Core (not yet available in Australia) and we are talking about a legitimate contender for even the most ardent #PCMasterRace to consider ditching the bulky desktop.

The Core is a USB-C double-wide GPU enclosure, AKA an actually viable external graphics card. compatible with both AMD and Nvidia graphics cards, the Razer Core is compatible with non-Razer laptops (that use USB-C), but provides docking and plug and play support when paired with Razer gaming laptops. The unit designed to stay home for extra gaming power when you aren’t on the go, rather than a peripheral portable device.

For more information on the Razer Blade series of gaming laptops, as well as a tease at the Razer Core, be sure to check out their store page.

But it wasn’t all PC gaming for Razer this year, and we had the chance to get hands on with the Razer Raiju, a pro controller that I had eagerly anticipated since we reported on it’s release the week prior.  Built for eSports, I’m not sure anyone had expected Razer to be one of the two companies to release official pro controllers for the PS4, their previous foray into console controllers being the Onza and Sabertooth, both for the Xbox 360. But with a level of quality we have come to know and trust from Razer, I’m certainly not complaining. Anyone looking to quiet those attempting to brag over the Xbox Elite controller should take a close look at this one, which admittedly does share some design features with the Xbox One controller as well as PS4. For a full list of the specs of the Raiju, be sure to check out our release article.

Razer never fails to deliver, and this year’s PAX has been no exception. With a huge range of exciting releases from Razer in the months ahead, be sure to take a look at their website, and keep with Checkpoint for all the latest Razer news!