Razer has now announced its debut smartphone, the descriptively titled Razer Phone.
As per the rumours, this is a handset true to the firm's brand of high-end gaming, and is thus stuffed with some pretty top-tier specs and features.
Razer, in case you're not familiar, is a company which produces high-end gaming PCs and accessories (including things like mice, keyboards, and headsets), but is apparently determined to muscle in on the smartphone space with its first ever handset.
Just for fun, let's start with the audio. The Razer Phone features a pair of front-facing stereo speakers with 24-bit DAC and Dolby Atmos audio, with a dedicated amplifier for each, and the whole package being THX certified (which is a smartphone first). Razer is saying this is the loudest smartphone on the planet, and it may well be considering the only setup that has even come anywhere near that good on paper is HTC's BoomSound; and that stuff is LOUD.
However, Razer giveth, and Razer taketh away - there's no 3.5mm headphone jack, which may be "meh" or may be the end of the world, depending on your opinion in the big headphone jack debate that is ongoing in the smartphone space. Instead, you can plug headphones in via the Type-C USB port and a 3.5mm-to-Type-C adaptor is bundled-in with the phone.
On to the display - it's a big 5.7in IGZO LCD with a QHD resolution, wide colour gamut and 120Hz refresh rate, just as the rumours said. That refresh rate is double what you'll find on pretty much all the competition in the mobile space (apart from the iPad Pro) and should make for a pretty amazing gaming experience. On top of that there's a built-in adaptive UltraMotion refresh technology - co-developed with Qualcomm - which synchronises the display with the GPU for maximum smoothness.
That Qualcomm link extends to the phone's beating heart as well; yes it's everyone's favourite flagship CPU; the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 with a massive 8GB of RAM squeezed in. It's not the only phone on the market with 8GB of the stuff but it is one of only very few.
Design-wise the Razr Phone is looking quite restrained (considering the firm's headphones and mice are usually slathered with neon green graphics); it's a neat and tidy angular shape somewhat reminiscent of Sony's Xperia line-up. The design also has echoes of Nextbit, which is no surprise considering Razer bought Nexbit at the beginning of 2017 in order to enable its smartphone ambitions.
The bodywork is entirely aluminium, CNC machine milled and nicely clean and understated in our view. A fingerprint scanner is incorporated into the power key on the side - similar to some past Sony phones. Dimensions are 158.5 x 77.7 x 8mm and it weighs 197g.
On the back there's a dual-sensor camera with one 12MP f/1.75 aperture and one 13MP f/2.6 with a 2x fixed zoom. The setup also incorporates a dual-tone dual-LED flash. The front-facing secondary is somewhat rudimentary - an 8MP sensor with an f/2.0 aperture.
Powering this lot is a 4,000mAh battery cell (non-removable, of course) with support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 4.0+, and the phone runs on Android 7.1.1 Nougat with Razer's Nova Launcher Prime Razer Edition UI on top - an Android Oreo update is planned for Q1 2018. You also get 64GB of storage.
What about pricing and availability? Well the firm's own webstore will be selling it from November 17 for an RRP of $699; that's SIM-free and unlocked. Pre-orders will begin from Friday 3 November.
Microsoft retail stores in the US and Canada will also stock the phone, and in the UK it will come to the Three network. It will also be available in some other markets.
For those who like Razer's traditional luminescent colours, there will be a Limited Edition model with a bright green logo...
Head over to page two for the pre-launch rumours
According to the rumour mill, the handset will be keeping with the rest of the brand by being aimed at "hardcore gamers", although at present it's not exactly clear what that will mean in terms of features other than one very high-end spec line-up.
A listing of the phone on the GFXBench database showed it will have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor with 8GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage. A product listing from 3G.co.uk also now reiterates the above spec, although it has since been taken down, a thread on Reddit recorded the posting. On top of the previously mentioned spec, the listing added a 4,000mAh battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge 4+.
Other known specs include a 5.72in IGZO touch display with a wide colour gamut (WGC) and 120Hz refresh rate. There's a dual-sensor 13MP and 12MP camera on the back, dual-front-facing THX speakers with THX amplifiers and Dolby ATMOS audio enhancement.
The price remains elusive, but it's expected this handset will fetch quite a lofty tag, typical £500+ or even £600+ flagship prices are probably a safe bet for this much cutting-edge tech.
