Razer is ahead of the curve when it comes to small and compact 330 W AC adapters

Gaming laptops are getting faster and more power-hungry these days. While many designs may not necessarily be getting larger, their external AC adapters have certainly been growing in size. Older generation MSI laptops, for example, would commonly ship with 230 W or 280 W AC adapters while the latest models with 12th or 13th gen CPUs and Nvidia RTX GPUs require gigantic 330 W power bricks.

Fortunately, at least one manufacturer has been thinking ahead. The latest Razer laptops ship with noticeably smaller AC adapters while maintaining the same 330 W rating. The 330 W AC adapter for the Blade 16 and Blade 18, for example, measures approximately 18 x 7.5 x 2.5 cm compared to the bulkier 20 x 9.8 x 4.3 cm adapter that ships with the MSI GE67 HX or Dell Alienware m18. The Razer adapter is almost a full pound lighter as well. It may not sound too significant, but the smaller size and lighter weight will feel very obvious to travelers or students who like to carry their gaming laptops with them.

Razer is able to achieve the smaller size through GaN technology which produces less heat per unit volume when charging. Thus, powerful 330 W AC adapters can be made smaller without impacting safety. GaN chargers are already widely available on smaller 65 W or 100 W power levels, but Razer appears to be the first major maker to implement the technology for much larger capacities.