The Razer Blade 18 2026 is much more expensive than before, but not faster

New computers are getting more expensive, but while multimedia laptops can offer updates with new Panther Lake processors from Intel or Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon X2 SoCs, gaming laptops like the new Razer Blade 18 2026 are in a much more difficult position. Nvidia did not release a new GPU generation and neither Intel, nor AMD, launched powerful new HX processors. Sure, Intel now offers the Core Ultra 9 290HX as a successor to the Core Ultra 9 275HX or 285HX, respectively, but the additional CPU performance is not really worth mentioning and does not improve the gaming performance, either. All this means that if there aren't any other changes, for example in terms of the chassis or the display, this is a problem.

This is exactly the situation the new Razer Blade 18 is in, because the 2025 model just got a major overhaul with a new chassis as well as the new 4K screen. In addition to the Core Ultra 9 275HX, it already used the fastest version of the GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop, which is also the case for 2026. We recently reviewed the new Blade 18 2026 and as expected, the performance is pretty much identical. However, the new model is much more expensive. While the 2025 SKU with 64 GB RAM, 4 TB SSD storage was priced at $4899, you now have to pay $5399 for just 32 GB RAM and 2 TB SSD storage. You can still get 64 GB RAM, but this will increase the price by another $600. At this point we can only recommend getting the previous 2025 SKU as long as it is still available.

Price increases are affecting all manufacturers, but you definitely have an advantage if you can offer new features. An example of this would be the new Asus ROG Strix SCAR 18 with the brand-new Mini-LED screen or the improved cooling performance, which we are currently reviewing as well. We are also eager to find out what other manufacturers will offer for their flagship gaming laptops. Until then, please see our comprehensive review of the new Razer Blade 18 2026.