CES: Razer’s Project Linda is an impressive laptop/smartphone hybrid

Every year, Razer brings something unique and interesting to CES and 2018 is no different. This time around, the company announced ‘Project Linda', a new smartphone/laptop hybrid concept that extends the Razer Phone into a laptop.

Razer hopes that Project Linda will be a new era for mobile computing, blending the familiar Android environment with the ease of use of a laptop. Linda comes with a Blade-style laptop with a couple of key differences. For starters, there is a slot for the Razer Phone to dock into where the trackpad would usually be. Secondly, all of the power comes from the Razer Phone itself, so instead of usual laptop hardware under the hood, there is instead a battery bank for longer life.

For those who don't know, the Razer Phone is powered by a Snapdragon 835 processor, 8GB of RAM and has an impressive 120Hz display. Speaking about the Project Linda concept, Razer co-founder and CEO, Min-Liang Tan said: “Android power users and laptop enthusiasts share a need for performance in a mobile form factor, which we provide with our award-winning Razer Phone and Razer laptops. Project Linda combines the best of both worlds, bringing a larger screen and physical keyboard to the Android environment, enhancing the experience for gaming and productivity.”

With a full sized keyboard in place, users will benefit from a more responsive and faster typing experience. There is also the option to hook up a mouse, which could give you an edge when it comes to some Android games. Alternatively, when docked, you can use the Razer Phone as a trackpad, rather than a second screen.

The battery bank in the laptop portion of Project Linda can charge the Razer Phone fully three times before an AC adapter needs to be plugged in. It also provides an additional 200GB of storage for files and expands connectivity options with a 3.5mm headphone jack, a USB-A port, a USB-C port, a 720p webcam and dual-array microphones.

As with many of Razer's CES reveals over the years, this is a prototype for the time being and may not make it to the market. However, it is an interesting look at what could come in the future.

KitGuru Says: Razer is back at it again competing for the coveted ‘Best of CES' award. What do you guys think of Project Linda?

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