Hot off the press is Project Valerie, Razer's attempt to bring over multi-display setups most commonly found in desktop workstations into gaming laptops, essentially making the panoramic display mode portable. The company unveiled the project at CES Thursday, showcasing the prototype poised to change the way people play.
Project Valerie
Keep in mind that multi-display setups have never graced laptops, no matter how powerful they might be. If Razer's Project Valerie comes into fruition, however, the gaming world might just be gifted not just two, but three built-in monitors housed inside a beefy gaming laptop gamers can take anywhere. That's the main point of this gorgeous multi-display setup: to give players an immersive desktop experience on-the-go, be it for gaming or creative purposes.
Each of Project Valerie's screen measures 17.3 inches, each also featuring a 4K resolution. With three monitors, that amounts to 12K — 11,520 x 2,160 — of viewing space, truly an unprecedented configuration on a laptop.
These screens are stored inside a chassis when not in use, and they slide out from the lid and position themselves on each of the main monitor's sides without human aid. That means, these screens slide out autonomously and latches accordingly to create a full 180-degree viewing space.
Nvidia Surround View
The display is powered by Nvidia's Surround View technology, which enables programs to output a single image across three monitor. Additionally, all the machine's wiring is internal, thereby lessening the anxiety of accidentally pulling power chords as the screens deploy themselves.
Other Features Of The Project Valerie
Razer's short-throw keyboard is present in Project Valerie. The whole machine also looks steeply premium because of its all-aluminum casing. It's also armed with the computing prowess of the 17-inch Blade Pro, which means that this machine passes the requirements of HTC Vive and the Oculus Rift, so virtual reality gaming is a lock.
The machine just measures 1.5 inches thick — approximately as thick as two Blade Pros stacked on top of one another — even with three monitors housed inside the upper chassis, and the whole thing weighs just 12 pounds. Sure, Project Valerie doesn't exactly win any points in the thinness competition, but its dimensions are well within the portable category.
Razer still hasn't offered any word on pricing or availability, but we do know that this laptop will be powered by a Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 GPU. At this stage of its development, the only downside is that the machine can get very hot, to an extent of slight discomfort, as pointed out by PCMag. Razer could still improve and optimize the machine's ventilation system, given that the current system on display at CES is still a prototype.
It's a tad bit difficult to imagine that this machine would eventually find mass consumer foothold. Sure, adding portability to the multi-display equation makes for some nifty innovation, but who would actually have the audacity to brave public spaces and flap open the machine's enormous screens? It could, however, be justifiable when taking your workstation with you when moving from household to household.
Still, there's still no word on battery life and other key specs. Hopefully, Razer keeps the momentum up once it hands out a proper spec sheet.
