Qualcomm is reportedly working with Razer to create a new handheld gaming console, more powerful than any of those that are already on the market. While we don’t really have a complete or detailed picture of the company’s work-in-progress yet, Qualcomm has released a Developer Kit together with Razer, revealing some of the specs of the exciting upcoming device.
The processor powering the console will be Qualcomm’s specially designed G3x SoC, shown below. The G3x will reportedly support 5G wireless connection, as well the brand new Wi-Fi 6e protocol, pushing the Wi-Fi connection into 6GHz band support. As if that’s not futureproof enough, Razer’s new console will come with a 120Hz refresh rate supported by its HDR OLED display, quite literally doubling the handheld console standard.
The battery on Razer’s design will have a capacity of 6000 mAh, which will definitely be necessary to power that lightning fast refresh rate and bright display, as well as the powerful haptic engine that is going to built into the device.
While Razer originally earned its massive reputation for its PC gaming tech and accessories, the company has slowly chipped chipped away at those boundaries over the past years, extending into other categories, but without ever moving away from its hardcore gaming theme.
Razer’s gaming phone line sold fairly decently, although not as well as it could have. The company is also manufacturing things like gaming-themed face masks, slowly trying to edge their way into becoming a lifestyle brand—with their intriguing Project Hazel RGB “smart mask” prototype making a few headlines lately, although nothing seems to have come of it yet.
However, designing this new gaming console could be Razer’s best chance to forge new ground into something completely different, as handheld console gaming peaked with the Nintendo Switch a few years ago, and hasn’t seen any significant innovation since then. According to the slides provided by Qualcomm, it will be especially designed for game streaming, with an integrated Xbox Game Cloud-supporting 1080p streaming webcam advertised as part of the package.
We don’t have any price information yet, but it will probably be at least double that of the Nintendo Switch, as it brings so much more to the table than we’ve previously seen on a handheld gaming console.
