Although the last Nintendo DS and PS Vita sold in the market date back a while, portable gaming devices have not really disappeared. You could say that the somewhat niche market has grown even more than before, thanks to the confluence of several factors. Mobile gaming on smartphones has formed a billion-dollar industry, and the success of the Nintendo Switch has spurred many new devices, including Valve’s rare Steam Deck. As laptops now push left and right, there seems to be another current gaining momentum. Handheld gaming devices powered by the Android mobile platform seem to be making a comeback, and the latest to show their vision include three of the biggest names in the tech industry.
Designer: Razer
Razer has made a name for itself with its high-performance, cool-looking computer accessories designed for gamers. Over time it has also produced gaming laptops so that everything looks cohesive and works well together. Razer even attempted to make its own gaming smartphone, using Android, of course, but that was quickly scrapped. However, it’s not throwing in the towel just yet, and its partners have just teased a new mobile gaming device that will be fully unveiled next month.
The Razer Edge 5G is a collaboration with Verizon, which will power the 5G experience, and Qualcomm, whose silicon will power the device. The name actually comes from a much older product from Razer and its early attempts at mobile gaming. This ill-fated Razer Edge, however, was perhaps way too far ahead of its time, offering a tablet PC that could be outfitted with a game controller and keyboard.
By contrast, the Razer Edge 5G will be more familiar to mobile gamers in more ways than one. Late last year, Razer and Qualcomm already announced a partnership that created a development kit for Qualcomm’s new gaming-centric processor. This “dev kit” comes in the form of a gaming handheld similar to the Nintendo Switch Lite in appearance, but with a more interesting curvature on top that makes it look more like a gigantic “Game & Watch” of yesteryear. These days, gaming handhelds with a big screen in the middle flanked by buttons, d-pads, and joysticks are no longer a novelty.
The Razer Edge 5G teaser that Verizon shared suggests something less like that prototype and more like a Switch with flat top and bottom edges. The design of the buttons and shoulder triggers are also different, and the brand is definitely leaning more towards a Razer device. Nothing else was mentioned, and we’ll hear all the details on October 15 at RazerCon.
Although such a design is now familiar, it still raises the question of whether it will be a commercial success. It wouldn’t be the first time someone tried to sell a dedicated Android device for gaming, and previous attempts have all died out in favor of regular smartphones with a few gaming accessories or gadgets. Maybe now is the time. , now that there are an abundance of portable gaming devices, so we’ll have to wait for the Logitech G Cloud and Razer Edge 5G to hit the market to see if that’s the case.
