After weeks of speculation and rumours, gaming company Razer confirmed its entry in the smartphone arena with the launch of its first smartphone earlier today. Showcased at a press event in London, the new Razer Phone is targeted to the Android gamers.

The company is using specifications as a lure in the Razer Phone, which is powered by Qualcomm’s top-of-the-line Snapdragon 835 octa core processor. It also features massive 8GB of RAM and a 4000 mAh battery with quick charge support. The display is 5.7-inch with 1440p resolution and supports variable refresh rate upto 120hz. Additionally, there are dual front-facing stereo speakers on-board with dedicated amps and Dolby Atmos support.

For the imaging needs, Razer has gone with a dual camera setup on the back, similar to what Samsung and Apple are using, with one 12MP sensor with a f1.8 wide-angle lens and other 12MP sensor with f2.6 telephoto lens. The front shooter is a standard 8MP with a fixed-focus f2.0 lens.

Among other specifications, there is 64GB of internal memory, a microSD card slot, USB Type-C port, fingerprint sensor, NFC and 4G LTE support. There is no 3.5mm audio jack in the phone, however the company is bundling an adapter. In terms of the software, Razer has pre-loaded Android 7.1 Nougat on the phone, which is mostly stock and comes with a few gaming-related customisations like a Game Booster app to prioritize system resources for the games. The company is also bundling the premium version of Nova Launcher with the phone. The Oreo update will be released in spring 2018.

Coming to the design, there is nothing really exciting here, Razer Phone is mostly a big block of aluminum with 8mm thickness. The company has however used the metal frame inside creatively for heat dissipation, so that you can continue playing for longer duration without worrying about your phone heating up.

Razer has also partnered with a number of game developers to releases game versions that will fully use the phone’s features including the 120hz display. These games will be released over the coming months.

“It’s common knowledge that I’m obsessed with my smartphones, I play a ton of games on them, and they’re my go-to for streaming content. We have wanted to make a phone with gaming-level tech for years, and the Razer Phone delivers in every way we imagined,” said Razer Co-Founder and CEO Min-Liang Tan in a statement.

Pricing and availability

According to Razer, the Razer Phone will go on sale November 17 in US, Canada and Europe. It carries a price-tag of $699.99 in US, £699.99 in US and €749.99 in rest of the Europe. The phone will be sold via telecom operator Three, Razerzone.com in UK, Ireland, Denmark and Sweden. While US buyers will be able to buy it from Amazon, Razerzone.com, and select Microsoft stores. The reservations are now open at the Razer online store.