The 2018 version of the Razer Blade Stealth is the first to ship with discrete graphics in addition to its integrated Intel UHD Graphics 620 GPU. And although it's only a Nvidia GeForce MX150 GPU.
tl;dr: Don’t buy hardware from Razer and expect firmware updates to fix security problems on Linux.
Razer is a vendor that makes high-end gaming hardware, including laptops, keyboards and mice. I opened a ticket with Razor a few days ago asking them if they wanted to support the LVFS project by uploading firmware and sharing the firmware update protocol used. I offered to upstream any example code they could share under a free license, or to write the code from scratch given enough specifications to do so. This is something I’ve done for other vendors, and doesn’t take long as most vendor firmware updaters all do the same kind of thing; there are only so many ways to send a few kb of data to USB devices. The fwupd project provides high-level code for accessing USB devices, so yet-another-update-protocol is no big deal. I explained all about the LVFS, and the benefits it provided to a userbase that is normally happy to vote using their wallet to get hardware that’s supported on the OS of their choice.
I just received this note on the ticket, which was escalated appropriately:
Razer Blade Stealth 2018 Linux Iso
The CEO of Razer Min-Liang Tan said recently“We’re inviting all Linux enthusiasts to weigh in at the new Linux Corner on Insider to post feedback, suggestions and ideas on how we can make it the best notebook in the world that supports Linux.” If this is true, and more than just a sound-bite, supporting the LVFS for firmware updates on the Razer Blade to solve security problems like Meltdown and Spectre ought to be a priority?
Razer Blade Stealth 2018 Linux Distro
Certainly if peripheral updates or system firmware UpdateCapsule are not supportable on Linux, it would be good to correct well read articles as those makes it sound like Razor is interested in Linux users, of which the reality seems somewhat less optimistic. I’ve updated the vendor list with this information to avoid other people asking or filing tickets. Disappointing, but I’ll hopefully have some happier news soon about a different vendor.
Razer Blade Stealth Linux
Linux on the Razer Blade Stealth Like many other developers frustrated with Apple's declining interest in Mac, I'v decided to return to linux for my laptop. This is prompted in part by the significant cost difference between Apple laptops and other brands, and I'm just not excited by anything Apple has made recently. Razer Blade Stealth Linux & Ubuntu 18.04. Razer Blade Stealth (late 2016, Intel 7500U, UHD / HiDPI) Ubuntu Linux 18.04. Razer Blade Stealth Linux & Ubuntu 18.04. Razer Blade Stealth 13 comes with a 13.3-inch 1080p IPS screen. It is powered by Quad-Core 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8565U Processor with 16GB of RAM and 256GB NVMe SSD for storage. The graphics are powered by NVIDIA GeForce MX150 (25W) 4GB GDDR5 GPU. It has a battery life of 11 hours. Hi Razer fans, I've just installed Manjaro Linux on my Razer Blade Stealth 2018. Is there any way to control/turn off RGB backlight (keyboard and logo)? I know for Windows there's an utility, but google search does not yield a viable option for Linux.