Raw pointers are how you communicate with your CPU. They are "raw" in the sense that they're just an integer number (not really on the C language level, but they have an integer representation on any actual target like x86) and that you have to synchronize these pointers with the lifetimes of "actual" objects, which are only an abstract concept that your computer doesn't understand.
Meanwhile, virtual memory is as close as you can get down to the physical hardware in terms of normal CPU instructions (i.e., not VM management code). VM as a concept is orthogonal to raw pointers, which can be either virtual or physical.
Raw pointers are nothing like handles. They need to be manually "synchronized" properly with VM management (which happens completely behind the scenes for 99,99% of userspace code) to make sense but it's not like there is bookkeeping overhead in copying or offseting a pointer, like there would be for a "handle".
The point of a handle is that it's use to hold objects, to keep them alive. Raw pointers don't do that.
Meanwhile, virtual memory is as close as you can get down to the physical hardware in terms of normal CPU instructions (i.e., not VM management code). VM as a concept is orthogonal to raw pointers, which can be either virtual or physical.
Raw pointers are nothing like handles. They need to be manually "synchronized" properly with VM management (which happens completely behind the scenes for 99,99% of userspace code) to make sense but it's not like there is bookkeeping overhead in copying or offseting a pointer, like there would be for a "handle".
The point of a handle is that it's use to hold objects, to keep them alive. Raw pointers don't do that.