Microsoft Surface Laptop Ultra Powered by Nvidia RTX Spark
▼ Summary
– Microsoft and Nvidia announced the Surface Laptop Ultra, powered by a new Arm-based Nvidia RTX Spark “superchip,” marking a renewed attempt after Microsoft’s earlier $900 million failure with an Arm-based Nvidia chip.
– The Surface Laptop Ultra is Microsoft’s most powerful Surface ever, featuring up to 20 CPU cores, 6,144 GPU cores, up to 128GB of unified memory, and roughly RTX 5070-level graphics.
– It includes a 15-inch mini-LED touchscreen with 2,000 nits peak HDR brightness (Microsoft’s brightest ever) and the largest haptic trackpad on a Surface.
– Ports include USB-C, USB-A, HDMI, a full-size SD card slot, and a headphone jack, though specific speeds and versions are not yet disclosed.
– The laptop will launch in fall 2024, with Microsoft and Nvidia collaborating for years to optimize Windows 11 for Arm and the RTX Spark chip.
For years, Microsoft’s initial attempt to marry an Arm-based Nvidia chip with a flagship Windows portable ended in a $900 million write-off. That was the original Surface. Now, the company is taking another swing. Microsoft and Nvidia have officially unveiled the Surface Laptop Ultra, a 15-inch machine powered by a new Arm-based Nvidia RTX Spark processor.
Many details remain under wraps, including final specifications and any sense of pricing. However, Microsoft is making a bold claim: this is the most powerful Surface ever built. “This is the most powerful thing we’ve ever made,” says Andrew Hill, Microsoft’s Surface chief, when asked how it compares to previous models.
The device runs on Nvidia’s RTX Spark “superchip,” a processor previously seen in Nvidia’s DGX Spark mini-PC for AI developers. This version is optimized for Windows 11. The chip offers up to 20 CPU cores, 6,144 GPU cores, and 128GB of unified memory, though some configurations will ship with as little as 16GB. Nvidia has indicated that the RTX Spark family will eventually span a wider range of price points.
Beyond the chip, which promises “all-day battery life,” graphics performance comparable to an RTX 5070 laptop GPU, and up to 1 petaflop of AI compute, the Surface Laptop Ultra features a 15-inch mini-LED touchscreen with a resolution of 262 pixels per inch. Microsoft calls it “the brightest display we’ve ever shipped,” citing 2,000 nits of peak HDR brightness. The laptop also includes the largest haptic trackpad Microsoft has ever put on a Surface.
Available in dark grey and silver, the device is expected to weigh under 4.5 pounds. Port selection includes USB-C, USB-A, HDMI, a full-size SD card slot, and a headphone jack, though Microsoft has not yet confirmed the speeds or versions of these ports. (It appears there may be three USB-C ports.) The company’s blog post leans heavily on aspirational language rather than hard specs, with lines like “No walls. No compromises,” “Every micron matters and every choice is deliberate,” and “A machine like this should not sit still. It should be pushed. Taken to the edge.”
The Surface Laptop Ultra will not be the only device arriving this fall with Nvidia’s new chip. Microsoft is deeply involved in the broader rollout of RTX Spark laptops and mini-PCs. The two companies say they have spent years preparing Windows for Arm devices, and specifically for the RTX Spark. More details on those efforts, including developer support and system-level tweaks, are available in Microsoft’s official blog post and Nvidia’s full RTX Spark announcement.
(Source: The Verge)
