Nvidia to Rival Intel With Up to Eight Arm Laptops
▼ Summary
– The long-standing Intel/AMD dominance in Windows laptops is being challenged by a rise of new Arm-based chips from companies like Apple, MediaTek, and Qualcomm.
– Nvidia is entering this market with its own Arm-based system-on-chips, the N1 and N1X, which are expected to power consumer Windows laptops starting this spring.
– Lenovo appears to be preparing at least six laptops using these Nvidia processors, including a 15-inch gaming model, as evidenced by product listings and software update pages.
– Reports suggest other manufacturers like Dell are also developing Nvidia Arm-based laptops, with up to eight different models potentially on the way from these companies.
– Beyond the imminent N1 series, Nvidia already has next-generation N2 chips planned for 2027, and AMD is reportedly developing its own Arm chips for future devices.
The laptop landscape is shifting dramatically, with Nvidia poised to challenge Intel’s long-standing dominance in the Windows market with up to eight new Arm-powered laptops. For years, the choice for a Windows machine has largely been between Intel and AMD processors, but that duopoly is facing new pressure. While Apple’s MacBooks and MediaTek-based Chromebooks have already embraced Arm architecture, and Qualcomm has made strides with its Snapdragon chips, Nvidia is now entering the fray with its own system-on-chip designs. This spring could mark the debut of consumer laptops powered entirely by Nvidia’s silicon, moving beyond its traditional role as a graphics chip supplier.
A recent leak suggests Lenovo, the world’s largest laptop manufacturer, is heavily invested in this new direction. Dataminer Huang514613 posted product names on social media platform X, revealing six Lenovo laptops built on the upcoming Nvidia N1 and N1X processors. The list includes a notable 15-inch gaming machine, alongside 14 and 16-inch models of the Ideapad Slim 5, two variants of the 15-inch Yoga Pro 7, and a Yoga 9 convertible 2-in-1 device. This information isn’t based solely on a single leak; an update page for Lenovo’s Legion Space control software still references a “Legion 7 15N1X11” gaming laptop, with the “N1X” designation pointing directly to Nvidia’s gaming-focused system-on-chip.
Further evidence comes from a publicly accessible web portal where Lenovo has listings for password-protected “Nvidia N1x Portal Prod” and “Nvidia N1x Portal Test” websites, indicating active development and testing. Lenovo isn’t acting alone in this space. Industry reports suggest Dell is also preparing Nvidia Arm laptops, including a potential Alienware gaming model by early 2026 and a premium Dell (likely XPS) laptop featuring the N1X chip. This brings the total count of potential upcoming Nvidia-powered laptops to at least eight distinct models.
According to a recent Digitimes report, Nvidia plans to launch its N1 and N1X laptop platform this spring, with wider device availability expected in the summer following a previous delay. The report also indicates that the company is already looking ahead, with N2 and N2X chips on the roadmap for a late 2027 release. While exact performance specifications remain unconfirmed, a Geekbench leak, which should always be treated cautiously, hinted that the N1X variant could pack a significant number of CUDA cores, comparable to a desktop RTX 5070 graphics card, and feature 20 CPU cores. This aligns with comments from Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who has strongly suggested a close relationship between the N1 platform and the company’s GB10 “Superchip” used in data center hardware.
This move by Nvidia is part of a broader industry pivot. AMD is also reportedly developing its own Arm-based processors, potentially for future Microsoft Surface devices, signaling a concerted effort by major chip designers to diversify beyond the traditional x86 architecture that has powered PCs for decades. The arrival of competitive Arm designs from multiple players could finally break the Intel-AMD stranglehold, offering consumers new choices in performance, efficiency, and potentially, form factor.
(Source: The Verge)
