The biggest Windows laptop news of the year didn’t come from Intel or AMD — it came from NVIDIA. RTX Spark, announced with Microsoft in May, is a complete processor (CPU + graphics) for laptops and small PCs, and the first models appeared at IFA 2026, the Berlin tech show, in early September.
In this article
What RTX Spark is
- A 20-core NVIDIA Grace CPU based on Arm (the same family as phone processors), developed with MediaTek.
- An NVIDIA Blackwell RTX GPU with 6,144 CUDA cores on the same chip.
- Up to 128 GB of unified memory, shared by the CPU and GPU.
- 1 petaflop of AI performance, designed to run AI models on the computer itself.
According to NVIDIA, systems arrive this fall from ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Microsoft Surface and MSI, with Acer and Gigabyte to follow.
The first models shown at IFA
- Lenovo Yoga Pro 9n: 15.3″ 2.5K OLED at 165 Hz, up to 128 GB of memory and up to 4 TB of SSD. There’s also a 16″ 2-in-1. Price and date not announced yet.
- ASUS ProArt P14 and P16: for content creators, with up to 128 GB of memory and OLED displays.
- Acer: showed a small-form-factor RTX Spark PC, no date yet.
Heads-up: it’s Windows on Arm
Because the CPU is Arm-based, these laptops run Windows 11 on Arm, like Snapdragon laptops. In practice:
- Most common apps (browsers, Office, Teams, Zoom) already have native versions or run through Windows’ automatic emulation.
- Older drivers (printers, scanners, security tokens, corporate VPNs) may not work — check with the vendor before buying.
- Games with anti-cheat may not run on Arm. Check the game you want first.
Other laptops and PCs from IFA 2026
| Model | Processor | US price | Expected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lenovo ThinkBook 14 Gen 9 | Snapdragon X2 Plus | from $1,299 | October |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 14x Gen 2 | Intel Core 7 Series 3 | from $999.99 | Q1 2027 |
| Lenovo ThinkCentre X Ultra (desktop) | AMD Ryzen AI Max+ PRO 495 | from $3,699 | November |
| Acer Swift Blade 14 | Intel Core Series 3 | TBA | December |
| Acer Vero 16 | Intel Core Ultra Series 3 | TBA | Q1 2027 |
| ASUS ExpertBook Ultra | up to Intel Core Ultra X9 Series 3 | TBA | TBA |
Acer also launched the Predator Atlas 7, a Windows gaming handheld with an Intel processor, expected to ship in September.
Should you wait?
- Office work (email, spreadsheets, browsing): today’s Intel, AMD or Snapdragon laptops are plenty; no need to wait.
- Content creation and local AI: RTX Spark is promising, but reported prices are around $2,500 to $3,000. Wait for the first reviews.
- Before buying any laptop, check the RAM (16 GB is the comfortable minimum today) and the SSD type: see NVMe vs SATA SSD.
Sources
- NVIDIA Newsroom — NVIDIA and Microsoft introduce RTX Spark
- Thurrott — Lenovo Yoga Pro 9n with RTX Spark (IFA 2026)
- Thurrott — Lenovo ThinkBook and ThinkCentre (IFA 2026)
- Thurrott — Acer announcements (IFA 2026)
- ASUS — IFA 2026
Cover image: NVIDIA press image.
