NVIDIA's N1 and N1X ARM laptop chips leak ahead of Computex reveal
NVIDIA is set to announce its first ARM-based laptop chips since 2011 at Computex on June 1, and the full specs have already leaked. Internal documents obtained by VideoCardz reveal two chip families — the high-performance N1X and the mainstream N1 — both built on a TSMC 3nm process with Blackwell 2.0 graphics. It's NVIDIA's most direct challenge yet to Qualcomm's Snapdragon X series, which has dominated Windows-on-ARM for the past two years.
The chips
The N1X targets performance laptops with a TDP of 45–80W. Its flagship configuration packs 20 CPU cores (10 Cortex-X925 + 10 Cortex-A725) and 6,144 CUDA cores across 48 shader blocks — GPU performance that Tom's Hardware puts on par with a discrete RTX 5070. A cut-down N1X variant offers 18 CPU cores and 5,120 CUDA cores. Both support up to 128GB of LPDDR5X memory and three M.2 drives.
The N1 sits lower, at 18–45W, and comes in 12-core (2,560 CUDA cores) and 10-core (2,048 CUDA cores) variants. Memory tops out at 64GB LPDDR5X via an eight-channel interface, with support for two M.2 drives.
One slide in the leaked documents is dated 2024, suggesting this project has been in development for several years. Not all configurations may be announced simultaneously on June 1.
Who's making laptops with them
Dell, Lenovo, ASUS, and Microsoft have all confirmed devices, per tbreak. Expect the Dell XPS, Lenovo Legion, ASUS ProArt, and a Surface variant to be among the first N1/N1X machines. Retail availability is estimated for Q4 2026, ahead of the holiday season.
The catch
Pricing hasn't been confirmed, but Tom's Hardware estimates N1X laptops will start above $2,000 — positioning them against the MacBook Pro — while N1 devices should land under $1,500. The Snapdragon X Elite already retails between $1,699 and $2,049, so NVIDIA will need competitive pricing to win converts.
The bigger unknown is software. Windows on ARM has improved — Minecraft, Roblox, and GTA V run natively on Snapdragon X — but no AAA titles have confirmed N1X support yet. NVIDIA's CUDA ecosystem could be a strong draw for creative and AI workloads, but gaming compatibility will need real-world testing before anyone can call this a Qualcomm killer.
