I saw the Surface Laptop Ultra at Computex and it's clear: Microsoft has gone beastmode

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• The Microsoft Surface Laptop Ultra is the flagship RTX Spark laptop unveiled astatine Computex. 
• It features the RTX Spark SoC: a 20-core CPU, equivalent of a GeForce RTX 5070 GPU, and up to 128GB of unified memory.
• Despite the dazzling specs and premium build, unanswered questions remain. 

At Computex 2026, Nvidia announced its caller RTX Spark processor, an ARM-based spot with immoderate awesome show specs crossed a cadre of caller devices: up to 1 petaflop of AI performance, a 20-core CPU, and up to 128GB of unified representation to powerfulness originative tasks with the unsmooth equivalent powerfulness of a GeForce RTX 5070. 

At the caput of the battalion is Microsoft's caller Surface Laptop Ultra -- the flagship RTX Spark laptop and a powerhouse that doubles down connected its premium branding and an edgy, assertive branding that speaks to developers, pro creators, and AI powerusers. 

Also: I saw the archetypal Nvidia RTX Spark laptops - these 4 models volition pb the caller ultrabook boom

I went hands-on with the caller Surface Ultra successful Taipei, and person to say: it's a beast, with creaseless gaming capabilities and awesome video editing performance. Of course, I tested it successful the controlled abstraction of a demo showfloor, and nary benchmarking oregon real-world investigating has been performed yet. Here's what stood out.

Flagship build

Microsoft went all-in with the Ultra's specs and a premium build. In fact, astatine Computex, nary of the different caller RTX Spark laptops were adjacent allowed to beryllium powered on. Only the Surface Ultra was running, and it powered each of the demos crossed each category. 

The carnal physique is perfectly solid, adjacent if it resembles erstwhile Surface laptops (on the outside). The 15-inch show is simply a mini-LED PixelSense Ultra touchscreen with 262ppi, a 3:2 facet ratio, and up to 2000 nits of highest HDR brightness. It's exceptionally agleam for a laptop, resulting successful immoderate genuinely eye-popping visuals.

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

Physically, it besides takes inspiration from the MacBook (but what doesn't, these days?) with recessed achromatic chiclet keys, stalwart aluminum body, and edge-to-edge solid panel. The haptic touchpad felt precise responsive and precise during the hands-on, and is appropriately-sized. It besides comes with a afloat suite of creator-friendly ports: 2 USB-C, 1 USB-A, HDMI, SD paper reader, and a headphone jack.

The RTX Spark is the prima of the amusement -- a "new people of GPU for AI", Microsoft says, with up to 128GB of unified memory, designed explicitly to tally ample models and entree datasets locally.

Improved thermals 

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

As expected, Microsoft redesigned the cooling infrastructure to woody with each the vigor this benignant of hardware volition inevitably produce. To start, the laptop is somewhat raised disconnected the table to let for airflow underneath. Inside, you've got a dual-fan, dual vigor tube setup that funnels chill aerial successful done the sides and retired the back, moving arsenic overmuch aerial arsenic imaginable done the device.

Microsoft had aggregate Surface Ultra units powering games during the demo: "Pragmata" and "Indiana Jones and the Great Circle" -- some graphically demanding titles -- and arsenic they had been moving for respective hours, the laptops were surely lukewarm to the touch. 

Also: Acer Swift Air 14 vs. MacBook Neo: I compared some fund laptops - this exemplary wins

Microsoft was truthful assured successful the powerfulness of its caller thermal strategy that it had a fume instrumentality demo lined up, but unluckily the instrumentality malfunctioned erstwhile it was turned it on. A bummer, but astatine slightest I tin accidental the fans whirring astatine max powerfulness were inactive amazingly quiet. 

I was besides a small amazed to spot immoderate attraction fixed to instrumentality repairability. The backplate is removable, giving casual entree to some the SSD and battery, and interior parts are tagged with QR codes for idiosyncratic replacement.

Questions remain

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

Obviously, Microsoft and its partners wanted to task a cohesive narrative, here. Computex was each astir dazzling with awesome hardware and promising next-level performance, but determination are inactive a batch of unknowns. 

The biggest question connected my caput relates to configuration and price. Sure, the RTX Spark tin enactment up to 128GB of unified memory, but what benignant of minimum RAM configurations volition beryllium available? I uncertainty we'll spot a Surface Ultra with 16GB of RAM, for example, arsenic that would decision the intent of specified a almighty processor and isn't capable to enactment these kinds of AI workflows.

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

Besides benchmarking and show metrics being a large question mark, artillery ratio is different unfastened question. Each idiosyncratic I spoke to expressed assurance successful the Surface Ultra's artillery life, but the bottommost enactment is simply a 3,000-nit mini-LED show is going to necessitate a definite magnitude of power, careless of however businesslike the SoC is. 

Availability is, surprise, different unknown. We'll larn much astir the Surface Laptop Ultra successful the months to come, arsenic pre-orders (hopefully?) unfastened successful precocious summer/early autumn and it ships sometime aft that.