Apple will reportedly adopt the latest generation of TSMC’s manufacturing process in the second half of next year. The new chip will likely be used in the next generation of iPhones and Apple tablets, presumably the Pro range. The iPad Air could also be introduced in 2022, and it will have an OLED display and possibly also run on the new chipset.
Nikkei reports that both Apple and Intel are testing the next generation of their chipsets made with the 3-nanometer manufacturing process, according to several sources familiar with the matter. The new 3-nm technology is intended to increase computing power by 10 to 15 percent compared to the 5-nm process. Electricity consumption is also to be reduced by 25 to 30 percent.
Nanometer refers to the width between the transistors on the chip. The smaller the nanometer, the more advanced and powerful the chip can be, which brings additional challenges and makes it more expensive to manufacture. The most advanced chip production technology used in a publicly available device is TSMC’s 5nm technology, the Apple A14 Bionic Chip.
Apple’s iPad will likely be one of the first devices to run on the new chipset made with 3nm technology, according to the sources. The new iPhone generation, which is expected to come onto the market in 2022, should use 4 nm technology for “scheduling reasons”.
As for Intel, the new chipsets are likely to find their way into data centers, notebooks, and a host of other advanced computing products to regain some market share that AMD had lost in recent years. AMD’s market share in notebook processors rose from 11 percent in 2019 to over 20 percent last year. “Currently, the chip volume planned for Intel is larger than that for Apple’s iPad in the 3-nanometer process,” said one of the sources.
There will likely be some competition to be the first to efficiently produce and ship 3nm chipsets to consumers and data centers, but Apple will likely win the consumer battle and ship millions of iPads and iPhones in the near future.
Roland Udvarlaki
Roland is a technology enthusiast and software engineer based in the UK.
