iPhone chips set for big upgrade – but there’s a catch
Macs and iPads also set for better performance
When Apple launched the iPhone 14 range, it kept the non-Pro models on last year’s A15 chip. That looks set to continue with the iPhone 15, with a new report claiming Apple will improve the process used to make the iPhone 15 Pro’s A17 chips – but not those in the regular iPhone 15.
Right now, iPhone chips are made with TSMC’s first-generation three-nanometre (3nm) process, known as N3. According to Nikkei Asia, Apple will shift to TSMC’s second-generation N3E process for the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max next year. That should mean improved performance and power efficiency, the report claims. The non-Pro models will not get this upgrade, though, meaning a regular iPhone 15 chip (which could be the A16) will stick with N3. As well as the iPhone 15 Pro models, Apple could use the same N3E method for the Mac’s upcoming M3 chip. If the report is correct, the transition to the M3 chip could be a meaningful update, as it would entail moving from the 5nm M2 series to a 3nm chip.
Finally, the same report notes that the N3E process could be used in some of Apple’s upcoming iPads. However, it does not detail which iPads in particular will get this upgrade, so it may be some way off yet.