TSMC to Begin Trial Production of Apple's A6X Chip This Quarter

ifixit a6xAFP reports on claims from Taiwanese newspaper Commercial Times indicating that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is set to begin trial production of Apple's A6X chip sometime this quarter. The chip is currently used in the fourth-generation iPad introduced in October.

The Taiwanese company has been contracted to manufacture the A6X chip, which drives Apple's iPad4 tablet, with trial production set for the first quarter of this year, Taiwan's Commercial Times reported.

The move is the latest in a strings of efforts by Apple to switch mass manufacturing contracts away from Samsung, it said.

Apple has been rumored for some time to be trying to switch to TSMC for production of its A-series chips, with some reports claiming that TSMC would be coming on board late this year for next-generation chips. More recent reports have claimed that TSMC could start production for Apple as soon as the second quarter, perhaps in line with today's rumor of trial production in the first quarter of the year.

Popular Stories

streaming black friday 2025

Black Friday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Apple TV, and More

Monday November 24, 2025 8:03 am PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone to Debut These Three Breakthrough Features

Tuesday November 25, 2025 7:09 am PST by
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include three standout features that could set it apart from the competition. The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...
iPhone Pocket Short

iPhone Pocket is Now Completely Sold Out Worldwide

Tuesday November 25, 2025 7:16 am PST by
Apple recently teamed up with Japanese fashion brand ISSEY MIYAKE to create the iPhone Pocket, a limited-edition knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone. However, it is now completely sold out in all countries where it was released. iPhone Pocket became available to order on Apple's online store starting Friday, November 14, in the United States, France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, ...
General Apps Messages Redux

Singapore Orders Changes to iMessage by December

Tuesday November 25, 2025 6:39 am PST by
Singapore has ordered Apple to block or filter messages on iMessage that impersonate government agencies, requiring the company to implement new anti-spoofing protections by December as part of efforts to curb rising online scams, the Straits Times reports. Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said that it had issued an Implementation Directive to Apple under the Online Criminal Harms...
apple store down feature

Here's Why the Apple Store is Going Down

Thursday November 27, 2025 1:01 pm PST by
Apple's online store is going down for a few hours on a rolling country-by-country basis right now, but do not get your hopes up for new products. Apple takes its online store down for a few hours ahead of Black Friday every year to tease/prepare for its annual gift card offer with the purchase of select products. The store already went down and came back online in Australia and New Zealand, ...
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red

Apple Black Friday Deals Available Now on AirPods, iPads, Accessories, and More

Friday November 21, 2025 8:48 am PST by
We're only a few days away from Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red Green

The 30+ Best Black Friday Apple Deals on AirPods, iPads, MacBooks, and More

Thursday November 27, 2025 6:46 am PST by
Black Friday is just a few hours away, and as always this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Crease-Free iPhone Fold on Track for 2026 Launch as Development Advances

Monday November 24, 2025 10:25 am PST by
Apple is making progress on the development of the book-style foldable iPhone expected in 2026, according to a report from Chinese site UDN. The device has reportedly entered the engineering validation stage, and Apple is gearing up for mass production. Citing supply chain sources, UDN says that Apple has solved "the crease problem" that has plagued most foldable smartphones, and the...

Top Rated Comments

ItsWelshy Avatar
168 months ago
I've really never understood why people continue to call Samsung's phones "cheap," as if the plastic used is terrible quality.

Beacuse they are?

Step 1: Hold Galaxy phone in hand
Step 2: Give gentle squeeze
Step 3: listen to the creaking and feel the rubbish build quality
Step 4: Put rubbish phone down, pick iPhone up
Step 5: Squeeze iPhone and observe the wonderful build quality
Step 6: Buy iPhone.
Step 7: Repeat steps 1-7 yearly
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Newton70 Avatar
168 months ago
Excellent news, Samsung can now better concentrate on making cheap, plastic phones.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
harveyhanson Avatar
168 months ago
I've really never understood why people continue to call Samsung's phones "cheap," as if the plastic used is terrible quality.

I have a galaxy note 2, 1 drop on the floor and I can now see a lot of the white bezel underneath the very thin paint coating on plastic! So yeah, I would say Samsung phones are built on the cheap, you get what you pay for, that's where the price difference of £50 came between iPhone and Galaxy Note 2 in my case, better materials...
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hayesk Avatar
168 months ago
Try this on for size

Apple still needs Samsung.

At this point tsmc cannot produce enough chips.

The key words here being "at this point". Apple can throw a billion dollars at TSMC and say "go build us a factory." In a year or two, will Apple need Samsung?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Compile 'em all Avatar
168 months ago
Bye bye, Samsung!
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
irDigital0l Avatar
168 months ago
Bye bye, Samsung!

Remember what happened to 'Bye bye, Google'?

hahahaha
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)