The 2022 iPhones and Macs may feature chips built on the 3nm process, as Apple's leading chip supplier, TSMC, is planning to begin mass production for 3nm chips destined for Apple in the second half of next year, according to a preview of an upcoming report by DigiTimes.
The paywalled preview of the full report, which will be published tomorrow, reads:
TSMC is on track to move its 3nm process technology to volume production in the second half of 2022 for Apple's devices, either iPhones or Mac computers, according to industry sources.
Earlier in June, TSMC was reportedly beefing up capacity to begin production of 3nm chips, but DigiTimes at the time refrained from mentioning Apple as a potential initial beneficiary of the new process. Today's preview directly means that just two years after unveiling chips based on the 5nm process, Apple may plan to make a direct jump to 3nm as soon as next year.
Apple has already reportedly booked TSMC's entire production capacity for 4nm chips for Apple silicon Macs. That report, however, has no timeline as to when Macs with 4nm chips may debut.
The A14 Bionic chip, first introduced in an updated iPad Air and later put into the iPhone 12 series, is built on the 5nm process. Compared to earlier processes, the smaller architecture provides improved performance and increased energy efficiency. For this year's iPhone, Apple will use an enhanced version of the 5nm process.
The full report tomorrow is likely to offer more color surrounding Apple's plan to roll out chips built on the 3nm process. We'll be sure to let MacRumors' readers know if the new report shares anything of significance.
