Kuo: iPhone 18 Models Will Feature 2nm Chips

Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today reiterated that the A20 chip in iPhone 18 models will be manufactured with TSMC's 2nm process.

a20 chip feature
Kuo said TSMC's trial production of 2nm chips has now reached yields well above the 60-70% range. The yield refers to the percentage of functional chips that can be obtained per silicon wafer, which is essentially a large, circular disc of chips.

Kuo first said that the A20 chip would be 2nm around six months ago, and another analyst Jeff Pu said likewise earlier this week.

An earlier rumor saying the A20 chip would remain 3nm was retracted.

This is ultimately good news, as the A20 chip being 2nm instead of 3nm means it will have more substantial performance and power efficiency improvements over the A19 chip for iPhone 17 models. Kuo, Pu, and others have all said that the A19 chip will be manufactured with TSMC's third-generation 3nm process, called N3P.

The move from a 3nm to 2nm process allows for more transistors in each chip, which helps to boost performance. Specifically, reports indicate that A20 chips should be up to 15% faster and up to 30% more power efficient than A19 chips.

An overview of current and expected chips:

  • A17 Pro chip: 3nm (TSMC's first-generation 3nm process N3B)
  • A18 and A18 Pro chips: 3nm (TSMC's second-generation 3nm process N3E)
  • A19 and A19 Pro chips: 3nm (TSMC's third-generation 3m process N3P)
  • A20 and A20 Pro chips: 2nm (TSMC's first-generation 2nm process N2)

Keep in mind that these nanometer sizes are simply TSMC marketing terms, rather than actual measurements.

iPhone 18 models are still a year and a half away from launching.

Popular Stories

iphone 17 air dummy unbox therapy

iPhone 17 Air's Extreme Thinness Demoed in New Video

Tuesday April 22, 2025 10:22 am PDT by
Apple plans to release an all-new super thin iPhone this year, debuting it alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We've seen pictures of dummy models, cases, and renders with the design, but Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy today showed off newer dummy models that give us a better idea of just how thin the "iPhone 17 Air" will be. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be ...
iphone 17 dummies sonny dickson

iPhone 17 Air Almost as Thin as Its Buttons, New Images Show

Thursday April 24, 2025 2:14 am PDT by
If you missed the video showing dummy models of Apple's all-new super thin iPhone 17 Air that's expected later this year, Sonny Dickson this morning shared some further images of the device in close alignment with the other dummy models in the iPhone 17 lineup, indicating just how thin it is likely to be in comparison. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be around 5.5mm thick – with a thicker ...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
ipad air windows 11 arm

M2 iPad Air Runs Windows 11 ARM via Emulation, Thanks to EU Rules

Tuesday April 22, 2025 5:01 am PDT by
A developer has demonstrated Windows 11 ARM running on an M2 iPad Air using emulation, which has become much easier since the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations came into effect. As spotted by Windows Latest, NTDev shared an instance of the emulation on social media and posted a video on YouTube (embedded below) demonstrating it in action. The achievement relies on new EU regulatory...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Launching Later This Year With These 16 New Features

Thursday April 24, 2025 8:24 am PDT by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device. Overall, the iPhone 17 Air sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, a...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Global Close Your Rings Day Pin

Apple Stores Giving Away a Limited-Edition Pin For Free Today

Thursday April 24, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Starting today, April 24, Apple Stores around the world are giving away a special pin for free to customers who request one, while supplies last. Photo Credit: Filip Chudzinski The enamel pin's design is inspired by the Global Close Your Rings Day award in the Activity app, which Apple Watch users can receive by closing all three Activity rings today. The limited-edition pin is the physical...

Top Rated Comments

Rodney Williams Avatar
5 weeks ago
I don't really care about all this talk about the potential performance of the A20 chip. Just fix the software of all these hiccups and bugs that seems to be plaguing the Apple products for past few years of iOS, macOS and iPadOS. Just fix the damn software. Period. What good is the chip if the software is garbage?
Score: 46 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vegetassj4 Avatar
5 weeks ago
Moars Law: the observation that the number of bugs in iOS is exponentially and inversely proportionate to the nm process of Apple's chips
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Arm64MyMac Avatar
5 weeks ago
“TSMC marketing terms, rather than actual measurements.“

If 2nm doesn’t mean 2nm and 3nm doesn’t mean 3nm, what’s the point of these terms? How can anyone then derive any power efficiency from this?
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
t0rqx Avatar
5 weeks ago
Cancelled my iPhone 15 preorder 2 years ago.

Cancelled my iPhone 16 preorder last year.

Cancelling my iPhone 17 this year.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Joe Rossignol Avatar
5 weeks ago

Of course, this will be an 100% thing
Sometimes the obvious news still needs to be reported on, and then someone will make a comment saying it is obvious, and then life carries on.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Joe Rossignol Avatar
5 weeks ago

Agree, but here, there were some rumours that this will not be the case and it will be on N3P/3nm...and that was strange since Apple usually lock their new TSMC architecture for an entire year
Correct, because investment firm GF Securities put out a research note stating the following: "Apple’s A20 chip in 2026 will remain on the N3P node (leveraging CoW packaging to enhance AI capabilities) rather than migrating to N2, contrary to earlier rumors."

So we relayed the information accordingly.

However, I later spoke with GF Securities' lead Apple analyst Jeff Pu, who said to disregard this information about the A20 chip remaining N3P. That information was shared by another analyst at the firm, and Pu follows Apple more closely and confirmed that A20 will indeed be N2.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)