Speculation about Apple A20: How many nanometers will it be?
What's next for Apple's iPhone chips? There are various rumors from Asia about what TSMC might have up its sleeve.
wafers at TSMC.
(Image: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd.)
The iPhone 18, planned for fall 2026, will probably contain the new A20 processor – - that much already seems certain. The question, however, is what structural width it will have. Following speculation that it would be a 2-nanometer process from chip contract manufacturer TSMC, there have since been rumors that Apple could stick with the extended 3 nm process, which is also planned for the A19 this year. However, this is unlikely to happen: the usually reliable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo from TF International Securities in Taiwan emphasizes that Apple is using the more modern 2 nm process for the A20.
A19 with 3 nm
According to him, TSMC is said to have already achieved a yield of 60 to 70 percent of functional chips in trial production a quarter ago. The yield is now "significantly higher". Last summer, it was briefly rumored that Apple could rely on the 2 nm process for the iPhone 17 this year, but this apparently no longer works.
On the one hand, finer manufacturing processes increase the packing density – Apple can therefore accommodate more transistors on the same chip surface, for example for more powerful CPU cores. On the other hand, switching times are shortened. Apple can thus either increase the clock frequencies with the same electrical power consumption or reduce the power consumption with the same performance. Around 15 percent more performance through the production change alone seems realistic. TSMC hopes that the 2 nm chips will ultimately also be produced in the USA and not just in Taiwan, although this may take several years.
M5 on the way – with 2 nm
Apple uses TSMC's second-generation 3 nm process (N3E) in the current A18 and A18 Pro, which are used in the iPhone 16. As mentioned, the A19 and A19 Pro (should Apple retain the division) will use the further improved 3 nm process N3P. The 2 nm process in the A20 and A20 Pro is called N2 (first generation).
At the beginning of February, there were reports about the next Apple chip for iPad and Mac. The M5 is said to already be in production and will use the 3 nm process with partial 3D chip stacking. Among other things, Apple is hoping for performance improvements in AI applications. The first computer with M5 could appear in the fall, possibly preceded by an iPad Pro with M5. Apple presented the predecessor iPad Pro M4 in May 2024.
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