TSMC’s 3nm Process May Also Be Leveraged to Mass Produce an Apple Silicon Specifically Designed for the Upcoming AR Headset
Jumping from 4nm to 3nm will likely be an astronomical challenge for TSMC, and according to analyst Jeff Pu, it will commence mass production on Apple’s M2 Pro and M2 Max later this year. Unfortunately, even if the mass production schedule does not witness any delay, it does not mean consumers will see new products with the next-generation Apple Silicon launch any time in 2022. The first products expected to be powered by the M2 Pro and M2 Max could be the updated versions of the redesigned MacBook Pro family in 2023. In case you did not know, the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro series are powered by the M1 Pro and M1 Max, with the M2 Pro and M2 Max expected to provide an increase in CPU and GPU cores. According to a previous report, the M2 Max could be equipped with up to a 12-core GPU and 38-core GPU, whereas the M1 Max can currently be maxed out with a 10-core CPU and 32-core configuration. There might be some excitement from potential consumers that TSMC’s 3nm technology could be used to mass produce the A16 Bionic found in the upcoming iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. Unfortunately, that does not appear to be the case as TSMC will likely start mass production of 3nm chips in Q4, 2022, whereas the A16 Bionic needs to be readied in large supply by July. We are at least happy to know that this cutting-edge technology may be leveraged to mass produce the unnamed SoC found in Apple’s highly rumored AR headset, giving it improved performance, power efficiency, and thermals just like the M2 Pro and M2 Max. We will hear more about TSMC’s plans for Apple’s custom chipsets, so stay tuned for more updates. News Source: 9to5Mac
