What you need to know
- TSMC will reportedly start producing A14 chips next month.
- The chip will be on the 5nm process.
- That should make it cooler and more power-efficient.
Apple's processor manufacturing partner, TSMC, will reportedly begin mass production of the Apple A14 chip in April, according to DigiTimes. This is the chip that will power iPhone 12 that will likely go on sale in September, coronavirus permitting.
TSMC has been the partner Apple turns to for A-series processors for years and the move to 5nm will be a first for Apple. It should, in theory, allow the chips to run cooler while using less power. The knock-on effect of that is likely that the A14 can be clocked at a higher frequency than the previous A13 – a chip that is already faster than a ton of Apple notebooks.
Apple is expected to announce iPhone 12 in September, although there has been some suggestion that we might have to wait until October. This will all depend on coronavirus and the impact it continues to have on Apple's supply chain.
It is, however, worth noting that DigiTimes has a spotty past with these kinds of reports. As ever, we'd suggest taking this with a pinch of salt. Even though TSMC usually starts producing Apple's new chips around this time of year.
