iPhone 14 Pro and Redesigned MacBook Air Reportedly Stuck Using Technology Behind A15 Chip

[MacRumors]

The iPhone 14 Pro's "A16" chip may be a minor upgrade over the iPhone 13's A15 Bionic and there are growing questions around the nature of the "M2" chip, according to reputable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

Earlier this week, the leaker known as "ShrimpApplePro" postulated that the A16 chip for the iPhone 14 Pro models will be manufactured with the same process as the iPhone 13's A15 Bionic, with Apple potentially saving a bigger performance leap for M-series chips designed for its next-generation Macs instead. In a thread on Twitter quoting ShrimpApplePro, Kuo today corroborated these rumors about the A16 and M2 chips.

Kuo said that since TSMC's significantly better N3 and N4P fabrication processes will not be available for mass production until 2023, N5P and N4 are the latest viable technologies available for new Apple chips set to launch this year. Kuo believes that N4 has no meaningful advantages over N5P, the process currently used to manufacture the A15 Bionic chip in the iPhone 13 lineup and the iPad mini, so Apple reportedly plans to stick with N5P for the A16 chip. The A16 chip's performance and efficiency improvements over the A15 are therefore "limited," according to Kuo, leading to the claim that naming the iPhone 14 Pro's chip the "A16" is "more of a marketing purpose."

Kuo added that the redesigned MacBook Air, another device expected to launch this year, faces "the same technical limitations as A16" with N5P. He suggested that the 2022 MacBook Air's complete redesign is "already a big selling point," which may mean that boasting a major chip improvement could be less important for this device.

Instead, Kuo proposed that Apple may see more advantage in debuting the first M2 chips in the next-generation 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models. While Apple could call the chip in the redesigned MacBook Air the "M2" to boost sales, despite it only minor upgrades over the existing M1, it may opt to save the "M2" name for a much more substantial upgrade over the previous generation in 2023 to further enhance Apple silicon's brand image.

ShrimpApplePro previously claimed that Apple is working on the "final SoC of M1 series," featuring updated cores. The M1, M1 Pro, M1 Max, and M1 Ultra chips use energy-efficient "Icestorm" cores and high-performance "Firestorm" cores – just like the A14 Bionic chip. Apple's final M1 variant will instead allegedly be based on the A15 Bionic, featuring "Blizzard" energy-efficient cores and "Avalanche" high-performance cores.

Kuo said earlier this year that the 2022 MacBook Air would retain the M1 chip rather than feature the M2, so it is possible that ShrimpApplePro's rumor relates to a new version of the entry-level M1. Offering devices with a mid-generation iteration of the standard M1 chip could help Apple buy time before releasing Macs with the M2 chip.

Based on this information, it may be the case that the "true" M2 chip does not emerge until 2023, with the chips in upcoming devices like the iPhone 14 Pro and redesigned MacBook Air bearing a strong resemblance to the A15. Moreover, the standard iPhone 14 models are rumored to retain the same A15 chip from the iPhone 13 lineup. As a result, 2022 may be a year of more minor, iterative Apple chip upgrades, with bigger upgrades on the horizon for 2023 thanks to the availability of more advanced fabrication processes.

Article Link: iPhone 14 Pro and Redesigned MacBook Air Reportedly Stuck Using Technology Behind A15 Chip

 

[yellow8]

Wow! That will be confusing for the buyer.

 

[brofkand]

Not a huge deal, the A14/A15/M1 have plenty of performance for most. We don't need nor could we expect 20% YoY uplifts every year in perpetuity.

 

[Realityck]

Lets see what the performance is with iPhone 14 and redesigned air before lamenting it nots using the next gen SoC's. A updated core arrangement in another M1 family SoC would still be good.

 

[Nismo73]

When car makers use the same engine year after year, it doesn’t seem like a big deal.

 

[Karma*Police]

When car makers use the same engine year after year, it doesn’t seem like a big deal.

That’s because the gov’t doesn’t impose speed limits on computers like they do with cars… yet.

 

[JPack]

This helps explain to those who haven't been paying attention to TSMC's lithography roadmap.

Yeah, that's a lot of anticipation over M2, but in reality, Apple's roadmap is limited by what TSMC can offer. If N4 offers only 5% reduction in logic area, it means Apple cannot add more transistors (or performance) to M1 or A15. MacBook Air and mainstream iPhone 14 are relatively cheap models, so Apple won't put in big chips.

This means we're getting another variant of M1 in 2022 MBA, maybe something with more graphics cores. I'd predict the same with A16 - it'll be a boosted A15 with more GPU only - but marketed as A16 for optics.

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

Wow! That will be confusing for the buyer.

Which buyer exactly?
Most buyers couldn’t tell a firestorm core from a waterbottle, and those who know anything about the processors that they’re purchasing will already know what they want.

 

[mj1108]

So it’s a A15S and M1S kind of year…..

 

[yellow8]

Which buyer exactly?
Most buyers couldn’t tell a firestorm core from a waterbottle, and those who know anything about the processors that they’re purchasing will already know what they want.

I mean this will make the choice harder, if benchmarks are not that good. I don't care about the names of the cores .
Example: was planning to update my M1 MBA to a M2 MBA. This news makes the decision more complicated.

 

[KrisLord]

Since when has process node been the defining factor in iPhone performance?

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Seems like it's an S year for the iPhone 14. A15 and M1 Chip already offer a massive amount of horsepower and performance.

Maybe, Apple can focus on its software this year? In order for them to do that the hardware team needs to work together with the software team. I truly believe the hardware is all there. It’s the software that needs a lot of work. It’s lacking behind.

 

[anshuvorty]

Yeah, that's a lot of anticipation over M2, but in reality, Apple's roadmap is limited by what TSMC can offer.

In before Apple starts manufacturing their own silicon with their own fabs because Apple is complaining that TSMC is just "too slow" for their needs...

 

[Macative]

Wow! That will be confusing for the buyer.

Lol no. Buyers aren’t looking at this crap.

 

[Populus]

The day Apple decides to make the big jump (3nm, ARM v.9), they are going to have serious problems with the huge demand and constrained supply, as there are many people -like me, like many of us- who are waiting for that next big jump to get their next, long lasting Mac.

So I understand why did they chose to milk this 5nm process with redesigned MacBooks and more refined, more efficient machines.

 

[Earl Urley]

Didn't most of the chip engineers leave Apple for Nuvia or whatever?

 

[Karma*Police]

An M2 Air and M1 Pro is confusing. But then again, Apple’s lineup of iphones, ipads, airpods, macbooks have been getting messy so this doesn’t come as much of a surprise. Tim Cook’s Apple reminds me more and more of the days of John Sculley and Michael Spindler. Ah, the good ol’ days /s

 

[JPack]

Since when has process node been the defining factor in iPhone performance?

Only every year since A4.

Shrinking transistors each year means Apple can put more in each year. That's how those impressive graphs about 30% or 50% boost come about. Apple can't magically increase performance without adding transistors. When TSMC slows, Apple Silicon slows.

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Wow! That will be confusing for the buyer.

The buyers don’t care about the chip. They don’t care. They go after the money. That’s the first priority

 

[IamTimCook]

Core size isn’t the defining factor of what makes a new chip series. Redesigned core layout, GPU layout, RAM throughput, connecting pathways, each section’s overall footprint percentage, etc. are what define a new chip architecture.

So yes the M2 could very well be in the new MacBook Airs when announced next week.

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

I mean this will make the choice harder, if benchmarks are not that good. I don't care about the names of the cores .
Example: was planning to update my M1 MBA to a M2 MBA. This news makes the decision more complicated.

I’m sorry, is your M1 MBA slow?
I’ve got one, it’s certainly not slow at all. If I’m upgrading for anything it’s the design, even if they did somehow shove a 3nm processor in there it’s not gonna make that big of a difference for everyday use.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Wow! That will be confusing for the buyer.

Not at all. Apple could paint M5 on the next chip. It's just a number painted on a chip. It doesn't actually have to mean anything. Average buyers might still be buying Intel Macs (like the Mini still for sale in the Apple store) and not even giving Silicon a thought... or having any knowledge of it at all.

 

[sniffies]

Most buyers will care more about upgrading their Apple Notches™

 

[JPack]

Core size isn’t the defining factor of what makes a new chip series. Redesigned core layout, GPU layout, RAM throughput, connecting pathways, each section’s overall footprint percentage, etc. are what define a new chip architecture.

No one is claiming that. Everyone is talking about transistor count.

 

[jdb8167]

Do people really think Apple’s plans have changed since March when the Senior VP of Hardware Engineering said that the Ultra was the last M1? There are not going to be any new M1s. I have no trouble believing that the M2 is a minor update on the M1 but there won’t be any new M1s. I’m also very skeptical that Apple would introduce a new MacBook Air more than 18 months after the M1 MBA with the same SoC. Logic says that having an M2 with the A15 or A16 CPU and GPU cores is going to be requirement by Apple’s marketing.