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iPhone 18's Costly 2nm Process Adoption Could Lead to Price Hikes
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I think my wallet's getting a 2nm thinner too... and this is just the beginning!
The 2nm SoCs will be for the 2026 iPhones (and probably Macs.)
2025 will see SoCs stay on 3nm, though an M5 Max may use TSMC's "3D Fabric" processes.
Thats fine, I can happily upgrade to the previous years iPhone and not pay the price hike. Sort of learned my lesson with the iPhone 16 Pro Max, I should have saved the extra cash and got the 15 Pro Max.
TSMC has stated that their 2nm process if more difficult, and that will raise prices to Apple, which Apple will then pass on.
🤔
Oh, and Burger King has a deal this week where you can get a cheeseburger for $0.01 with any $1.00 purchase.
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Same here in the States. A McDonald's Big Mac meal where I live is $14.89.... you can go to a restaurant like Red Robin and get a burger, fries and drink for $9.99. And the fries and drink both are unlimited (free refills).
It's basically time. I need to take at least 60 minutes out of my day to go to a sit down restaurant. I can go to the drive-thru at McDonald's and be back to work 10 minutes later and eat at my desk. I'll be able to leave work an hour earlier by not taking a lunch break. Worth the $5 to busy Americans.
Well, I guess this is yet another reason to purchase an M4 Mac and be happy with it, without looking back (or, in this case, forward).
I really wanted to wait for the M5 but I guess that it’s better to purchase it now before prices start rising due to tariffs or inflation, or even with more expensive silicon like the 2nm tech.
I really wanted to wait for the M5 but I guess that it’s better to purchase it now before prices start rising due to tariffs or inflation, or even with more expensive silicon like the 2nm tech.
But many times Apple Stops production and sale of previous iterations of iPhone Max Pro models as soon as they launch the newer ones. But in India, they do sell the previous iterations but the price difference would be hardly anything more than $100-$150 max for a PM models. It is already starting at $2100 all Pro Models.
Every year is the same. "The next iPhone will cost more!!!" and 90% of the time it isn't true at all.
It's too late, iPhones have already become expensive, and all the 2n process node shrink will do is make them that much more expensive. And prices aren't ever coming down.
I never understood this mindset. Making a sandwich at home takes 2 minutes and costs a couple of dollars at most — without even getting into the health aspect.
And how much has it increased prices by then? We don’t have those detail do we, until we do I won’t believe they are high enough to warrant any price rises on Apples devices, Apple will just use it as an excuse to hide other cost increases IMO.
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In Europe especially, the price gap compared to the US is wild — once you add VAT, currency conversion, and local markups, iPhones can feel seriously overpriced. And with every new release pushing higher price points, it’s no surprise that more people are either holding onto their devices longer or switching to alternatives.
Making a sandwich at home takes a LOT longer than 2 minutes, and costs MORE than a couple of dollars. And there are lots of healthy options going out to eat.
To make a sandwich at home, I need to spend time getting the ingredients at the supermarket. If I want to have a sandwich one day with lettuce and tomatoes, I need to buy a whole tomato at $1.17, which I'll only use 1 or 2 slices of it. I need to buy a head of lettuce for $1.99, which I'll only use a portion of it until it wilts and goes bad. I'll need to buy a loaf of bread for $3.00. A whole onion for 88 cents, which I'll only use a portion of. I'll need to buy at least 1/2 lb of turkey/chicken/ham for $5.00.
As a single person, most of it will spoil or go bad by the time I'm done making - maybe - 3 sandwiches. Then if I want peppers, cucumbers, pickles, etc. - they'll all cost money and spoil. Plus, I'm not eating sandwiches every single day, I'm having variety. More spoilage.
Now, a family might save money, but a single person is wasting all sorts of ingredients.
I read the whole article carefully and it doesn't seem to say much of anything
New nodes are more expensive than old nodes, yeah. Tariffs, yeah, big maybe for two iPhones in the future. But new nodes are more expensive per mm2, not necessarily per transistor since they can pack more in a given area. Some A chips are bigger or smaller as they work around these cycles. No real hard details here
A drop in size is sometimes common, a drop in actual transistors is rare, only the M3 Pro raised that eyebrow
Let's see what they actually do then. Could be a year for a smaller A series chip on mm2 but still advancing transistor budget somewhat, just less than it could have been without the added cost. Or they have a sweetheart deal with TSMC in exchange for front running the node costs, as has happened before on challenging nodes, like not paying for defects.
New nodes are more expensive than old nodes, yeah. Tariffs, yeah, big maybe for two iPhones in the future. But new nodes are more expensive per mm2, not necessarily per transistor since they can pack more in a given area. Some A chips are bigger or smaller as they work around these cycles. No real hard details here
A drop in size is sometimes common, a drop in actual transistors is rare, only the M3 Pro raised that eyebrow
Let's see what they actually do then. Could be a year for a smaller A series chip on mm2 but still advancing transistor budget somewhat, just less than it could have been without the added cost. Or they have a sweetheart deal with TSMC in exchange for front running the node costs, as has happened before on challenging nodes, like not paying for defects.
literally a picture of AMD Lisa Su and TSMC CEO with a 2nm wafer of AMD pre-production product ....
'... In a rather unexpected turn of events, AMD announced late on Monday that it had obtained its first 2nm-class silicon, a core complex die (CCD) for its 6th Generation EPYC 'Venice' processor, which is expected to launch next year. ...'
AMD teases its first 2nm chip, EPYC 'Venice' fabbed on TSMC N2 node — also announces USA production of current-gen chips
First 2nm HPC design.
most certainly there are likely some very critical bugs in the circuits on this wafer .... but the notion that Apple has exclusive access here is likely 'smoke'.
AMD teases its first 2nm chip, EPYC 'Venice' fabbed on TSMC N2 node — also announces USA production of current-gen chips
First 2nm HPC design.
Does Apple also have 2nm wafer? Very possible, but part of the time to market has to do with the associated timing and product roll outs. Apple can't 'stop' AMD shipping product if they have their bugs under control and are ready to ship. And if there is no ;good' window for a iPad or Mac early in 2026 then AMD has every oppportunity to ship in the later time window the iPhone is stuck on.
P.S. with ARM making solid progress in making placements in data center CPUs , AMD is not resting on their laurels while Intel struggles to get back on track. There are more competitors than just Intel. Even bigger competitive pressures on the GPU side. ( although those are bigger dies and likely not earliest in the process rollout. ) . AMD isn't 'broke'.
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As an European I agree with you. We pay a lot for our iPhones just like in Brazil or Australia. In the USA, Apple product are always cheaper than abroad.