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iPad Pro Will we see the A12x Bionic chip this year in our iPad Pro's?

SRLMJ23

SRLMJ23

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Jul 11, 2008
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Just curious what everyone thinks.

I mean, I cannot imagine them just sticking a normal A12 Bionic in the new iPad Pro's, but with Apple these days...who knows?! I have not heard one thing about an A12X chip.

If it exists, the A12X Bionic should be a beast of a processor, just like its A12 Bionic cousin.

I PRAY we get new iPad Pro's next month with FaceID, A12X Bionic, better camera(s), more RAM, etc...

:apple:
 
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I am expecting a A12X chip, and that will be a lovely boost in performance compared to existing iPad Pro with A10X if we just consider the difference between A10 and A12.

And i am with you i really want an improved iPad Pro X-model asap.
 
MrGimper said:
Really? The A10X powered iPads came out in June 2017 and the A11 powered iPhones in September 2017. This time round the A12 powered iPhones are out before the new iPads, so I'd expect A12X in the new iPads.
Click to expand...
See that would be the logical and better business move, but... it’s Apple. I’m not saying they suck, but they so often do not do things that make sense, or what Apple consumers want.
I am worried about this (A12) and worried IF we will actually get new iPads this year at all. :/



Kallum
 
Kal-037 said:
See that would be the logical and better business move, but... it’s Apple. I’m not saying they suck, but they so often do not do things that make sense, or what Apple consumers want.
I am worried about this (A12) and worried IF we will actually get new iPads this year at all. :/



Kallum
Click to expand...

I think that, for the iPad Pro to still be considered a pro device, it has to have a better processor than a phone :) And A11X may be better than an A12 stat-wise, but for sales an A12X looks more "pro" than and A12
 
They’ll just use the A11X they’ve been working on and give it some iPad specific name so you don’t know it’s not based on the A12.

Mobile processors are complex so to assume we get an X version of the brand new processor isn’t guaranteed.
 
MrGimper said:
Really? The A10X powered iPads came out in June 2017 and the A11 powered iPhones in September 2017. This time round the A12 powered iPhones are out before the new iPads, so I'd expect A12X in the new iPads.
Click to expand...

Well they’re changing everything else up so why not change that too and just make it the “A11X”? Lol. It’s all about profit margins. They’ll figure out a way to put an upgraded version of last year’s chip in it. Just add a couple things to it and slap the 12X name on it and make it look like it’s the latest and greatest. I mean, am I totally cray cray for thinking so?
 
I really think they will. The A11 chip seems more and more like a stepping stone to me. Whereas the A12 is a refinement that for now prioritizes the thermal/power constraints of the iPhone, the iPP, with its bigger thermal envelope, battery, and productivity apps, is a better showcase for what the new cores and 7nm process can do for performance. A lot of places said the 7nm process would yield ~30% faster chips AND 40% power savings, the reality is that should be faster chips OR power savings. I believe the A12 benchmarks what were ~40% higher than the A11 were actually the A12X which will use more power but show a bigger increase.

Personally, I think Apple is preparing the (possible) release of ARM powered MacOS devices (because Intel continues to fall behind just like the PowerPC consortium back in the 2000's). Truly threatening Intel's low- and mid-power laptop chips with a scaled up A12 would be in Apple's best interest—even if there are few iPad apps that currently use that much power. At the very least it would give them leverage with Intel. I may also be featured in one of the new MacOS devices that are likely to be launched alongside the iPP!

The other reason I think we'll see a variant of the A12 (likely an A12X with three big cores and three little cores like the A10X) is the emphasis Apple is placing on machine learning both in authentication (FaceID is faster not because hardware improvements like TouchID 2.0 but because of CPU/software improvement—most likely that Neural Engine) and augmented reality. The later being a possible "killer app" for the iPad for developers looking to create augmented reality content. Hard to create such content on the smaller screens of Phones but MacOS devices lack the sensors and portability to develop effectively on-site. An A11X would hold the device back on both those aspects.

All that said, I'd rather they just release the things regardless of what they put in them!
 
KrisLord said:
They’ll just use the A11X they’ve been working on and give it some iPad specific name so you don’t know it’s not based on the A12.

Mobile processors are complex so to assume we get an X version of the brand new processor isn’t guaranteed.
Click to expand...

Freakonomics101 said:
Well they’re changing everything else up so why not change that too and just make it the “A11X”? Lol. It’s all about profit margins. They’ll figure out a way to put an upgraded version of last year’s chip in it. Just add a couple things to it and slap the 12X name on it and make it look like it’s the latest and greatest. I mean, am I totally cray cray for thinking so?
Click to expand...

It would be pretty damn hard for Apple to fake an A12X since the new A12s are 7 nm processors.
 
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SRLMJ23 said:
Just curious what everyone thinks.

I mean, I cannot imagine them just sticking a normal A12 Bionic in the new iPad Pro's, but with Apple these days...who knows?! I have not heard one thing about an A12X chip.

If it exists, the A12X Bionic should be a beast of a processor, just like its A12 Bionic cousin.

I PRAY we get new iPad Pro's next month with FaceID, A12X Bionic, better camera(s), more RAM, etc...

:apple:
Click to expand...


The A11 was 10nm and the A12 is 7nn its literally cheaper and faster to go with the A12 CPU.
Which sadly is only 15% faster than the A11.

I caved and bought a Xs MAX at 6.5" it will be my iPad Mini.
 
MandiMac said:
A11X at the same performance as the current A12 chip would be what they did in the past...
Click to expand...

In fairness, the only time they did that in the past was mid 2017 when the Pro got A10X (the A10 was announced 9 months prior with iPhone 7). Otherwise they were usually always on par:

2010: A4 for iPhone 4 and iPad
2011: A5 for iPad 2 and iPhone 4S
2012: A6 for iPad 4th gen and iPhone 5
2013: A7 for iPad Air and iPhone 5s
2014: A8 for iPad Air 2 and iPhone 6
2015: A9 for iPad Pro 12.9” (and delayed 9.7” Pro) and iPhone 6s
2016: A10 for iPhone, then 9 month delay into 2017 for iPad Pro

That last time was really the only year they hit a delay, and it was close to a 2 year cycle for the original iPad Pro. I think its more likely that they will go with A12 given it’ll have been announced and in use for at least a month or so before the iPad Pro gets an update.
 
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