Apple's decision to delay use of TSMC's 2nm node until 2026 based on wafer prices
Apple has been accused of being many things but being cheap is not one of them. Originally, rumors called for Apple to have the application processors for this year's iPhone 17 series produced by TSMC using its new 2nm node. However, it appears that the cost of using TSMC's 2nm node this year to build the A19 and A19 Pro chipsets has led Apple to decide to have TSMC use its third-gen 3nm node (N3P) to manufacture the processors powering the 2025 iPhone line.
In other words, thanks to the cost of using 2nm this year to build the A19 and A19 Pro chipsets, Apple will delay the use of 2nm chipsets for the iPhone until the iPhone 18 series in 2026 which will be powered by the A20 and A20 Pro application processors. Part of the issue is the cost of the silicon wafers used to build the chips which, at $30,000 per wafer, runs into plenty of money.
The process node used to build a chip is important because lower process nodes mean smaller transistors and that means more transistors can be shoehorned inside a chip. The higher the transistor count, the more powerful and or energy-efficient that chip is. Also important is the transistor density which measures the number of transistors that fit inside a given area of a chip. A higher transistor density leads to increased performance, less power consumption, and more functionality for a chip.
The 3nm A18 Pro application processor powers the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. | Image credit-PhoneArena
Compared to its 3nm chips, TSMC's 2nm node will increase transistor density by 15%, increase performance by 15% at the same power consumption, and reduce power consumption by 24% to 35% at the same performance level. As we've discussed before, TSMC's 2nm node includes the use of gate-all-around (GAA) transistors which cover the channel on all four sides thanks to the use of vertically placed horizontal nanosheets. This leads to reduced current leakage and improves the drive current to enhance the performance and energy efficiency of a chip.
To save money, Apple could end up having TSMC build the A20 AP for the non-Pro iPhone 18 models using its 3nm node and debut the 2nm node with the A20 Pro AP only. The latter would be found under the hoods of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
Considering that the vast majority of iPhone users have no idea which application processor is powering their phones and most don't care, delaying the implementation of 2nm silicon on the iPhone by one year could help Apple save some money. And since we don't anticipate any application processors for Android smartphones being produced using 2nm until 2027, Apple should still be able to brag about the iPhone 18 series being the first smartphones powered by a 2nm processor in 2026 just as it did with 3nm in 2023 (iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max), 5nm in 2020 (iPhone 12 series), and 7nm in 2018 (iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max).
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