Leaked: iPhone 17 Will 3nm Chip; iPhone 18 May Use 2nm Ones
iPhone 16 seriesis just hitting the shelves around the world and rumors are already making rounds about the iPhone 17 and even iPhone 18 series.Ming-Chi Kuo, an Apple analyst, says iPhone 17 series will use 3nm chips from TSMC while some pro iPhone 18 models may use 2nm chips.
The iPhone 17 models are slated for release next year in 2025 while iPhone 18 won’t hit the market until 2026. There are also credible leaks that Apple is working on replacing the Plus variant with a slightly more powerful, slimmer, and costlieriPhone 17 Air model.
Why it Matters?
3nm and 2nm are advanced manufacturing processes used in mobile chipset production. These numbers refer to the size of the transistors within the chip. Smaller transistor sizes allow for more transistors to be packed into a given area, which leads to several benefits:
Some devices that are already running 3nm chips are iPhone 15 Pro models (A17 Pro chip) and the M3 series MacBooks. So what did Apple use in the iPhone 16 series? Well, the iPhone series powered byA18 and A18 Pro chipsare using a second generation of 3nm node chips that will further pave the way for 2nm node chips. The reason not all iPhone 18 models may feature a 2nm chip is their high cost of production.
TSMC, a leading semiconductor manufacturer, has already introduced enhanced versions of its 3nm process – N3E and N3P. These improved processes offer better performance and power efficiency. Additionally, TSMC is developing other 3nm variants including N3X for high-performance computing and N3AE for automotive applications.
Gaurav Bidasaria
Gaurav is an editor here at TechWiser but also contributes as a writer. He has more than 10 years of experience as a writer and has written how-to guides, comparisons, listicles, and in-depth explainers on Windows, Android, web, and cloud apps, and the Apple ecosystem.
He loves tinkering with new gadgets and learning about new happenings in the tech world.
He has previously worked on Guiding Tech, Make Tech Easier, and other prominent tech blogs and has over 1000+ articles that have been read over 50 million times.
