Apple M2 chip to enter mass production later this year; will be built on TSMC’s 3nm process: Report

Earlier this week, Apple unveiled the successor to its very own silicon M1 – the M2. The M2 comes a year and a half after the introduction of the Apple M1 in 2020. The new M2 chip will power an all-new MacBook Air introduced at the same event, and even the 13-inch MacBook Pro from 2020 is getting the new chip. After the introduction of the M2, we expect Apple to announce a more powerful version of the chip, M2 Pro, which according to analyst Jeff Pu of Haitong Intl Tech Research, will be entering mass production later this year.
Apple’s M2 Pro chip will be more efficient than the M1 Pro
Unlike the M1 and M2, which are built on a 5nm process node, the M2 Pro would be manufactured on a 3nm process. And TSMC remains Apple’s choice for M2 Pro. As per some earlier reports, the M2 Pro will have a total of twelve cores comprising eight performance and four efficiency cores. Meanwhile, M1 Pro has two fewer efficiency cores with a total of ten cores.
Apple is reported to be working on an M2 Pro powered Mac mini for quite some time now while also working on other powerful chips. However, Pu mentions an “Apple’s in-house server”, referencing the yet to be announced refreshed Mac Pro. The analyst also suggests that a new iPad with a 3nm chip is under development.
Apple mixed reality headset is coming in 2023
We did not get to see either the headset or the much-rumoured realityOS at this year’s WWDC. But as per rumours, the headset is coming next year, and Pu corroborates multiple reports of the mixed reality headset launching in 2023. As per Pu, the headset will be announced after the Chinese New Year, entering mass production in February 2023.
Pu also corroborates the earlier reports of the iPhone 15 Pro having a periscope lens. He further suggests that the 2023 iPhone models will come with an in-house 5G modem.