TSMC will manufacture Apple’s upcoming “M2 Pro” and “M3” chips using its 3nm process, says Taiwanese industry publication DigiTimes (via MacRumors).
“Apple reportedly has booked TSMC capacity for its upcoming 3nm M3 and M2 Pro processors,” said DigiTimes, in a report about the battle between chipmakers like TSMC and Samsung to secure 3nm chip orders. TSMC will begin volume production of 3nm chips in the second half of 2022.
As noted by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the M2 Pro is expected to power the 14-inch MacBook Pro, 16-inch MacBook Pro, and a high-end Mac mini. Gurman expects the M3 chip to be used in an updated 13-inch MacBook Air, an all-new 15-inch MacBook Air, a new iMac, and possibly a new 12-inch MacBook.
The M2 Max would likely also be manufactured based on a 3nm process, making it suitable for the highest-end MacBook Pro configurations, and possibly a new Mac Studio, if Apple chooses to update that computer in the near future.
If the 3nm report is accurate, the leap in performance between the M2 Pro and M2 could be even greater than what we saw between the M1 Pro and M1. However, we won’t know the exact performance bump until the new chips hit the market.