iPhone 15 may be 35% more power efficient with new TSMC 3nm chip

Posted:
in iPhone edited December 2022
As it officially launches mass production of 3nm processors which are expected in the iPhone 15 and new Macs, TSMC has boasted of greater power efficiency, associated with more speed.

iPhone 15 Ultra to have a new curved edge
iPhone 15 Ultra to have a new curved edge


As expected, TSMC held a ceremony on Thursday to mark the official start of production. According to Bloomberg, executives used the event to make claims about what 3nm processors will mean for future devices.

The company's chair, Mark Liu, also spoke of plans for the following generation using a 2nm manufacturing process. Liu referred to 2nm processors as part of a speech saying both that TSMC is confident of the future, and that it will continue to work in Taiwan despite building plants elsewhere.

"The semiconductor industry will grow rapidly over the next decade," he said, "and Taiwan will surely play an even more critical role in the global economy."

TSMC 3nm launch ceremony. Source: Lam Yik Fei/Bloomberg
TSMC 3nm launch ceremony. Source: Lam Yik Fei/Bloomberg


The advantage of 3nm processors over the current 4nm and 5nm ones, is that they can offer better performance, but definitely do so with greater power efficiency. Lui claims that TSMC's new 3nm processors are faster by an unspecified amount, and that it brings 35% more power efficiency.

Historically, each new generation of Apple's A-series processors, has brought a speed increase of between 10% and 25% between generations. Power efficiency increase is harder to quantify, based on all the external factors that impact it.

Lui says that demand for 3nm chips is "very strong," though he did not specify who is buying them. Apple is TSMC's largest customer, accounting for about 26% of the processor firm's revenue in 2021.

Consequently, it's expected that Apple will be a major customer for 3nm chips. Separately, it's recently been reported that Apple will be the first to use TSMC's 3nm processors, though it had also been predicted it would be in a 2022 M2 MacBook Pro.

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 30
    dk49dk49 Posts: 284member
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    waveparticlewatto_cobra9secondkox2twokatmewnubus
  • Reply 2 of 30
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    watto_cobra9secondkox2twokatmew
  • Reply 3 of 30
    Apple should give iPads battery life of 20-30hrs. It would be an awesome upgrade since iPads have gotten 10-12hrs of battery since 2010.
  • Reply 4 of 30
    Apple should give iPads battery life of 20-30hrs. It would be an awesome upgrade since iPads have gotten 10-12hrs of battery since 2010.
    When I got my first iPad in May or June of 2010, I could put it on a bookshelf with a full battery, and come back to it 3 weeks later with 60 to 70% still of the charge left.  I just picked up the new M2 iPad Pro 12.9", and the battery will drain completely dead in under 4 days without use. Very disappointing.
    edited December 2022 twokatmew
  • Reply 5 of 30
    Turn off Power Nap
    watto_cobraviclauyyc
  • Reply 6 of 30
    My 12.9 iPad Pro lasts for several weeks, I’d suggest checking what’s doing the draining under the battery listing in settings. 
    edited December 2022 watto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 30
    dk49dk49 Posts: 284member
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    In terms of battery life, the Apple watch is far behind others. So this move makes complete sense.
    watto_cobra9secondkox2twokatmewblastdoor
  • Reply 8 of 30
    netroxnetrox Posts: 1,504member
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Pretty sure the SoC is already power efficient, it's the combo of radio, heart rate monitoring, and display that drain the most out of the battery. 





     
    9secondkox2twokatmew
  • Reply 9 of 30
    ranson said:
    Apple should give iPads battery life of 20-30hrs. It would be an awesome upgrade since iPads have gotten 10-12hrs of battery since 2010.
    When I got my first iPad in May or June of 2010, I could put it on a bookshelf with a full battery, and come back to it 3 weeks later with 60 to 70% still of the charge left.  I just picked up the new M2 iPad Pro 12.9", and the battery will drain completely dead in under 4 days without use. Very disappointing.
    Disable most background app refreshing will help a lot. 
  • Reply 10 of 30
    XedXed Posts: 2,880member
    dk49 said:
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    In terms of battery life, the Apple watch is far behind others. So this move makes complete sense.
    What actual smart watch has a battery life that far exceeds the Watch Ultra?
    9secondkox2
  • Reply 11 of 30
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    Steve Jobs liked to skate where the puck is going to be. The best way to remain the leader is to keep putting more and more distance between you and the competition. I’m nice you feel like you’ve done enough, danger comes knocking. 

    Good enough isn’t good enough. 

    One of the things that keeps apple ahead is the startup, underdog mentality. Fighting the uphill battle. Not coasting downhill. 

    You’re only ahead until you’re not. In the tech game, adding as much cushion as possible is the way to go. 

    Look at Microsoft they used to be “it” in the tech game. Now they are a meme. That started with the ballmer philosophy of arrogantly believing they were so far on top that no one could touch them. One smartphone later and they were grasping at straws. 

    History lessons are meant to avoid repeating. 
    edited December 2022 nubustwokatmew
  • Reply 12 of 30
    ranson said:
    Apple should give iPads battery life of 20-30hrs. It would be an awesome upgrade since iPads have gotten 10-12hrs of battery since 2010.
    When I got my first iPad in May or June of 2010, I could put it on a bookshelf with a full battery, and come back to it 3 weeks later with 60 to 70% still of the charge left.  I just picked up the new M2 iPad Pro 12.9", and the battery will drain completely dead in under 4 days without use. Very disappointing.

    Weird. My Gen 1 12.9 iPad Pro won’t even do that with a severely degraded battery. You’ve got something going on. Factory reset would likely resolve. 
  • Reply 13 of 30
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    Steve Jobs liked to skate where the puck is going to be. The best way to remain the leader is to keep putting more and more distance between you and the competition. I’m nice you feel like you’ve done enough, danger comes knocking. 

    Good enough isn’t good enough. 

    One of the things that keeps apple ahead is the startup, underdog mentality. Fighting the uphill battle. Not coasting downhill. 

    You’re only ahead until you’re not. In the tech game, adding as much cushion as possible is the way to go. 

    Look at Microsoft they used to be “it” in the tech game. Now they are a meme. That started with the ballmer philosophy of arrogantly believing they were so far on top that no one could touch them. One smartphone later and they were grasping at straws. 

    History lessons are meant to avoid repeating. 
    Guess what, I don't disagree with your arguments or sentiments expressed in this post. But, with respect to the SoC used by Apple watch, I just made an observation on how Apple is dealing with it. Between Series 7 and Series 8, Apple could have improved the SoC used in Apple Watch further. But they chose NOT to do that. The reason for that was simple - the competition is way behind. And the competition has not made any progress or whatsoever even after the launch of Apple watch Series 8 generation. So Apple will pick and choose whenever they feel the need to improve the SoC used in Apple watch. Apple moving to 3nm for watch SoC will eventually happen with Apple doing it on its own schedule. But it won't be anytime soon (say next 1 or 2 years) since competion is not pushing Apple on the watch category.
  • Reply 14 of 30
    danoxdanox Posts: 3,407member
    ranson said:
    Apple should give iPads battery life of 20-30hrs. It would be an awesome upgrade since iPads have gotten 10-12hrs of battery since 2010.
    When I got my first iPad in May or June of 2010, I could put it on a bookshelf with a full battery, and come back to it 3 weeks later with 60 to 70% still of the charge left.  I just picked up the new M2 iPad Pro 12.9", and the battery will drain completely dead in under 4 days without use. Very disappointing.
    Turn it off! the same applies to the iPhone turn it off completely, just turning off the iPad screen isn’t enough.
    edited December 2022
  • Reply 15 of 30
    danoxdanox Posts: 3,407member
    Xed said:
    dk49 said:
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    In terms of battery life, the Apple watch is far behind others. So this move makes complete sense.
    What actual smart watch has a battery life that far exceeds the Watch Ultra?
    None….
  • Reply 16 of 30
    ranson said:
    Apple should give iPads battery life of 20-30hrs. It would be an awesome upgrade since iPads have gotten 10-12hrs of battery since 2010.
    When I got my first iPad in May or June of 2010, I could put it on a bookshelf with a full battery, and come back to it 3 weeks later with 60 to 70% still of the charge left.  I just picked up the new M2 iPad Pro 12.9", and the battery will drain completely dead in under 4 days without use. Very disappointing.
    Did you turn off background app refresh?
    that's the first thing I turn off on all my iOS devices 
    very few apps need that option, in my opinion
  • Reply 17 of 30
    Xed said:
    dk49 said:
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    In terms of battery life, the Apple watch is far behind others. So this move makes complete sense.
    What actual smart watch has a battery life that far exceeds the Watch Ultra?

    Battery Life:

    • Apple Watch Ultra: Up to 3 days
    • Garmin Epix: Up to 10 days
    • Garmin Epix Solar: Up to 17 days
    • Garmin Fenix 7: Up to 18 days
    • Garmin Fenix 7 Solar: Up to 30 days
    • Garmin Enduro 2: Up to 45 days


    Or if we take a look at how the battery life holds up during regular GPS Mode:

    • Apple Watch Ultra: 12 hours
    • Garmin Epix: 42 hours
    • Garmin Fenix: 57 hours
    • Garmin Enduro 2: 150 hours

    https://connectthewatts.com/2022/10/25/apple-watch-ultra-vs-garmin-fenix-7/

    edited December 2022 appleinsideruser
  • Reply 18 of 30
    Xed said:
    dk49 said:
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    In terms of battery life, the Apple watch is far behind others. So this move makes complete sense.
    What actual smart watch has a battery life that far exceeds the Watch Ultra?

    Battery Life:

    • Apple Watch Ultra: Up to 3 days
    • Garmin Epix: Up to 10 days
    • Garmin Epix Solar: Up to 17 days
    • Garmin Fenix 7: Up to 18 days
    • Garmin Fenix 7 Solar: Up to 30 days
    • Garmin Enduro 2: Up to 45 days


    Or if we take a look at how the battery life holds up during regular GPS Mode:

    • Apple Watch Ultra: 12 hours
    • Garmin Epix: 42 hours
    • Garmin Fenix: 57 hours
    • Garmin Enduro 2: 150 hours

    https://connectthewatts.com/2022/10/25/apple-watch-ultra-vs-garmin-fenix-7/

    Because Garmin smartwatch is too lazy helping its users? The battery life really depends on the amount of features available on the smartwatch. 
    Xed
  • Reply 19 of 30
    XedXed Posts: 2,880member
    Xed said:
    dk49 said:
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    In terms of battery life, the Apple watch is far behind others. So this move makes complete sense.
    What actual smart watch has a battery life that far exceeds the Watch Ultra?

    Battery Life:

    • Apple Watch Ultra: Up to 3 days
    • Garmin Epix: Up to 10 days
    • Garmin Epix Solar: Up to 17 days
    • Garmin Fenix 7: Up to 18 days
    • Garmin Fenix 7 Solar: Up to 30 days
    • Garmin Enduro 2: Up to 45 days


    Or if we take a look at how the battery life holds up during regular GPS Mode:

    • Apple Watch Ultra: 12 hours
    • Garmin Epix: 42 hours
    • Garmin Fenix: 57 hours
    • Garmin Enduro 2: 150 hours

    https://connectthewatts.com/2022/10/25/apple-watch-ultra-vs-garmin-fenix-7/

    And my Watch Ultra will last a lot more than 3 days if I put it in a mode that will only let it tell time. But that’s now a dumb watch, and isn’t even close to being the feature rich device that I choose to buy, now is it.

    PS: I won’t claim your purposely lying, but you have a lot of incorrect info in your list.
    edited December 2022
  • Reply 20 of 30
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 8,019member
    Xed said:
    dk49 said:
    dk49 said:
    Apple please bring the 3nm chip to the Apple watch. It will double its battery life!
    Apple's watch SoC is far ahead (at least 4-5 years) of anything that is available in competing watches, I doubt Apple would move to 3nm chip for Apple watch anytime soon.
    In terms of battery life, the Apple watch is far behind others. So this move makes complete sense.
    What actual smart watch has a battery life that far exceeds the Watch Ultra?
    Quite a few I believe but I think you're looking at things from a slightly skewed perspective. 

    Anyone who values battery life as a key factor is unlikely to consider an Apple Watch but that shorter battery life brings more features across the board. 

    AFAIK, no current smartwatch really let's you have your cake and eat it when it comes to features and long battery life.

    From what I've seen, it's a toss up between one or the other. I'm no expert here though but I do know there are actual watches that outdo the ultra on battery life. 

    I don't really need a smartwatch but mine came free and there is no way I'd be happy with short periods between charging. 

    Of course, there will be those who are happy to run the battery down and charge frequently in return for more features. 

    muthuk_vanalingam
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