3nm M2 Pro Chip for MacBook Pro Reportedly Entering Production Later This Year

TSMC will begin production of 3nm chips for Apple by the end of 2022, according to a report this week from Taiwan's Commercial Times. A separate report from the publication claimed that TSMC will begin mass production of 3nm chips in September.

M2 Pro and Max Feature
The report, citing industry insiders, claims that the M2 Pro chip may be the first to use TSMC's advanced 3nm process. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously claimed that Apple plans to use the M2 Pro chip in the next 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models and a high-end Mac mini, which could be announced later this year or in the first half of next year.

Apple's A17 Bionic chip for next year's iPhone 15 Pro models and the M3 chip, suitable for future MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro models, will also be manufactured based on TSMC's 3nm process, according to the Commercial Times.

DigiTimes also previously reported that TSMC would begin volume production of 3nm chips for Apple in the second half of 2022, including the M2 Pro chip.

Apple transitioning from TSMC's 5nm process to its 3nm process would naturally result in faster performance and improved power efficiency for future Macs and iPhones, which could contribute to longer battery life. The high-end Mac mini and the Mac Pro tower are the only current Macs that have yet to switch over to Apple silicon chips.

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro 14 & 16"
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
iphone 14 lineup

Cellebrite Unable to Unlock iPhones on iOS 17.4 or Later, Leak Reveals

Thursday July 18, 2024 4:18 am PDT by
Israel-based mobile forensics company Cellebrite is unable to unlock iPhones running iOS 17.4 or later, according to leaked documents verified by 404 Media. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the capabilities of the company's mobile forensics tools and highlight the ongoing security improvements in Apple's latest devices. The leaked "Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix" obtained by 404 Media...
tinypod apple watch

TinyPod Turns Your Apple Watch Into an iPod

Wednesday July 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
If you have an old Apple Watch and you're not sure what to do with it, a new product called TinyPod might be the answer. Priced at $79, the TinyPod is a silicone case with a built-in scroll wheel that houses the Apple Watch chassis. When an Apple Watch is placed inside the TinyPod, the click wheel on the case is able to be used to scroll through the Apple Watch interface. The feature works...
bsod

Crowdstrike Says Global IT Outage Impacting Windows PCs, But Mac and Linux Hosts Not Affected

Friday July 19, 2024 3:12 am PDT by
A widespread system failure is currently affecting numerous Windows devices globally, causing critical boot failures across various industries, including banks, rail networks, airlines, retailers, broadcasters, healthcare, and many more sectors. The issue, manifesting as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), is preventing computers from starting up properly and forcing them into continuous recovery...
New MacBook Pros Launching Tomorrow With These 4 New Features 2

M5 MacBook Models to Use New Compact Camera Module in 2025

Wednesday July 17, 2024 2:58 am PDT by
Apple in 2025 will take on a new compact camera module (CCM) supplier for future MacBook models powered by its next-generation M5 chip, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Writing in his latest investor note on unny-opticals-2025-business-momentum-to-benefit-509819818c2a">Medium, Kuo said Apple will turn to Sunny Optical for the CCM in its M5 MacBooks. The Chinese optical lens company...

Top Rated Comments

JPack Avatar
25 months ago

No no, some user here, said to forget any 3nm until later next year 2023
I think even the M2 Max will be under 3nm, not just the M2 pro
TSMC CEO said not to expect revenue from 3nm until 2023, which means it won’t ship to customers until then. The wafer cycle time is more than 3 months, so even if TSMC started today, they wouldn’t be able to ship packaged and tested chips until next year.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cocky jeremy Avatar
25 months ago
Bring back the 17" MacBook Pro!
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gpat Avatar
25 months ago
The Macbook Pro is the Mac for which Apple has been showing the most commitment lately, in my opinion.
They really want to win back the creator audience after the 2016-era fiasco.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iAFC Avatar
25 months ago
That's the one I'm waiting for, in a purple iMac hopefully!
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
25 months ago
Nice to see it is on track. That's always great news.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JPack Avatar
25 months ago

Love when people say things like: "never, no chance, not gonna happen etc." That is a recipe for failure from the start.

In fact, if Intel dropped and TSCM has capacity then it may as well be this year. However, I would assume that M2 Mini and Mac Pro will come first so not sure Apple will want to throw MBP in the mix too. Seeing that Covid messed up the timing for Apple (and others) one could easily expect anything at this point.
TSMC CEO literally said it won’t be this year. It’s not about capacity. The R&D of N3 process was delayed. Mass production of a new process typically starts in the first half of the year. N3 hasn’t started today. Given wafer cycle times take more than 3 months, there is no chance of 3nm shipping this year.

Intel CEO is visiting TSMC this month because they want to postpone Meteor Lake due to design delays. But TSMC wants to continue as planned because they have the capacity.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)