Microsoft engineers have published benchmark results showing that a Chromium-based browser using its own rendering engine scores 28.6% higher than Safari on Apple's own Speedometer 3.1 performance test on iOS.
Kyle Pflug, group product manager for the Microsoft Edge Web Platform, published results on Monday comparing a research prototype of Edge built with Apple's BrowserEngineKit framework against Safari running iOS 26.5.1. The Blink-based prototype scored 49.27 versus Safari's 38.3 on Speedometer 3.1, and also outperformed Safari on the JetStream 3 JavaScript benchmark by 13.1% (306.35 vs. 270.9) and on the MotionMark 1.3.1 graphics rendering benchmark by 2.1% (4,773.52 vs. 4,673.68). Pflug described the work as a research prototype rather than a finished product, and the numbers as preliminary results from his own device rather than lab conditions.
Apple requires all browsers on iOS to use WebKit, the engine that powers Safari, meaning browsers like Chrome and Firefox on iPhone are effectively reskinned Safari instances. The EU's Digital Markets Act theoretically changed that in March 2024, requiring Apple to allow alternative browser engines through BrowserEngineKit, yet more than two years later no browser maker has shipped an alternative engine on iOS. Companies cite technical barriers and the requirement to publish any such browser as an entirely separate app from their existing WebKit-based version.
Open Web Advocacy told The Register the results illustrate a 17-year cost to consumers. The group called on the European Commission to open a specification proceeding instructing Apple precisely how it must remove barriers to alternative engines, adding that restricting browser engines allows Apple to limit what the mobile web is capable of and keep businesses dependent on native apps and App Store rules.
Amazon this week is discounting a collection of Beats headphones and speakers ahead of Prime Day, including a low price on the Powerbeats Pro 2. You can get this new 2025 model for $199.95 in all four colors, down from $249.99. This deal on the Powerbeats Pro 2 is being matched at Best Buy, along with a few other Beats deals.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
This sale also includes discounts on products like the Beats Pill, which has hit $99.95 on Amazon, down from $149.95. This is an all-time low price on the speaker.
Additionally, Amazon has the Beats Studio Buds+ for $99.95, down from $169.95. These have up to 9 hours of playback (up to 36 hours with charging case), USB-C, active noise cancellation, transparency mode, and an IPX4 rating for sweat and water resistance.
You'll also find a few steep discounts on over-ear headphones, like the Beats Studio Pro at $169.95, down from $349.99, and some markdowns on Beats iPhone 17 cases.
If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.
Deals Newsletter
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Apple's decision to move Hide My Email to a dedicated "private.icloud.com" domain appears to have the consequence of making it easier for platforms that want to block iCloud aliases to do so.
Apple is unifying the email domains used by Sign in with Apple and iCloud+ Hide My Email under a single private.icloud.com domain later this summer. Sign in with Apple currently uses privaterelay.appleid.com, while Hide My Email uses icloud.com, the same domain as standard iCloud email addresses.
That shared domain has historically made it difficult for services to selectively block disposable iCloud addresses. Blocking icloud.com outright would also block legitimate users with standard Apple email accounts. With the new subdomain, that tradeoff disappears.
@vxdb on X was among the first to flag the implication: "platforms who want to ban iCloud aliases can now do so by banning this new subdomain without affecting all iCloud users." Others online noted that email services, signup flows, and anti-abuse systems will now have a clean, unambiguous target if they choose to restrict alias-generated addresses.
Apple has said that existing addresses on legacy domains will continue to work and that mail will be forwarded with no interruption, so current Hide My Email users won't lose access to their aliases. New addresses generated after the migration, however, will feature the private.icloud.com domain, and it is those addresses that become blockable in isolation for the first time.
Amazon today has the AirPods Pro 3 available for $169.00 in an early Prime Day sale, down from $249.00. This is a new all-time low price on the AirPods Pro 3, beating the previous low by $10.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
This model of the AirPods Pro launched in September 2025 and has 2x better Active Noise Cancellation than the previous generation, better audio quality, a revised fit that's meant to improve comfort and stability, Live Translation for in-person conversations, and heart rate sensing for workouts.
Shoppers should note that this price has been heavily fluctuating on Amazon today, so if you don't see it when you click, there is a chance that it will return soon.
Head to our full Deals Roundup to get caught up with all of the latest deals and discounts that we've been tracking over the past week.
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Interested in hearing more about the best deals you can find in 2026? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season!
macOS 27 Golden Gate removes AFP support, ending Time Machine compatibility with Time Capsule after nearly two decades, but a community project from a Microsoft engineer offers a potential workaround for owners not yet ready to move on.
Apple's Time Capsule was introduced at Macworld Expo in January 2008, combining a Wi-Fi router with NAS-style network storage designed to work in tandem with the Time Machine backup software. Apple officially ended development on the entire AirPort line in April 2018, with the AirPort Express at $99, the AirPort Extreme at $199, and the AirPort Time Capsule at $299, available only while supplies lasted. The lineup sold out entirely by November 2018. Prior to that, Apple had not updated its AirPort products since 2013.
AFP dates back to 1988, when Apple designed a native file-sharing protocol for the Macintosh as part of the AppleTalk networking suite. SMB became the primary file-sharing protocol in OS X 10.9 Mavericks in 2013, and the ability to run an AFP server was removed in macOS 11 Big Sur in 2020.
Apple formally deprecated the AFP client in macOS Sequoia 15.5, and, when macOS 26 Tahoe launched, a warning in System Settings confirmed that AFP support and Time Capsule compatibility would end with macOS 27. As expected, the first developer beta of macOS 27 Golden Gate contains no AFP client at all, ending a protocol with more than 40 years of history in the Apple ecosystem.
All Time Capsule models rely on AFP and SMBv1, the original Server Message Block version from 1987. From macOS 27 onwards, Time Machine requires SMBv2 or SMBv3, which covers modern NAS hardware but rules out every Time Capsule model in its stock form. macOS 27 also enforces stricter network security requirements, including TLS 1.2 as a minimum, which is a bar that Time Capsule hardware cannot meet.
The community response is a GitHub project called TimeCapsuleSMB, created by James Chang, an engineer at Microsoft. Rather than replacing Apple's firmware, it installs a modern Samba build directly onto the Time Capsule. The device runs a Samba 4.24.3 server, advertises itself over Bonjour, and accepts authenticated SMB3 connections, so users can connect via a standard SMB URL in Finder rather than relying on Apple's legacy stack.
Only the fifth-generation Time Capsule tower model from 2013 auto-restarts the Samba server after a reboot. Earlier models require a manual activate command every time the device loses power, meaning backups may silently stop after an outage. It is also worth noting that switching to SMB via TimeCapsuleSMB begins a new Time Machine backup chain, with the new destination treated as a fresh start. There is no published long-term restore testing for the project, so a second backup destination is advisable.
macOS 27 Golden Gate is currently in developer beta, with a public beta due in July and a general release set for September. It is compatible only with Apple silicon Macs, meaning Intel Mac users who stay on macOS 26 can continue using Time Capsule for the foreseeable future. Apple silicon owners who want to upgrade will need a compliant backup target in place first, whether that is a modern NAS, an external drive, or a patched Time Capsule running TimeCapsuleSMB.
Last week, Apple introduced a new discovery feature for the App Store called Personalized Collections, or app recommendations based on individual interests and behavior. Apple pitched the announcement as another way for developers to have their app discovered, but there has already been some pushback from a privacy perspective.
App Store user analytics collected by Apple (Image: Mysk)
The new tailored recommendations can appear on the Apps, Games, and Search tabs, and evolve over time based on a user's app usage and downloads. How Apple does this is through analytics data, but the extent of the information being captured by the company has set off warning sirens amongst some cybersecurity researchers.
Security researchers Mysk say that Apple logs "every tap" in the App Store that a user inputs in order to put together the recommendations. Quoting from a post shared on X (Twitter):
"Now Apple is putting the extensive identifiable analytics they collect in the App Store in action. They record every tap and there's no way to turn it off. They can even calculate your typing speed."
The post was accompanied by the above screenshot. "This is what the App Store sends to Apple when I searched for 'Tim cook,'" said one of the researchers. Responding to a reply, Mysk noted that the screenshot wasn't showing search results, but extensive analytics. "If you don't like Apple Music privacy options, you can stream music from Spotify, but where else can you download apps on the iPhone?" they added.
Mysk said the analytics in the screenshot were included in the personal data dump that individual users can request from Apple via privacy.apple.com.
Is capturing everything you do in the App Store app an intrusion of privacy? Opinions will differ. But there's an argument to be made for Personalized Collections to be opt-in, rather than the all-in feature Apple has rolled out. Let us know your opinions in the comments.
Apple has partnered up with Amazon to make Apple TV available at $5.99 per month for Prime members for a limited time.
Apple TV is available as an add-on subscription through Prime Video in the U.S. This promotional deal lets Prime members sign up to the streaming platform for over 50% off the usual $12.99/month price for up to two months, after which the standard price applies.
The promotion ends on June 26 though, so there are only a few days left to go before it's gone.
Subscribers will have access to Apple TV's full catalog of original content, including hit shows like "Severance," "Ted Lasso," and "The Morning Show," as well as films and live sports events.
Prime members can take advantage of the offer by following this link. Note that subscribers will need to be signed into their Amazon account for the link to work. Prime members can also find the promo deal via the Prime Video app.
WhatsApp is working on a way to let users send text messages that can only be viewed once, similar to the feature already available for photos, videos, and voice notes.
According to WABetaInfo, after typing a message in the chat bar, users will be able to select a new "Send as view once" option by long-pressing the Send button. When the message is sent, the recipient will be able to open the message once and read it before it disappears.
This means that the recipient will not be able to copy, forward, or share the message after receiving it. WhatsApp will also block screenshots and screen recordings to prevent the content from being preserved in any form.
The feature, which is still in development, is said to be coming to individual chats and groups, but it won't be available in channels, where ephemeral messages aren't suitable. WhatsApp is also developing the feature for Android phones.
WABetaInfo notes that the new feature will be welcomed by users who currently use a workaround by adding text to an image and sending it as view-once media.
The option follows another feature that appeared in beta a few weeks ago that causes disappearing messages to vanish based on a countdown that starts only after they've been read. The feature has yet to roll out more broadly.
Visual Intelligence is getting a big upgrade in iOS 27. It's now easier to find than it was before, and there are new Visual Intelligence capabilities. Apple also expanded it to the iPad and the Mac, so you can use the same features across devices.
Camera App
Apple moved Visual Intelligence to the Camera app in iOS 27, and it's accessible through a new Siri Mode that lives with the Photo, Video, and other camera mode options. You can swipe over to Siri Mode and take a picture so Siri can see what you see.
Siri will give you details about whatever you're looking at when you swipe down, and you can ask follow-up questions.
Siri Mode replaces Camera Control as the primary method for accessing Visual Intelligence, but you can still get to it by holding down the Camera Control button.
Smart Suggestions
Siri Mode will suggest relevant actions based on what you're taking a photo of. If you take a photo of a plant, Siri will offer to identify it. If you take a photo of a plate of food, Siri can give you the nutritional information.
Siri Integration
Visual Intelligence is integrated with Siri AI, and Siri can answer questions about what you're looking at. Complex questions were previously handed off to ChatGPT, but that's no longer necessary.
The smarter, more capable version of Siri can do much of what ChatGPT can do, pulling information from the web to answer questions.
New iOS 27 Visual Intelligence Features
Nutritional Insights - You can take a picture of a meal or a food item to check its nutritional value. Siri doesn't tell you specific calories in an item, but it can tell you if what you're eating has nutritional value and what's good or bad about it.
Bill Splitting (U.S. only) - If you take a photo of a restaurant bill, you can split out what you ate and then send money via Apple Cash. Or calculate what everyone owes and request money.
Import Multiple Events - You can import multiple events into the Calendar or Reminders app at one time from a schedule or list.
Import Contacts - You can import contacts from a photo of a business card.
Wallet Passes - You can turn a photo of a barcode from a membership or pass into a Wallet pass.
Visual Intelligence is much more powerful than before because of Siri's ability to search the web for answers. It can read laundry labels and give you clear instructions, look up items and find reviews on the web, identify odd devices or cables and tell you what they're for, scale recipes, read ingredient lists for you to check for allergens, transcribe messy written notes or lists into text, decipher confusing parking signs, offer plant care advice, solve math problems on a worksheet, and whatever else you can think to ask AI to do.
Other Visual Intelligence Capabilities
Visual Intelligence has a long list of things it can be used for, and these options have been available in earlier versions of iOS.
Identify plants, animals, insects, landmarks, art, sculptures, books, and more.
Add items to your calendar from a piece of paper like an event poster or flyer.
Use Google Image Search to find similar images.
Search Etsy, Amazon, Anthropologie, and other apps for an item that you capture with the camera.
Provide details about a business in front of you, like hours of operation.
Translate, summarize, and read text aloud.
Siri App Integration
All of your Visual Intelligence Siri requests are saved in the Siri app so you can revisit them later. The Siri app can be set to retain conversations for a month, a year, or forever.
Visual Intelligence on Other Platforms
Apple expanded Visual Intelligence to iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate, and visionOS 27. On Mac, you can use a Command-Shift-Space keyboard shortcut to access Visual Intelligence and select a part of your display to ask a question about. On iPad, you can access Visual Intelligence by taking a screenshot or swiping up from the lower left corner with Apple Pencil.
On Vision Pro, you can use Visual Intelligence just by looking at something, including physical items around you.
Device Requirements
Visual Intelligence in iOS 27 requires an iPhone 15 Pro or later. For Mac, you need an Apple silicon chip, and on the iPad, you need an Apple silicon chip or the A17 Pro iPad mini.
Nimble this week debuted the SharePower, a USB-C power bank that can be used as a single charger or split into two chargers so it can be shared with a friend.
SharePower is a 10,000mAh power bank, with 5,000mAh available through each side of the device. The two halves attach together magnetically for charging a single smartphone, or come apart to charge two. We were able to test the SharePower before launch to see how it works.
Each side has an included USB-C cable. The left half has a 7-inch braided cable that doubles as a lanyard and it can tuck into the interior when the two halves are connected and the cable isn't in use. The right half of the power bank has a short pop-out USB-C cable. The side with the pop-out cable is nice because it attaches to the bottom of the iPhone and it's compact in size. The longer cable is useful if you need a bit more length when charging.
In our testing, both modules charged at the advertised speeds, but there was a faint electronic sound when charging, regardless of whether one module was in use or both modules were paired. 5,000mAh isn't enough to charge an iPhone 17 Pro Max to full, but the combined 10,000mAh can do so.
When paired, the two halves deliver up to 35W power to fast charge an iPhone, and when separated, each half offers 20W charging. There are two additional USB-C ports, one on each side, so up to four devices can be charged at one time when the power bank is separated, and three when it's combined. 20W is a little slow because the iPhone 17 Pro models need a higher watt charger to fast charge, but it's nice to have the option for splitting the charger if two people need power at once.
There's an LCD display that lets you know the remaining charge when the two halves come together and when they're separated, and it's a clever design. The left half has indicator lights so you can see the battery level when it's separated, and the right half has a percent reading. When the two halves are reunited, the percent reading changes to the combined total instead of just the battery level of the right half. When your device is fast charging, there's a green PD light.
There are smaller 10,000mAh power banks out there, but the dual design of the SharePower stands out. It measures 2.8 inches by 3.1 inches, and it is an inch thick. It weighs 7.6 ounces, and comes with an extra USB-C cable so you can charge it.
Nimble's SharePower is useful for anyone who has run into a situation where multiple people need to charge their iPhones at one time. With hundreds of power banks on the market, it manages to distinguish itself with added flexibility.
Apple today released a new firmware update for the Beats Studio Buds. The firmware, 1B211, addresses a Bluetooth vulnerability.
Apple's security support document for the update says it fixes a bug that could allow an attacker in Bluetooth range to listen through the microphone of the device.
The vulnerability would only be affected if someone was in Bluetooth range and the Studio Buds were not yet paired and seeking pair requests.
The bug was in open source code, and Apple Software was among the affected projects.
Updating the firmware of the Beats Studio Buds can be done by pairing them with an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, putting them on a charger, and keeping them in Bluetooth range of the paired device.
Apple has teamed up with accessory makers to offer chargers, stands, power banks, cables, and more in bright color options like blue, pink, and teal. The splash of color arrives in time for summer in the U.S. and many other countries.
Notably, one of the accessories added to Apple's online store today is the PopSockets Low-Pro, which is the thinnest version of the popular accessory ever. Priced at $39.95 in the U.S., the MagSafe-compatible accessory continues to function as both an iPhone grip and a stand, except this version has a thickness of just 2.5mm.
PopSockets Low-Pro
Other participating brands include Belkin, Herschel, Mophie, Nimble, Scosche, and Twelve South.
Apple also began selling some other accessories through its online store that are not part of this seasonal color refresh, including Logitech's MX Master 4 mouse, Nimble's Podium 3-in-1 wireless charger, Twelve South's PowerBug charger (with Qi 2.2 support), and more, with all of the latest additions listed on Apple's New Product Arrivals page.
Apple is celebrating International Day of Yoga with an Activity Challenge that takes place on Sunday, June 21. To earn the in-app award, Apple Watch owners must record a yoga workout of 10 minutes or more.
Any yoga workout will fulfill the requirement, as long as you select the yoga workout type from the Workout app on the Apple Watch or use an app that adds yoga workouts to the Health app.
Share your practice with the planet on the International Day of Yoga. Record a yoga workout of 10 minutes or more on June 21 to earn this award.
Apple Watch owners who complete the challenge will be rewarded with an award in the Fitness app and a set of animated yoga stickers that can be used in the Messages app.
Apple holds Activity Challenges for various holidays and events throughout the year. Apple previously celebrated Global Running Day on June 3, and will likely have another challenge to celebrate National Parks in August.
Apple today released new firmware for the AirPods Pro 3 and AirPods Pro 2. The firmware has a version number of 8B41, up from 8B40 for the AirPods Pro 3 and 8B39 for the AirPods Pro 2.
There is no word on what's included in the new firmware, but Apple has a support document with limited notes. Most updates are limited to bug fixes and performance improvements.
To get the updated firmware, make sure your AirPods Pro are in range of your iPhone, iPad, or Mac and are connected via Bluetooth.
From there, connect your Apple device to Wi-Fi, put your AirPods in the Charging Case, and connect the Charging Case to power. Keep the case closed and wait at least 30 minutes for the firmware update to install. After that, check the version number and repeat the process if the update hasn't been installed.
Apple also released new 1B211 firmware for the Beats Studio Buds, up from 1B204.
Snap today unveiled Specs, a pair of augmented reality glasses that it describes as a wearable computer built into a pair of see-through glasses.
Specs are made from Swiss TR90 polymer that Snap suggests is "plastic titanium" because of its light weight and durability. The glasses are light enough to be "worn for hours" and two sizes are available. The 47mm frame weighs 132 grams (4.7 ounces), while the 52mm frame weighs 136 grams (4.8 ounces). Prescription lenses can be easily inserted and swapped out for sharing glasses with friends and family.
The AR glasses include cameras and sensors that feed data to AI with contextual understanding. There are two full-color high-resolution cameras, two infrared computer vision cameras, and 6-axis IMUs for inertial sensing. There are two Snapdragon chips inside, with one processor running the lenses, and the other handling computer vision.
Specs have a 51-degree field of view and a stereo waveguide display with automatic tinting for different lighting conditions. The device uses liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) miniature projectors to project images to the display. Snap compares the field-of-view to a 115-inch screen viewed from 10 feet.
Stereo speakers are included for spatial audio, and there's a microphone array for audio input. The glasses have hand tracking capabilities for gesture control, along with voice recognition and support for natural voice commands.
Specs last for up to four hours with mixed use, and there is a custom magnetic charging cable that can charge the glasses while they're being worn. They come with a charging case that supports 20 hours of use. Prior-generation Spectacles from Snap that were limited to developers only offered 45 minutes of battery.
Specs can be used for watching content like movies, videos, and TV shows, casting to a screen, writing on a whiteboard, and using the myriad existing Snapchat lenses. Specs can also connect to a computer, phone, or gaming system over USB-C to be used as a display.
Snap CEO Evan Spiegel introduced the Specs at AWE USA 2026 and showed some of the experiences developers have created with Snap's Lens Studio. Since Specs can use lenses developed for Snapchat, there are already options for placing virtual items, playing mini games, getting DIY help, and more.
Lens Studio is getting agentic development for lenses, and there are developer integrations for Claude Code, Codex, and Cursor. Lenses are able to rely on APIs from OpenAI and Gemini for AI augmented reality experiences.
Specs are priced at $2,195 with a refundable $200 deposit, and they can be pre-ordered today. They're set to launch later this fall in the U.S., UK, and France.
Snap is beating multiple other tech companies to market with AR glasses, including Apple. Apple is developing augmented reality smart glasses with lenses, but the product won't launch for several more years. Apple's first glasses, which will be limited to AI capabilities and no built-in display, won't launch until late 2027.
Apple today provided public beta testers with the second betas of iOS 26.6, iPadOS 26.6, macOS Tahoe 26.6, watchOS 26.6, and tvOS 26.6, with the software coming a day after Apple seeded the betas to developers and three weeks after the first public betas.
After signing up to beta test the software updates on Apple's beta site, public beta testers can download the new software using the Software Update section in the Settings app on each device.
iOS 26.6 has a feature that will let you know when you have blocked too many contacts, but the limit is in the thousands so most users may not ever see the messaging. There are also signs of a new iPhone anti-snatching feature that locks a stolen iPhone when it's grabbed from your hand.
No other major new features have been found in any of the software updates, with Apple likely focusing on bug fixes and security improvements. We're nearing the end of the "26" software cycle, with Apple planning to release iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate, and more this fall.
Schlage today announced that the Sense Pro smart deadbolt it unveiled at CES 2025 will finally be available for purchase in the U.S. and Canada beginning June 29, with U.S. pricing set at $399 and Canadian pricing set at $549. The smart deadbolt will be available at Amazon, The Home Depot, Lowe's, and select other retailers.
Sense Pro utilizes Ultra Wideband technology to allow for hands-free unlocking with a compatible iPhone or Apple Watch model. After adding a digital key to the Apple Wallet app, you can simply approach your door with your iPhone in your pocket or your Apple Watch on your wrist and the door will automatically unlock.
Schlage said the hands-free feature works by calculating speed, trajectory, and motion to unlock the door precisely as you reach your door.
The deadbolt has no keyhole, but it does have a keypad for keyless entry with an access code.
Sense Pro has built-in Wi-Fi, allowing it to be managed remotely through the Schlage Home app. You can lock and unlock the deadbolt from anywhere, manage up to 250 unique access codes, set timed auto-lock and daily locking schedules, and customize lock settings. The deadbolt can also be managed in Apple's Home app.
Hands-free unlocking is available with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later (excluding the Apple Watch SE) running watchOS 11.5 or later, and the iPhone 11 and later (excluding the iPhone SE 2, iPhone SE 3, iPhone 16e, and iPhone 17e) running iOS 18.5 or later.
Matter over Thread support allows the Sense Pro to pair with a Thread-enabled Apple Home hub, including the Apple TV 4K (2nd generation), Apple TV 4K (3rd generation), HomePod (2nd generation), and HomePod mini.
The lock is equipped with disposable batteries that offer up to six months of battery life. A built-in USB-C port can provide temporary power.
Samsung Wallet and Google Wallet support will arrive later this year, as part of the lock's compatibility with Aliro, according to Schlage.
Apple will transition from 2-nanometer chips to 1.4-nanometer chips with the high-end 2028 iPhone models, reports Bloomberg. Chip supplier Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) will make the majority of Apple's A22 Pro chips, but Apple is also considering having Intel make some of them.
The current iPhone 17 models use a third-generation N3P 3-nanometer process. The iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and foldable iPhone expected in September 2026 will be the first to have chips built on a next-generation 2nm process. 2027 chips will also use the 2nm process, and then Apple will upgrade some chips to 1.4nm in 2028.
TSMC has been working on 1.4nm chips for several years, and its A14 node will bring up to 15 percent better performance than chips built on its N2 2nm node. Alternatively, the chips will offer the same performance but with 30 percent power savings.
Every step down in node size comes with higher production costs and limited capacity due to the difficulty of manufacturing the most advanced chips. Powerful and efficient chips from TSMC are in high demand from AI server manufacturers like NVIDIA, leading to a more limited supply for consumer devices. During Apple's last earnings call, CEO Tim Cook said iPhone 17 models had been constrained during the quarter because Apple couldn't get enough A19 and A19 Pro chips from TSMC.
Apple has been aiming to diversify its chip supply chain, and it is rumored to be working with Intel. While Apple previously used Intel-designed chips in Macs, with the new agreement, Intel would make Arm-based chips using Apple chip designs.
Current rumors suggest Intel will make lower-end chips for devices like the iPad and Mac, but Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan is aiming to revitalize Intel's chip manufacturing business by focusing on more advanced process nodes. Intel is developing its 14A node for 1.4nm chips, and it is expected to reach production in 2028. Prior rumors indicate Intel could make non-Pro iPhone chips in 2028.
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PopSockets Low-Pro
