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DigiTimes is back at the rumor mill again. This time, the tech blog is reporting that three different suppliers are on tap to package Apple’s upcoming A8 processor. Additionally, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has purportedly been commissioned to take charge of production of the system-on-chip (SoC), which will be used in the next generation of mobile products from Apple.
While DigiTimes is, again, claiming that TSMC will produce Apple’s new chipset, AppleInsider points out that the two have never become business partners in the past. All throughout the patent lawsuit antics with Apple and Samsung, the former has continued to produce all of the mobile processors for the iPhone and iPad.
Unnamed sources told DigiTimes that Amkor Technology and STATS ChipPAC would each generated 40 percent of the total packaging orders from Apple. The remaining 20 percent will be filled by Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE).
Sources also claim that Apple’s A8 chip will be a package-on-package (PoP) SoC comprising processors and mobile DRAM into a single package.
This could potentially mean that Apple would increase the amount of DRAM from one to two GB. While the graphics are already remarkably fast in current-generation iOS devices thanks to the 64-bit A7 chip, adding twice the DRAM would significantly improve speed and performance of mobile gadgets.
Of course, all of this is dependent on whether the rumor is true or not. While it may not be too likely that someone other than Samsung will produce the A8 chip, the idea of added DRAM makes sense. How much better can Apple’s processor chip get than the A7?
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