In the iPhone 13, Apple has already improved the autonomy of the entire range. Now it looks like the company wants to repeat the game on the iPhone 14. An improvement that is directly linked to Samsung’s discontinuation of 5G chips to continue using those of TSMC, better optimized and with lower consumption.
A smaller, more efficient chip
The consumption of the 5G connection is more than considerable in any phone. This is the main reason why mmWave chips, with even higher consumption, are only available in the United States, where the network is already somewhat rolled out. Now, with what will be the third generation of iPhones to support 5G, Apple plans to change the chips.
According to the Economic Daily News, from Taiwan, TSMC has replaced Samsung in the manufacture of all 5G chips for the iPhone 14. These chips, according to the sources cited, will use a 6nm architecturewhich has already been announced in 2021.
“Analysts also predicted that the market will not focus on upgrading 5G chips this year, but the RF transceiver chips required by 5G or WiFi 6/6E will significantly increase demand. Boosting demand demand for an advanced semiconductor manufacturing process”.
A chip with low consumption and which, being smaller, leaves more space for a larger battery.
Given this news, it is quite possible that we think that there were rumors that the iPhone 13 would have support for Wi-Fi 6E, something that ultimately did not happen. A support that, as we see now, could well reach the 14th generation iPhone.
“According to information from last year’s TSMC Technical Forum, the 6nm RF process significantly reduces the power consumption and area of 5G RF transceivers under the 6GHz and mmWave bands, considering the performance, features and battery life required by consumers Improved WiFi performance and power efficiency 6/6ths support.
As we have already said, 5G represents an important source of consumption for our iPhone. At the same time, the space occupied by the chip itself has a key impact on the size of the phone’s battery. Thus, a Decreased size and increased efficiency It should allow Apple to significantly improve the battery life of iPhones.
Since the first iPhone, the battery has gotten better and better, but there comes a time when it’s the optimization of both the software and the hardware that comes with it that makes the difference. We’ve seen it in Macs with Apple silicon, where the same battery – because it no longer fit – now lasts many more hours. Rumors point to something similar coming to the iPhone and that’s without losing sight of the fact that Apple would develop its own 5G chips.
Picture | Frederic Lipfert
