When it comes to manufacturing the chipsets for Apple’s iOS devices, the task used to fall squarely into Samsung’s lap, but given that Apple and Samsung had a bit of a legal falling out, we have seen the Cupertino company turn to other manufacturers such as TSMC for their chipset manufacturing needs.
According to a recent report, word on the street has it that TSMC will be responsible for manufacturing up to 70% of Apple’s A9 and A9X chipsets, with the rest presumably being made by Samsung. The A9 is expected to make its way into 2015’s iPhone and the A9X will be introduced to 2015’s iPads.
This seems to corroborate a rumor at the start of the year which suggested that TSMC would be the company responsible for the production of the A9. However a follow-up rumor suggested that Samsung would be producing the bulk of Apple’s A9 chipsets instead. This was backed up by another rumor that said that Samsung would be taking the lead.
This back and forth seems to be pretty common so it’s best taken with a grain of salt for now. For all we know perhaps Samsung’s yields were not up to Apple’s standards which is why TSMC has taken over, but in case we will be keeping our eyes out for more information regarding the production of Apple’s A9/A9X chipsets.