Taiwanese Companies Secure Packaging Orders For Apple's A8 Processor
If the hit-and-miss publication DigiTimes has it right, a handful of Taiwanese companies have recently secured packaging orders for Apple’s next-generation mobile processor, the “Apple A8.” Based on the timeframe offered by the report, it’s estimated that as with previous generations, Apple’s forthcoming iPhone handsets and iPad tablets will reach Apple Store shelves in fall.
DigiTimes’ most recent report claims that three Taiwan-based companies have obtained packaging orders for the Apple A8. Amkor Technology and STATS ChipPAC are said to have secured 40 percent each of orders, and the remaining 20 percent has been awarded to Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE), “according to industry sources,” the publication adds. DigiTimes goes on to explain that the Apple A8 will mirror the A7 in terms of design:
Apple’s A8 chip will be a package-on-package (PoP) SoC solution comprising processors and mobile DRAM in a single package, said the sources.
This combination of CPU and DRAM “in a single package” makes for enhanced mobile performance, while at the same time keeping power consumption low.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has been awarded foundry orders for the next-generation processor, DigiTimes notes, and the manufacturer is also said to have “secured wafer bumping orders for the processor as part of its turnkey solution,” too.
Apple might have switched to using TSMC for its mobile processor production, but for now at least, the Cupertino, Calif. company is still said to be relying on rival Samsung for a proportion of orders, too. In fact, despite previous analysis indicating that Apple is hoping to move away from the South Korean giant, a recent report claimed that the two companies have signed off on an Apple A9 processor deal for 2015. Apple sure is having a hard time breaking up with Samsung, as we’ve said before.
DigiTimes adds that based on timeframes supplied by industry sources, we can expect the next-generation iPhones and iPads to appear in fall. This is a sensible prediction, even if experts are so far undecided on the matter.
We’ll keep you updated with further information as we receive it.
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