14 DAY TRIAL // Increasing tension between Apple and Samsung has prompted the Cupertino-based tech giant to switch to contract fab Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company to build its next-generation A6 chip.
Samsung is the company contracted by Apple to build the ARM chips found inside the iPhone 4, iPod touch 4th generation, and iPad.
The A5, currently only found in the iPad 2 but likely present in the next-gen iPhone 5, is also custom manufactured by Samsung following Apple’s guidelines.
That’s all about to change, according to Ars Technica.
The technology site quotes a certain Dan Heyler, semiconductor analyst with Merrill Lynch in Taipei, who reportedly had a chat on the topic with the China-based Commercial Times on Friday.
He reportedly told the Chinese newspaper that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) will most likely be producing the "A6" processors for Apple in 2012, when newer versions of the company’s iOS devices are expected to emerge.
Intel is also touted as a possible candidate for the job, but a remote one at that.
As noted above, the move is undoubtedly related to the legal spat between the two companies.
Apple earlier this year sued the Korea-based electronics company over similarities between their products, namely the iPhone and various Samsung cell phones.
Samsung fired back with patent suits, and the fight has been on ever since.
Most recently, Apple filed suit against Samsung in the latter’s home land.
"We have filed a lawsuit against Samsung with the Seoul Central District Court," Steve Park, a spokesman for Apple Korea said.
Apple Korea added in a statement that it was "no coincidence that Samsung's latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad, from the shape of the hardware to the user interface and even the packaging.”
"This kind of blatant copying is wrong, and we need to protect Apple's intellectual property when companies steal our ideas," the statement read.