14 DAY TRIAL // A new variant of the A5 Apple SoC (system on a chip) has been discovered in the revised third-generation Apple TV released a few months ago. The silicon could be crafted by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) on a 28-nm process.
For months it was believed that Apple’s latest breed of set-top boxes housed an A5X, dual-core SoC, though a recent teardown reveals that Apple has actually equipped the television product with a die-shrunk A5, which boasts a single CPU core.
The confirmation comes via MacRumors, which reports that “the tweaked third-generation Apple TV does not contain an A5X chip. Instead, it contains an A5 chip like its predecessor, although the new chip is considerably smaller than the previous one.”
Presumably manufactured by TSMC on a 28-nanometer process, the new A5 chip measures just 6x6 millimeters, whereas the original version of the A5 SoC was built on a 45-nanometer process, measuring 10.09 mm by 12.15 mm, the rumor site reports.
There was even one version of the A5 which was 41% smaller, at 8.19 mm by 8.68 mm. That chip can be found in some early third-gen Apple TVs and the iPad 2. This new chip is considerably smaller than that one as well.
According to the same report, “it is very possible that the company is piloting a 28-nanometer process from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) for this new chip.”
That’s not to say this should act as confirmation that Apple has struck a deal with the Taiwanese foundry. In all fairness, Apple could still be buying A5 chips from Samsung, which is moving to a 28-nanometer process in its Austin, Texas-based fab.
TSMC is regarded as the primary candidate for producing Apple’s next-generation A7 chips.