More iPhone parts likely to be produced by Samsung

Jun 26, 2018 06:45 GMT  ·  By

Samsung is already making the OLED display used on the iPhone X, and according to a recent report, the partnership with Apple could be further expanded next year with the production of iPhone chips.

While TSMC will be in charge of manufacturing the A12 processor to be used on 2018 iPhones, Samsung wants to win a new production contract next year, and the company is making changes that could easily appeal to Apple.

One of them, according to a report from Digitimes, is the use of Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography, or EUV, a technology that TSMC is only now adopting with a deadline set to 2019. But while TSMC is carefully embracing this system for its 7nm+ production process and expects to use it next year when it makes the switch to 5nm, Samsung is speeding up the integration for two different reasons.

First, the company wants to win back orders from Apple for the production of 2019 iPhones, a move that would generate a substantial increase in revenues, and second, it wants to prepare it for the production of chips that would be used on the upcoming Galaxy S10.

Special foundry quotes

The same report indicates that rushing things, however, is a Russian roulette, as integrating EUV in the 7nm process leads to yield rate issues and quality risks. This is one of the reasons TSMC is taking everything one step at a time, but Samsung hopes to score big by addressing all these concerns early.

At the same time, it’s believed that Samsung hopes to increase its client portfolio with several big names in the industry. The company has also reduced foundry prices by as much as 20 percent as it wants to sign deals with Qualcomm, Nvidia, and Apple, the cited source notes.

And yet, this decision hasn’t produced any noticeable results, as most of these companies are looking into the offering carefully given the said risks.

Samsung had previously manufactured the A9 chip for Apple back in September 2015 when the Cupertino-based firm launched the iPhone 6s.