3nm M2 Pro Chip for MacBook Pro Reportedly Entering Production Later This Year

TSMC will begin production of 3nm chips for Apple by the end of 2022, according to a report this week from Taiwan's Commercial Times. A separate report from the publication claimed that TSMC will begin mass production of 3nm chips in September.

M2 Pro and Max Feature
The report, citing industry insiders, claims that the M2 Pro chip may be the first to use TSMC's advanced 3nm process. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously claimed that Apple plans to use the M2 Pro chip in the next 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models and a high-end Mac mini, which could be announced later this year or in the first half of next year.

Apple's A17 Bionic chip for next year's iPhone 15 Pro models and the M3 chip, suitable for future MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro models, will also be manufactured based on TSMC's 3nm process, according to the Commercial Times.

DigiTimes also previously reported that TSMC would begin volume production of 3nm chips for Apple in the second half of 2022, including the M2 Pro chip.

Apple transitioning from TSMC's 5nm process to its 3nm process would naturally result in faster performance and improved power efficiency for future Macs and iPhones, which could contribute to longer battery life. The high-end Mac mini and the Mac Pro tower are the only current Macs that have yet to switch over to Apple silicon chips.

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro 14 & 16"
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

Top Rated Comments

JPack Avatar
23 months ago

No no, some user here, said to forget any 3nm until later next year 2023
I think even the M2 Max will be under 3nm, not just the M2 pro
TSMC CEO said not to expect revenue from 3nm until 2023, which means it won’t ship to customers until then. The wafer cycle time is more than 3 months, so even if TSMC started today, they wouldn’t be able to ship packaged and tested chips until next year.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cocky jeremy Avatar
23 months ago
Bring back the 17" MacBook Pro!
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gpat Avatar
23 months ago
The Macbook Pro is the Mac for which Apple has been showing the most commitment lately, in my opinion.
They really want to win back the creator audience after the 2016-era fiasco.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iAFC Avatar
23 months ago
That's the one I'm waiting for, in a purple iMac hopefully!
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
23 months ago
Nice to see it is on track. That's always great news.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JPack Avatar
23 months ago

Love when people say things like: "never, no chance, not gonna happen etc." That is a recipe for failure from the start.

In fact, if Intel dropped and TSCM has capacity then it may as well be this year. However, I would assume that M2 Mini and Mac Pro will come first so not sure Apple will want to throw MBP in the mix too. Seeing that Covid messed up the timing for Apple (and others) one could easily expect anything at this point.
TSMC CEO literally said it won’t be this year. It’s not about capacity. The R&D of N3 process was delayed. Mass production of a new process typically starts in the first half of the year. N3 hasn’t started today. Given wafer cycle times take more than 3 months, there is no chance of 3nm shipping this year.

Intel CEO is visiting TSMC this month because they want to postpone Meteor Lake due to design delays. But TSMC wants to continue as planned because they have the capacity.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

ChatGPT for Mac

OpenAI Announces ChatGPT App for Mac, GPT-4 for Free, and More

Monday May 13, 2024 10:43 am PDT by
At its Spring Update event, OpenAI announced that it will be releasing a desktop app for the Mac, as seen in the screenshot below. The app will be rolling out to ChatGPT Plus subscribers starting today, ahead of a wider launch "in the coming weeks." "With a simple keyboard shortcut (Option + Space), you can instantly ask ChatGPT a question," OpenAI's press release says. In addition, Voice...
iOS 17

Apple Releases iOS 17.5 With Cross-Platform Tracking Detection, EU App Downloads From Websites and More

Monday May 13, 2024 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5, major updates to the iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 operating system updates that came out last September. The 17.5 updates come more than two months after the launch of iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4. iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. In the European Union, ...
apple tv 4k red image

Apple Releases tvOS 17.5

Monday May 13, 2024 10:01 am PDT by
Apple today released tvOS 17.5, the fifth update update to the tvOS 17 operating system that came out last September. tvOS 17.5 comes two months after the release of tvOS 17.4. tvOS 17.5 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Go to System > Software Update to get the new software. ‌Apple TV‌ owners who have automatic software updates activated will be upgraded to ...
iOS 17

Troubling iOS 17.5 Bug Reportedly Resurfacing Old Deleted Photos

Wednesday May 15, 2024 5:29 am PDT by
There are concerning reports on Reddit that Apple's latest iOS 17.5 update has introduced a bug that causes old photos that were deleted – in some cases years ago – to reappear in users' photo libraries. After updating their iPhone, one user said they were shocked to find old NSFW photos that they deleted in 2021 suddenly showing up in photos marked as recently uploaded to iCloud. Other...
CarPlay Sound Recognition

Apple Previews Three New CarPlay Features Coming With iOS 18

Wednesday May 15, 2024 9:18 am PDT by
Apple today previewed new accessibility features coming with iOS 18 later this year, and this includes some new options for CarPlay. Apple highlighted three new features coming to CarPlay: Voice Control: This feature will allow users to navigate CarPlay and control apps with just their voice. Color Filters: This feature will make the CarPlay interface visually easier to use for...
macos sonoma 4

Apple Releases macOS Sonoma 14.5 With Apple News+ Improvements

Monday May 13, 2024 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sonoma 14.5, the fifth update to the macOS Sonoma operating system that launched last September. macOS Sonoma 14.5 comes more than two months after the launch of macOS Sonoma 14.4. The ‌‌‌‌‌macOS Sonoma‌‌‌ 14.5 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Settings. There's also a macOS 13.6.7...