Mac fans have a lot of reasons to be excited about the M3 chip, which will reportedly bring a better speed boost and longer battery life compared to the M2. But according to a new report, we’re going to have to wait a little bit longer to see what the new chip can do.
According to Revegnus (@Tech_Reve) on Twitter, the M3 chip destined for the iPad Pro and next-generation Macs, won’t arrive until next year. Apparently, TSMC, which manufactures the chips, is currently unable to meet Apple’s demand “due to yield issues.”
Revegnus is a “tech enthusiast, semiconductor Geeks [stet]” according to their Twitter bio, and has leaked other reports in the past that have panned out. Revegnus recently tweeted that Apple is working on a 14-inch iPad Pro with an M3 Pro chip for release in 2024.
In February, DigiTimes reported that Apple ordered all of TSMC’s 3nm supply. Apple’s A17 Bionic chip, which will be used in the new iPhone 15 Pro, is rumored to be a 3nm chip, and since Apple’s iPhone cycle hits every fall quarter, Apple and TSMC are likely prioritizing the A17 Bionic manufacturing over the M3.
The delay does help clarify the possible Mac release lineup for the next year. A 15-inch MacBook Air has been rumored for release, so it seems more likely now that it will have an M2 or possibly an M2 Pro. The M2 MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro were released almost a year ago and will stay in the lineup until the M3 is released in 2024. The M2 Mac mini was just released in January and doesn’t need an upgrade right away. The M1 iMac, however, really needs an upgrade–it will be nearly three years old by the time the M3 is released.
As for the iPad, Apple upgraded the iPad Pro with the M2 in October 2022. It could be updated in 2024 not just with an M3, but a lineup shakeup and the introduction of the 14-inch iPad Pro that Revegnus and others have reported.
Apple’s M3 could be the first chip in a personal computer to be made using the 3nm manufacturing process. The move to 3nm increases the transistor density and is an improvement over the current enhanced 5nm process used with the M2. The M3 will offer more processing while having a lower power demand, which could lead to performance increases that are more than the typical increase from year to year.
