By Emmanuel Ogbodo
The iPhone 16 lineup is expected to launch in September. In addition to the usual display, camera, and hardware upgrades, generative AI features, driven by Apple Intelligence, are likely to be highlighted. Anticipating high demand, Apple is reportedly mass-producing up to 100 million A18 chipsets for the four models.
Despite predictions from analysts like Ming-Chi Kuo suggesting the iPhone 16 family may lack compelling features and see a decline in shipments, China Times reports that Apple’s estimated sales for the new lineup this year range from 90 million to 100 million units. This indicates that TSMC, Apple’s foundry partner, will supply up to 100 million A18 units. It’s worth noting that Apple will unveil two chipsets this year, with the A18 powering the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus.
The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are expected to feature the A18 Pro, offering slightly better performance than the base version. Similar to the M4 chip in the latest 11-inch and 13-inch OLED iPad Pro models, Apple may use TSMC’s 3nm ‘N3E’ process for improved power efficiency and performance. Earlier rumours suggest the A18 will have a more powerful Neural Engine than the M4, enhancing generative AI capabilities.
One potential limitation of the iPhone 16 series is the reported 8GB of RAM across all four models, which may be insufficient for running generative AI features entirely on-device. Both the A18 and A18 Pro might have larger die sizes to support an upgraded Neural Engine and increased cache, but the 6-core GPU configuration might remain the same as the A17 Pro, potentially limiting graphical performance.
