Apple's Upcoming M2 Pro Chip for High-End MacBook Pro and Mac Mini Will Reportedly Be 3nm

[MacRumors]

TSMC will manufacture Apple's upcoming "M2 Pro" and "M3" chips based on its 3nm process, according to Taiwanese industry publication DigiTimes.

"Apple reportedly has booked TSMC capacity for its upcoming 3nm M3 and M2 Pro processors," said DigiTimes, in a report focused on competition between chipmakers like TSMC and Samsung to secure 3nm chip orders. As expected, the report said TSMC will begin volume production of 3nm chips in the second half of 2022.

In his latest newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said he expects the M2 Pro to be used in the 14-inch MacBook Pro, 16-inch MacBook Pro, and a high-end Mac mini. As for the M3, Gurman expects the chip to be used in an updated 13-inch MacBook Air, an all-new 15-inch MacBook Air, a new iMac, and potentially a new 12-inch MacBook.

In all likelihood, the M2 Max would also be manufactured based on a 3nm process in this scenario. That chip would be suitable for the highest-end MacBook Pro configurations, and the Mac Studio if Apple chooses to update that computer within the next year or so.

While it was widely expected that the M3 would be 3nm, it is more notable that the M2 Pro might be as well, given that the standard M2 chip that debuted in the new MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro remains built based on TSMC's 5nm process. Both the M1 and M1 Pro chips share the same process, so the M2 and M2 Pro being built on different processes would represent a change of course for Apple silicon in the Mac.

Vadim Yuryev, co-host of the YouTube channel Max Tech, has adamantly expressed his opinion that the M2 Pro will indeed be 3nm in a series of tweets over the last few weeks. In the past, Yuryev accurately revealed that the M1 Ultra chip in the Mac Studio would effectively be two M1 Max chips connected as a singular chip.

If the 3nm report is accurate, the performance delta between the M2 Pro and M2 could be even greater than between the M1 Pro and M1. However, it's worth tempering expectations until any additional reports corroborate the M2 Pro chip being 3nm.

Article Link: Apple's Upcoming M2 Pro Chip for High-End MacBook Pro and Mac Mini Will Reportedly Be 3nm

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

Yeah I don’t know about that, but it would be cool.
But if it is 3nm I Seriously wouldn’t expect it to release as soon as October.
More like March/June 2023

 

[fuchsdh]

Yeah I don’t know about that, but it would be cool.
But if it is 3nm I Seriously wouldn’t expect it to release as soon as October.
More like March/June 2023

My thoughts as well. Seems like especially in the current scenario and the costs involved with the M2 people wishing for this are at best wishing for more expensive models.

 

[adamw]

3nm is Great! Way to go Vadim on accurate predicting this!! Having a split 5nm for the regular M2 chip, and 3nm for M2 Pro, Max, and Ultra chips makes a lot of sense.

 

[Isengardtom]

Yeah I don’t know about that, but it would be cool.
But if it is 3nm I Seriously wouldn’t expect it to release as soon as October.
More like March/June 2023

That would make more sense
M1 pro / M1 Max only came out last fall

 

[topmounter]

Ok, I'm in... I'll hold my breath for the M2 Pro Mac Mini 🤣

 

[uczcret]

But if it is 3nm I Seriously wouldn’t expect it to release as soon as October.
More like March/June 2023

I would guess March 2023 as well for the 14 & 16" MBPs if Apple does stick with an ~18 month update interval.

Still not convinced that M2 Pro Mac Mini (sounds ridiculous lol) is anything more than reading soggy tea leaves.

 

[jav6454]

Bold move considering the yields for TSMC not there yet. But hey, Apple may be willing to eat the yield and delays.

 

[theluggage]

Remember folks, the most important technical distinction between M2 Pro and M3 Pro:

M2: in Apple ads, the fake render of the chip will have "M2 Pro" in large, friendly letters.
M3: in Apple ads, the fake render of the chip will have "M3 Pro" in large, friendly letters.

 

[uptownnyc]

So can I drive three 4k screens with this or no?

 

[Freida]

if TSCM is going to have volume production towards the end of this year then who else would take it than Apple? So yeah, even though it sounds strange I would assume that it make sense. I doubt Apple would leave chips on the table for other vendors to take especially with the shortages we are facing. So this is clever Apple's way to maximise everything.

Lets see what M2 Pro etc. will bring to the table

 

[Useless Touchbar]

So can I drive thee 4k screens with this or no?

You'll need M2 Extreme for that

 

[uczcret]

So can I drive three 4k screens with this or no?

You can drive 3 6k displays and a 4k display with the M1 Max already. I can't imagine why that would change with the M2 Max.

 

[FasterQuieter]

That doesn't really make sense, but it would be great if the M series chips weren't always trailing behind the phone chips. I have an expensive M1 Pro in my laptop and am feeling somewhat annoyed that the base M2 will beat it in certain situations.

 

[Useless Touchbar]

3nm is Great! Way to go Vadim on accurate predicting this!! Having a split 5nm for the regular M2 chip, and 3nm for M2 Pro, Max, and Ultra chips makes a lot of sense.

Wouldn't Macbook Air be the device that would benefit the most from a smaller node?

 

[soyazul]

It doesn't have any sense to have different production processes within the M2 silicon family. It is obvious that all of this is just gathering pieces of information from different sources and trying to get to a collage-style conclusion that is totally unrelated to real Apple plans.

 

[MayaUser]

It cant be our user EugW trust KUO more than TSMC )))
For now, everything is good for mass production for this year of 3nm process for Apple
They need to be on 3nm since the macbook pros are on 18 months cycle maybe even 2 years...so if they dont go with 3nm now in late 2022...then we will see 3nm in 2024...and it will be a shame, not to mention that 5nm M2 pro will be an very insignificant upgrade

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

I would guess March 2023 as well for the 14 & 16" MBPs if Apple does stick with an ~18 month update interval.

Still not convinced that M2 Pro Mac Mini (sounds ridiculous lol) is anything more than reading soggy tea leaves.

I mean they are still selling a $1100 Intel Mac mini that does need replacing.
Stuffing the M2 pro in it sounds a bit odd but possible.

 

[boak]

In the past, Yuryev accurately revealed that the M1 Ultra chip in the Mac Studio would effectively be two M1 Max chips connected as a singular chip.

I don't think this is true. Wasn't it some engineer that first pointed out the M1 Ultra image was photoshopped and predicted that it's one half of another bigger chip? Max Tech has no technical knowledge and they such scour the internet for clues and regurgitate them to their audience via YouTube videos.

 

[reallynotnick]

Unless this means higher clock speed or simply more cores than would have been possible I suppose it doesn't much matter for the Mac Mini.

That said I'm feeling an 8 performance core with 4 efficiency cores and a 20 core GPU if we are going 3nm.

 

[MayaUser]

So can I drive three 4k screens with this or no?

you already can with the M1 max/ultra
Up to three external displays with up to 6K resolution (M1 mx)

 

[ProfessionalFan]

Remember folks, the most important technical distinction between M2 Pro and M3 Pro:

M2: in Apple ads, the fake render of the chip will have "M2 Pro" in large, friendly letters.
M3: in Apple ads, the fake render of the chip will have "M3 Pro" in large, friendly letters.

Remember folks, the most important thing is that there will always be people posting stuff as fact when they have no actual knowledge of the situation.

 

[Onimusha370]

Personally not a fan of this naming. Which much rather they named it M3 Pro/Max even if the M3 wasn't out. Why do they need to release the standard M chip before the Pro/Max?

For me this gets to a wider issue around frequency of updates on the Mac - when they bring out a new chip like the M2, I think all Macs that use M1 should have the option to come with M2. Why do iMac/Mac mini customers have to wait months (even into next year) to get the latest gen?

 

[Mr. Dee]

At this rate, I might end upgrading sooner than 2025 from my M1 MBP. Since there will be no 4NM, does that likely mean they will jump 1 NM when the time comes?

 

[EugW]

It cant be our user EugW trust KUO more than TSMC )))
For now, everything is good for mass production for this year of 3nm process for Apple
They need to be on 3nm since the macbook pros are on 18 months cycle maybe even 2 years...so if they dont go with 3nm now in late 2022...then we will see 3nm in 2024...and it will be a shame, not to mention that 5nm M2 pro will be an very insignificant upgrade

Like I said, if you want M2 Pro this year, it wont be N3. If it really is N3, that means it a 2023 product.

I don't think this is true. Wasn't it some engineer that first pointed out the M1 Ultra image was photoshopped and predicted that it's one half of another bigger chip? Max Tech has no technical knowledge and they such scour the internet for clues and regurgitate them to their audience via YouTube videos.

Max Tech doesn’t know anything about chip design of course. A lot of the predictions about these chips came about from engineers like Hector Martin. Mr. Martin also said there would never be anything more than M1 Ultra in the M1 Series, which appears to be correct.