Apple is gearing up for the release of its next-generation M5 chips, promising notable performance enhancements and design improvements.
Manufactured using TSMC’s advanced N3P process node, the M5 chips are expected to offer a 5% performance increase or a 5-10% reduction in power consumption compared to the previous N3E process used in the M4 chips.
The production schedule for the M5 series is as follows:
- Standard M5: Mass production is expected in the first half of 2025.
- M5 Pro and M5 Max: Set for production in the second half of 2025.
- M5 Ultra: Expected in 2026.
The M5 Pro, M5 Max, and M5 Ultra chips will feature a new 2.5D packaging design called SoIC-mH (moulding horizontal), which is anticipated to use 30-50% less space than traditional system-on-chip designs.
In a shift from previous models, Apple plans to separate the CPU and GPU in these chips for improved production yields and better thermal performance.
The M5 chips are also expected to bring improvements in AI tasks, particularly in inferencing, and could play a critical role in Apple's Private Cloud Compute (PCC) infrastructure, strengthening the company's cloud capabilities.
