The mobile industry is burgeoning with smartphones and tablets equipped with chipsets made by Qualcomm and MediaTek. Over the years, the two giant chipmakers have made gigantic strides to conquer the mobile platform, and it has proven to be a huge leap since the smartphone market hit mainstream. Intel has started foraging into the smartphone business and has been developing its Atom-based chipsets ever since Asus first employed the giant chipmaker for the Taiwan-based manufacturer's smartphone offerings. Now, Intel is going bigger as it reportedly partnered with Apple to make the next chipsets that will power the inevitable iPhone 7.
According to reports, Intel has assembled a team of more than 1,000 employees to develop a new modem for Cupertino's iPhone 7 that's set for a 2016 release. The deal however, isn't official as of yet, but if Intel hits huge success over their venerated 7360 LTE chip, then the company may have a major deal in its hands.
Intel has a long standing reputation in the computer industry. And now, the giant chipmaker has been making surmountable efforts to bring its name in the lucrative mobile market as the company first targets the entry-level spectrum with their Atom X3 chipsets powering low-cost mobile devices. And if the deal with Apple proves to be a success, Intel will most likely gain a strong foothold to battle the likes of Qualcomm and MediaTek.
Reports say that Apple will be dual-sourcing the modems for the iPhone 7, with Intel and Qualcomm being the two major partners. Qualcomm provides all the modems for Apple's line of iPhones and iPads, and Intel's 7360 LTE modem is expected to ship by the end of 2015 and will be equipped with smartphones in 1H 2016.
Apple will be creating the chip and Intel will be handling the production with its 14nm process. At present, Samsung and TSMC handle the production task, they do, however, use a 20nm processor. According to reports, Intel's 14nm process will lead to 'superior density and gale pitch.' Reportedly, Intel is also working on perfecting its 10nm process, which Apple has huge interests in.
While Apple would create the chip, Intel would handle the production of it using its 14-nanometer process. Currently, Samsung and TSMC share the production task, but use a 20-nanometer processor. Intel 14-nanometer process would lead to superior density and gate pitch, according to the report. Intel is also currently working on perfecting its 10-nanometer process, in which Apple is very interested.
