Apple's 2028 iPhone could use a 1.4nm chip, and it may push flagship prices even higher

Apple is already planning its chips for 2028, and the bill looks huge. A J.P. Morgan note says TSMC will rush its 1.4nm process into mass production in the first half of 2028. Apple is expected to be the first customer, with the A22 Pro for its top iPhones. None of this is official, but the numbers are worth a look.

Earlier reports put 1.4nm mass production in the second half of 2028. J.P. Morgan now expects it sooner because AI chip demand is so strong. Pilot production is reportedly due in the third quarter of 2027. TSMC is also racing to build its 1.4nm fab in central Taiwan, and foundation work on the first phase has reportedly finished ahead of schedule.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has reported that the A22 Pro for 2028 iPhones may use this process. TrendForce adds that Apple is reportedly considering Intel as a second supplier. That would be a first for Apple. One report suggests only the Pro chip, and not the standard A22, will use the new node.

The switch will come quickly. Apple's 2nm chips arrive this year with the A20 Pro, so the 2nm node would serve Apple for only two generations before it jumps again. Chinese reports say the cost may slow Qualcomm and MediaTek, which would then adopt the process later. I think that is a fair guess. Fewer companies can afford the newest node, so the gap between the iPhone and the average Android flagship could grow.

Each 1.4nm wafer is estimated to cost about $45,000. A 2nm wafer costs roughly $30,000, according to Digitimes, so the new one is around 50 percent more expensive. Compared with its 2nm process, TSMC says 1.4nm can deliver up to 15 percent more speed at the same power. It can also cut power use by up to 30 percent, and it packs in about 20 percent more transistors. For phone buyers, the power savings could mean better battery life.

Those gains are nice, but they are not huge. Apple can absorb part of the cost, yet I doubt it will absorb all of it. Chip costs are one reason flagship prices keep creeping up. The iPhone Duo already starts at $1,999, so another jump in 2028 would not surprise me.

Remember that this is a forecast two years out. Mass production dates move, and Apple has not said a word about its 2028 plans.