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It looks like the iPhone 17 will get another big performance boost

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Someone holding an iPhone 16 Pro.
Joe Maring / Digital Trends

Nearly 10 months before its debut, iPhone 17 series rumors continue to come in. The latest concerns the A19 chip that’s likely to be installed in some form on each of the 2025 iPhone 17 handsets. According to analyst Jeff Pu (spotted by MacRumors), the chip found on next year’s iPhones will be built on TSMC’s third-generation 3nm technology, known as “N3P.”

Rumors suggest the iPhone 17 and “iPhone 17 Air” will feature a regular A19 chip, while the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max will get an A19 Pro chip. Both chips will use TSMC’s N3P process. This year’s iPhone 16 series phones feature A18 chips that use TSMC’s “N3E” process.

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What does the shift from N3E to N3P mean for you and me? Compared to the iPhone 16 series, it will most likely mean improved power efficiency, faster speeds, and longer battery life.

The Apple iPhone 16 Plus on charge.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

This news is not surprising, as iPhones generally show speed and efficiency enhancements from generation to generation. For instance, the A18 Bionic chip in the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus offers CPU improvements of up to 30% and GPU improvements of 40% compared to the A16 Bionic chip found in the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus. The A18 Bionic chip, also built on a 3nm process, is more power-efficient than the A16 Bionic chip, resulting in longer battery life and cooler operation.

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The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max feature the A18 Pro chip, which is built on an advanced 3nm process. This new chip offers a modest speed increase over the A17 Pro chip found in the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, along with a significant enhancement in graphics performance.

Additionally, battery life has seen considerable improvements. For instance, the iPhone 16 Pro Max can provide up to 33 hours of usage between charges, compared to 28 hours for the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Someone holding the iPhone 16 with the display on.
Joe Maring / Digital Trends

It is yet to be determined what improvements will be made between next year’s A19 chip and this year’s A18 chip.

Next year’s iPhone 17 lineup is anticipated to feature a standard iPhone, an iPhone Pro, and an iPhone Pro Max. Additionally, the rumored “iPhone 17 Air” is expected to replace the iPhone Plus in this new series. This model, which has been speculated for some time, could be the thinnest iPhone yet.

Apple is likely to launch the iPhone 17 series in September.

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Bryan M. Wolfe
Bryan M. Wolfe
Mobile and A/V Freelancer
Bryan M. Wolfe has over a decade of experience as a technology writer. He writes about mobile.
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