New revelation about iPhone 18 Pro Max

(Dan Tri) - Every year, Apple announces a new chip for the latest iPhones. According to many leaked sources, iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max and iPhone Ultra will be equipped with the A20 Pro processor.

This chip is expected to be manufactured on TSMC's 2nm process. The switch from the current 3nm process to 2nm means the A20 Pro can provide more power and operate more efficiently.

The A20 Pro chip on iPhone 18 Pro promises stronger performance and better power optimization (Photo: NotebookCheck).

Besides, Apple is expected to apply the Wafer-level multi-chip module (WMCM) packaging method for its iPhone processors. WMCM allows different components (such as SoC and DRAM) to be directly integrated at the wafer level.

This technique connects chip dies without the need for intermediaries or substrates, providing benefits in both temperature and signal integrity. In other words, Apple's next-generation chip is not only smaller and more power efficient thanks to the N2 process, but is also physically located closer to the onboard memory.

This change is expected to bring better performance and reduce power consumption for tasks such as artificial intelligence (AI) processing or high-end gaming.

According to MacRumors, the iPhone 18 Pro Max will be about 9mm thick and weigh 240g. This means the device will be about 0.25mm thicker and 7g heavier than the iPhone 17 Pro Max version.

This source said the increased thickness and weight are a direct result of the larger capacity battery. Accordingly, the iPhone 18 Pro Max will likely be equipped with a 5,567mAh battery, an increase of nearly 500mAh compared to the previous generation.

iPhone 18 Pro Max will be thicker and heavier than its predecessor (Photo: MacRumors).

In addition, Apple is also expected to apply a new generation vapor chamber cooling solution using stainless steel on this product line. This may also be the cause of the increase in size and weight of the machine.

A report from Counterpoint Research said that the cost of components (BOM) for iPhone 18 Pro Max will increase by at least 300 USD compared to its predecessor.

This is an estimate for the version with 1TB of storage. The cost of NAND flash memory for the device will exceed $250. The above figure is equivalent to half of the entire component cost on the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max.

In addition, DRAM prices are also rising sharply as both components come under pressure from widespread memory chip shortages related to skyrocketing demand for AI hardware. In addition, Apple's planned switch to 2nm chips is also considered the cause of cost increases.