iPad mini found using 32nm Samsung processor
updated 04:50 pm EDT, Thu November 1, 2012
Borrows tech from revised iPad 2
A Chipworks teardown of the iPad mini has confirmed that the A5 processor in the tablet is a 32nm design manufactured by Samsung. The A5 premiered in the iPad 2, but was originally produced using a 45nm manufacturing process. The switch to 32nm happened around the same time the third-generation iPad was introduced, retrofitting the iPad 2 with improved power efficiency and battery life.
The third-gen iPad uses a 45nm A5X chip, but the A6 in the iPhone 5 is another 32nm design. It's uncertain if the A6X in the fourth-gen iPad has reverted back to 45nm, since no teardown of the tablet has been done yet.





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The 32nm process affords a great reduction in both space and power consumption, which allows the higher speeds seen on the new generation of chips. ARM representatives suggest that 20nm fabrications will be available in 2013. If this is true, next fall's iPad could be based on a customized Cortex A50 core with more than four times the processing speed of the A6X.