Rumor: Apple is already preparing to manufacture the iPhone 7

Well that was quick. Apple only just recently put the iPhone 6S up for pre-order, and yet we’re already hearing rumors about the smartphone’s successor. Yesterday morning, a rumor came out of Taiwan, which claimed that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has been chosen by Apple to manufacture the next-generation A10 processor that will power the iPhone 7. As with most rumors, this one should be taken with a grain of salt, especially considering how TSMC wasn’t able to meet the demand for the iPhone 6S launch this year.

The iPhone 6s isn’t even out yet, but already reports are claiming that Apple has awarded its A10 processor orders for the next eagerly-anticipated iPhone upgrade, the iPhone 7. The winning company if you believe said rumors? None other than Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company — the manufacturer said to be making half of Apple’s A9 chips for the iPhone 6s. Do we believe it? Count me in the “skeptical” pile. The report (which TSMC has given a “no comment” to) states that TSMC will be Apple’s exclusive supplier for the next-gen A10 processor, with volume production said to be kicking off in March 2016. TSMC will reportedly offer its “in-house developed backend integrated fan-out (InFO) wafer-level packaging” for the A10 production, which will be built using the company’s 16nm FinFET process technology. Why the skepticism on my part? Because we went through this all last year, with Samsung and TSMC both named at different times as Apple’s exclusive manufacturer for the A9, only for reports to eventually reveal that they were sharing the job.