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The iPhone 12 could have the performance of a 15-inch MacBook Pro

Allison Matyus
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People are already making predictions about this year’s iPhone, and new reports suggest it could have the performance of a MacBook thanks to the 5nm process anticipated on the A14 processor. 

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The latest iPhone 11 series uses the A13 Bionic SoC built using a 7 nm process, and while the move to 5 nm seems small, it would mean a faster and more power-efficient iPhone — one that Macworld postulates could eclipse the performance of the lauded 15-inch MacBook Pro. We’ve long heard of smartphone processors being comparable to those of certain laptops, but the powerful 15-inch MacBook Pro is a new benchmark.

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“If we take TSMC at its word about the improved transistor density of the 5 nm process, we’re looking at an incredible 15 billion transistors. That’s more than all but the largest high-end desktop and server CPUs and GPUs,” writes MacWorld’s Jason Cross. 

If these speculations are correct, we can expect a super powerful iPhone later this year. Aside from its internal power, experts have also predicted what the new iPhone could look like once it debuts. 

Ming-Chi Kuo — who is something of an oracle when it comes to iPhone predictions — predicted back in September that the iPhone 12 models would resemble something like the iPhone 4, specifically when it comes to the metal frame. The surface of the metal frame would be flat, unlike current iPhone models that feature curved edges. 

Kuo also predicted that the iPhone 12, 12 Pro, and 12 Pro Max, would have 5.4-inch, 6.1-inch, and 6.7-inch OLED displays, respectively, and either a dual-lens or a triple-lens rear camera — all with 5G support. These would be Apple’s first devices with 5G compatibility.

Even though we may be getting way ahead of ourselves, there are also reports of an iPhone without a lightning port in 2021, making the phone a completely port-less device that relies solely on wireless charging. Kuo predicted that if this happened, the change would only occur in higher-end iPhone models at first before showing up in the entire new iPhone lineup. 

Digital Trends reached out to Apple to comment on the reports of the A14 processor and the 5 nm process. We’ll update this story once we hear back. 

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Allison Matyus
Allison Matyus
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Allison Matyus is a general news reporter at Digital Trends. She covers any and all tech news, including issues around social…
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