Typically, each generation of the iPhone brings a significant increase in computing performance, but that may not be the case with the iPhone 14.

In a recent (paid) report in The Information, reporter Wayne Ma suggests that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (TSMC) is facing challenges in manufacturing the new 3-nanometer chip. The report claims that the next iPhone may stay with the 5nm manufacturing process used in the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13. This would also be the first time Apple has stuck with the same manufacturing process for three consecutive years.

The power and efficiency of a computer chip depends on how many transistors can be packed onto a single die; chips manufactured at 3 nm are smaller than at 5 nm, which means they can accommodate more transistors. The jump from 5nm to 3nm is huge, and it is not at all surprising that TSMC is having problems. Still, it is highly likely that TSMC will be the first to develop a 3-nanometer chip, beating out Intel and Qualcomm.

This may mean that next year's iPhone 14 will not see the performance gains that fans have come to expect. This could be an opportunity for Apple to release the iPhone 13S and mark the 2022 phone as a more incremental upgrade and give TSMC more time to figure out manufacturing for the potential 2023 iPhone 14. Of course, this is all speculation.

Next-generation technology manufacturing challenges are brought on top of supply constraints from the Covid-19 pandemic: not only is it difficult to find restocks of PS5s, but demand for the product is high among the housebound. According to a new report, Apple is cutting back on iPad production because demand for the iPhone 13 is so high.