Apple confirms own SoC for Macs at WWDC

Apple has shown of its own System-on-a-Chip (SoC) dubbed Apple Silicon that will be used for its Mac laptop and desktops computers at Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2020, Monday.

"We expect to ship our first Mac with Apple Silicon by the end of the year," said chief executive Tim Cook, adding that it would likely be two years before its full product line had made the jump from Intel.

Apple will also provide Mac mini with A12Z SoC for developers to prepare for the transition, the company said. A12Z was used for the first time on the iPad Pro which launched earlier this month.

Apple first used its own SoC, the A4, on the iPhone 4 in 2010. Cupertino said the performances of its SoC has increased a hundred fold since then.

The company first applied iPad-dedicated SoC, the A5X, on the iPad in 2012.

Apple is also using its own SoC on Apple Watch. The company touted the lower power consumption of its chip optimized for the smart watch.

Apple has gained notice for its packaging technology in designing SoCs. It applied fan-out wafer level packaging (FOWLP) for the SoC on iPhones. It applied System-in-Package (SiP) for the SoC in the Apple Watch.

Apple’s SoC for Mac was been assembled in a South Korean packaging plant, people familiar with the matter said.