In a feature regarding Johny Srouji, the senior vice president of hardware technology for Apple, a Bloomberg source confirmed the rumor that the iPhone 5se and iPad Air 3 will be released with an upgraded processor chip equivalent to the one currently being used in the iPhone 6s and iPad Pro.
“In March,” Bloomberg writes, “Apple intends to announce an updated iPad and smaller-screen iPhone featuring the latest A9x and A9 chips, according to a person familiar with the plans, who wasn’t authorized to comment publicly.”
Apple stratifies chip generations in two different categories: The chip used in the iPhone, and the souped-up “x” version used in an iPad. The iPad model line requires more processing power due to the size of its screen. The Bloomberg feature describes how Apple realized it needed to release an “x” version of the A9 processor chip after production delays pushed back the iPad Pro’s release until after the unveiling of iPhone 6s.
The A9 processor chip is 50 percent faster than its previous generation at multi core tasks, according to AppleInsider , and almost 60 percent faster at single core operations. The new processor chip also allows the always-on “Hey, Siri” feature seen only in the iPad Pro, iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, and is bundled with the M9 motion processor chip, which allows functionality like pace-tracking.
While the A9 processor chip has 2 GBs of RAM, the A9x processor chip has 4 GBs of RAM. This would mean the iPad Air 3 would have double the amount of RAM of the iPad Air 2,and the iPhone 5se would have double the RAM of the current the iPhone 6.
A 9to5Mac source claims that the iPhone 5se will replace the iPhone 5s at its current price point as the 4-inch iPhone model. The iPhone 5s currently retails for $450 for the 16GB model and $499 for the 32GB model. The 32GB model is being replaced with a 64GB model for the iPhone 5se.
Both the rumored iPad Air 3 and the iPhone 5se are expected to be announced at the Apple March 2016 Event, reportedly scheduled for March 18. While 3D Touch functionality is not likely to be included with either device, the iPad Air 3 may be able to use iPad Pro only accessories, such as the Smart Keyboard and Apple Pencil.
