iPhone 5 and iPad 3 to Sport "Macroscalar" CPU (Rumor)

A discovery by Patently Apple reveals that the company run by Tim Cook has recently trademarked the term “Macroscalar”, which may be related to 3D transistors as part of a new A-processor architecture, according to Extreme Tech’s Joel Hruska.

Up until now, work on Apple’s “Macroscalar” Processor Architecture has been tightly kept under wraps, but as the iPad 3 and iPhone 5 draw closer, the company is required to have all of the paperwork ready to ensure smooth sailing.

The respective trademark filing emerged this past weekend. It got picked up by the aforementioned patent-centric blog, as well as by Hong Kong‘s Intellectual Property Office.

The trademark carries an International Class covering “microprocessors for computers.”

According to Jack Purcher covering the filing, “The most interesting product possibility listed in this filing relates to voice recognition software and applications that is likely related to Siri.” He adds that Apple laid out a mind-boggling list of possibilities that involves the technology.

Some highlights of what Apple believes this processor may power over time (from the International Class Details for "Macroscalar"):

“Computer software for personal information management; database management software; database synchronization software; character recognition software; voice recognition software; speech to text conversion software; voice-enabled software applications.”

Joel Hruska believes the A6 will almost certainly be manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), after Samsung handled production of the A4 and A5 chips.

The ongoing legal spat between the Cupertino giant and the Korean chip maker may prevent them from doing profitable business in the future.

The A6 that will presumably power the iPhone 5 and the iPad 3 will be a quad-core Cortex-A9 on 28nm, most experts agree. If true, it will be one of the first 28nm CPUs ever released.

Posted in: Mobile Phone, News, Preview, Tablet