 Apple A5 (S5L8940 version) chip | |
| General information | |
|---|---|
| Launched | March 11, 2011 |
| Discontinued | October 4, 2016 |
| Designed by | Apple Inc. |
| Common manufacturer | |
| Product code | S5L8940X (A5) S5L8942X (A5R2) S5L8947X (A5R3) |
| Performance | |
| Max.CPUclock rate | 800 MHz to 1 GHz |
| Physical specifications | |
| Cores |
|
| GPU | PowerVR SGX543MP2 (dual-core)[1] |
| Cache | |
| L1cache | 32 KB instruction + 32 KB data[2] |
| L2 cache | 1 MB[2] |
| Architecture and classification | |
| Application | Mobile |
| Technology node | 45 nm to 32 nm |
| Microarchitecture | ARM Cortex-A9 |
| Instruction set | ARM,Thumb-2 |
| Products, models, variants | |
| Variant | |
| History | |
| Predecessor | Apple A4 |
| Successor | Apple A6 |
TheApple A5 is a32-bitsystem on a chip (SoC) designed byApple Inc., part of theApple silicon series, and manufactured bySamsung.[3][4] The first product Apple featured an A5 in was theiPad 2. Apple claimed during their media event on March 2, 2011, that theARM Cortex-A9central processing unit (CPU) in the A5 is up to two times faster than the CPU in theApple A4, and thePowerVR SGX543MP2graphics processing unit (GPU) in the A5 is up to nine times faster than the GPU in the A4.[5] Apple also claimed that the A5 uses the same amount of power as the A4.
The last operating system update Apple provided for a mobile device containing an A5 (iPad 2 CDMA,iPhone 4S, andfirst-generation iPad Mini cellular models) wasiOS 9.3.6, which was released on July 22, 2019, as they were discontinued with the release ofiOS 10 in 2016. The latest operating system update Apple has provided for an Apple TV containing an A5 (third-generation Apple TV andthird-generation Rev A Apple TV) wasApple TV Software 7.9, which was released on March 14, 2022.[6]
The A5 chip features adual-core 45 nmCortex-A9 CPU (shrunk to 32 nm in later versions of the chip) including theAdvanced SIMD (Neon) extension,[7] and a dual-core 32 nmPowerVR SGX543MP2 GPU.
The A5 integrates animage signal processor unit (ISP) that can perform advanced image post-processing, such as face detection, white balance, and automatic image stabilization.[8] The A5 also directly integratesAudience earSmart technology for removing surrounding background noise and secondary voices during phone calls.[9]
Theclock rate of the Cortex-A9 in the A5 used inside theiPad 2 andfirst-generation iPad Mini is 1 GHz. Unlike the A4, the A5 canrun at slower clocks to conserve power.[10][7] The clock rate of the Cortex-A9 in the A5 used inside theiPhone 4S andfifth-generation iPod Touch is 800 MHz. The A5's clock speed insidethird-generation Apple TV is unknown.
When the A5 was first released, the production cost of the chip was estimated to be 75% more than the A4, with the difference expected to diminish when production would later increase.[11] As of August 2012[update], the A5 was manufactured at Samsung'sAustin, Texas factory.[12] Samsung invested $3.6 billion in the Austin facility to produce various chips, and nearly all of the facility's output was dedicated to producing Apple chips.[13] Samsung later invested a further $4.2 billion in the Austin facility in order to transition to a28 nm fabrication process by the second half of 2013.[12]
Three versions of the A5 chip exist: S5L8940 (containing a 45 nm CPU), S5L8942 (containing a 32 nm CPU), and S5L8947 (containing a single-core 32 nm CPU).[14] Apple also designed a separate high-performance variant of the A5 called theApple A5X, which features a wider memory subsystem and two additional GPU cores. The A5X was used only in thethird-generation iPad.
The S5L8940 version of the A5 was used in the iPad 2 and the iPhone 4S.[15] The CPU was manufactured on a 45 nm fabrication process. The die of this version takes up 122.2 mm2 of area.[16] It uses the PoP method of installation to support RAM. The top package contains two 256 MBLPDDR2[17] chips, providing a total of 512 MB[16] of RAM.
The S5L8942 version of the A5 was used in the third-generation Apple TV (one CPU core is disabled),[18] the iPad 2 (iPad2,4 revision), the fifth-generation iPod Touch, and the first-generation iPad Mini. The CPU was manufactured on a 32 nm fabrication process. The die of this version takes up 69.6 mm2 of area[18]—nearly 41% smaller than the die of the S5L8940 version. Like the S5L8940 version, it uses the PoP method of installation to support RAM. The top package contains two 256 MB LPDDR2 chips, providing a total of 512 MB of RAM.[19]
The S5L8947 version of the A5 was used only in the third-generation Rev A Apple TV. Unlike the previous two A5 versions, this version contains only one CPU core.[20] Also unlike the previous two A5 versions, this version does not use the PoP method of installation to support RAM—RAM is found externally from the A5 chip.[21] The die of this version takes up 37.8mm2 of area,[21] using a new design made specifically for the third-generation Rev A Apple TV.[22][23]
These images are illustrations and approximate to scale.
| Preceded by | Apple A5 2011 | Succeeded by |
