Apple A11 Explained

Apple A11 Bionic
Fastest:2.38[1]
Size-From:10 nm (10FF)[2]
Designfirm:Apple Inc.
Manuf1:TSMC
Arch:A64  - ARMv8.2-A
Microarch:"Monsoon" and "Mistral"
Code:APL1W72[3]
Numcores:6 (ARM big.LITTLE: 2× Monsoon + 4× Mistral)[4]
Transistors:4.3 billion
L1cache:64 KB instruction, 64 KB data[5]
L2cache:8 MB
Application:Mobile
Gpu:Apple-designed 3 core
Predecessor:Apple A10
Successor:Apple A12

The Apple A11 Bionic is a 64-bit ARM-based system on a chip (SoC) designed by Apple Inc., part of the Apple silicon series,[6] and manufactured by TSMC. It first appeared in the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, and iPhone X which were introduced on September 12, 2017. Apple states that the two high-performance cores are 25% faster than the Apple A10's and the four high-efficiency cores are up to 70% faster than the two corresponding cores in the A10.[7] The A11 Bionic chip was discontinued on April 15, 2020, following the discontinuation of the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus. The latest software update for the iPhone 8 & 8 Plus and iPhone X using this chip was iOS 16.7.7, released on March 21, 2024.[8]

Design

The A11 features an Apple-designed 64-bit ARMv8-A six-core CPU, with two high-performance cores at 2.39 GHz, called Monsoon, and four energy-efficient cores, called Mistral.[9] [10] The Monsoon cores are a 7-wide decode out-of-order superscalar design, while the Mistral cores are a 3-wide decode out-of-order superscalar design. The Mistral cores are based on Apple's Swift cores from the Apple A6.[11] The A11 uses a new second-generation performance controller, which permits the A11 to use all six cores simultaneously,[12] unlike its predecessor the A10.

The A11 also integrates an Apple-designed three-core graphics processing unit (GPU) with 30% faster graphics performance than the A10. Embedded in the A11 is the M11 motion coprocessor.[13] The A11 includes a new image processor which supports computational photography functions such as lighting estimation, wide color capture, and advanced pixel processing.

The A11 is manufactured by TSMC using a 10 nm FinFET process and contains 4.3 billion transistors[7] on a die 87.66 mm2 in size, 30% smaller than the A10.[14] It is manufactured in a package on package (PoP) together with 2 GB of LPDDR4X memory in the iPhone 8[15] and 3 GB of LPDDR4X memory in the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X.[16] [17]

The A11 has video codec encoding support for HEVC and H.264. It has decoding support for HEVC, H.264, MPEG‑4 Part 2, and Motion JPEG.[18]

Die Block Comparison (mm2)!SoC!A11 (10 nm)
Total Die87.66
Big Core2.68
Small Core0.53
CPU Complex (incl. cores)14.48
GPU Core4.43
GPU Total15.28
NPU1.83

Neural Engine

The A11 also includes dedicated neural network hardware that Apple calls a "Neural Engine". This neural network hardware can perform up to 600 billion operations per second and is used for Face ID, Animoji and other machine learning tasks. The neural engine allows Apple to implement neural network and machine learning in a more energy-efficient manner than using either the main CPU or the GPU.[19] [20] However, third-party apps cannot use the Neural Engine, leading to similar neural network performance to older iPhones.

Bloomberg says that the neural engine is the fruit of Apple's efforts to improve its AI team, since the 2015 report by Bloomberg that Apple's secretive nature made it difficult to attract AI research scientists. Apple has since recruited people and multiple companies working on AI, and has published papers related to AI research. In October 2016, Apple hired Russ Salakhutdinov as its director of AI research.[21]

Products that include the Apple A11 Bionic

The Apple A11 Bionic chip is used in the following iPhone models and not on any generation of iPad, iPod touch, or Apple TV.

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: iPhone X Benchmarks - Geekbench Browser. Geekbench. November 1, 2017. November 7, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171107005431/http://browser.geekbench.com/ios_devices/52. live.
  2. Web site: Apple 2017: The iPhone X (Ten) Announced. Cutress. Ian. September 12, 2017. AnandTech. September 12, 2017. September 13, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170913135139/http://www.anandtech.com/show/11835/apple-2017-the-iphone-x-ten. live.
  3. Web site: iPhone 8 Teardown . iFixit . September 21, 2017 . September 22, 2017 . September 22, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170922070041/https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPhone%208%20Teardown/97481 . live .
  4. Web site: iOS 11 GM Leak Reveals Details on Face ID, Apple Pay, Wireless Charging, and A11 Chip in iPhone X. Clover. Julie. September 10, 2017. MacRumors. September 13, 2017. September 13, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170913135455/https://www.macrumors.com/2017/09/10/ios11-gm-faceid-apple-pay-a11/. live.
  5. Web site: Measured and Estimated Cache Sizes. AnandTech. October 5, 2018. October 6, 2018. October 6, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181006075306/https://www.anandtech.com/show/13392/the-iphone-xs-xs-max-review-unveiling-the-silicon-secrets/2. live.
  6. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus: A new generation of iPhone . Apple . September 12, 2017 . September 12, 2017 . September 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170912235005/https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2017/09/iphone-8-and-iphone-8-plus-a-new-generation-of-iphone/ . live .
  7. Web site: iPhone 8: A11 Bionic . Apple . September 12, 2017 . September 12, 2017 . November 1, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171101090845/https://www.apple.com/iphone-8/#a11 . live .
  8. Web site: March 5, 2024 . About the security content of iOS 16.7.7 and iPadOS 16.7.7 . March 5, 2024 . Apple Support . en.
  9. Web site: Apple 2017: The iPhone X (Ten) Announced. Cutress. Ian. September 12, 2017. AnandTech. September 12, 2017. September 13, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170913135139/http://www.anandtech.com/show/11835/apple-2017-the-iphone-x-ten. live.
  10. Web site: iOS 11 GM Leak Reveals Details on Face ID, Apple Pay, Wireless Charging, and A11 Chip in iPhone X. Clover. Julie. September 10, 2017. MacRumors. September 13, 2017. September 13, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170913135455/https://www.macrumors.com/2017/09/10/ios11-gm-faceid-apple-pay-a11/. live.
  11. Web site: The iPhone XS & XS Max Review: Unveiling the Silicon Secrets. Frumusanu. Andrei. 2018-10-05. AnandTech. 2019-01-27. January 26, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210126032017/https://www.anandtech.com/show/13392/the-iphone-xs-xs-max-review-unveiling-the-silicon-secrets/. live.
  12. The future is here: iPhone X . Apple . September 12, 2017 . September 12, 2017 . September 24, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170924073859/https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2017/09/the-future-is-here-iphone-x/ . live .
  13. Web site: iPhone 8 - Technical Specifications . Apple . September 12, 2017 . September 12, 2017 . September 16, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170916172916/https://www.apple.com/iphone-8/specs/ . live .
  14. Web site: Apple iPhone 8 Plus Teardown. Yang. Daniel. Wegner. Stacy. October 11, 2017. TechInsights. October 12, 2017. Fontaine. Ray. May 12, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190512184640/https://techinsights.com/blog/apple-iphone-8-plus-teardown. live.
  15. Web site: iPhone 8 Teardown . iFixit . September 21, 2017 . September 22, 2017 . September 22, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170922070041/https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPhone%208%20Teardown/97481 . live .
  16. News: iPhone X confirmed to have 3GB of RAM and 2,716mAh battery. Chaim. Gartenberg. The Verge. Vox Media. September 26, 2017. September 27, 2017. September 27, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170927024428/https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2017/9/26/16368814/iphone-x-3gb-of-ram-2716mah-battery-specs-apple. live.
  17. Web site: iPhone X Teardown . iFixit . November 3, 2017 . November 3, 2017 . November 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171103104857/https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPhone+X+Teardown/98975 . live .
  18. Web site: iPhone 8 - Technical Specifications. 2021-10-24. support.apple.com. October 24, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211024034544/https://support.apple.com/kb/SP767?locale=en_US. live.
  19. Web site: What to Expect From Apple's Neural Engine in the A11 Bionic SoC. Hruska. Joel. 14 September 2017. ExtremeTech. 16 September 2017. September 17, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170917052306/https://www.extremetech.com/mobile/255780-apple-neural-engine-a11-bionic-soc. live.
  20. Web site: Apple Is Working on a Dedicated Chip to Power AI on Devices. Bloomberg.com. 16 September 2017. 26 May 2017. Gurman. Mark. October 24, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171024211312/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-26/apple-said-to-plan-dedicated-chip-to-power-ai-on-devices. live.
  21. Web site: Apple's latest hire could signal a big shift in the company's approach to AI. Leswing. Kif. 2016-10-17. Business Insider. 2017-10-12. September 17, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180917144801/https://www.businessinsider.in/Apples-latest-hire-could-signal-a-big-shift-in-the-companys-approach-to-AI/articleshow/54904134.cms. live.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Apple A11".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.