Apple seems to have found a way to squeeze more out of the proven LPDDR5X than Xiaomi is able to squeeze out of the new LPDDR6. The memory bandwidth of the A20 Pro is 115.2 GB/s, while the memory bandwidth of the XRING 03 is limited to 113.8 GB/s.
Both chips use a 96-bit bus, but the A20 Pro has a memory speed of 9600 MT/s, while the XRING 03 reaches 10,667 MT/s. Apple’s advantage is believed to be due to its six-channel memory configuration. It allows the controller to handle both read and write operations more efficiently, thus reducing latency. There is currently no official information about such a design for the A20 Pro, but similar configurations have appeared in leaks before.
These changes are clearly tailored to local AI tasks. The A20 Pro uses dual Neural Engines with 16 cores each, and the die package itself is said to have been switched to WMCM, where the DRAM is placed next to the die. This should help control heat during heavy computing. At the same time, Apple decided to retain LPDDR5X, possibly to avoid increasing production costs during the expensive transition to TSMC’s 2nm process technology.
