Samsung no longer exclusive chip supplier as Apple turns elsewhere for A6 processor?

9to5 Staff | Aug 26 2011 - 6:59 am PT

Samsung, a producer of critical parts for Apple’s gadgets, may be on the verge of suffering another financial blow from Apple. A new report alleges that the Cupertino, California-headquartered personal electronics maker began lining up alternative suppliers for the A6 chip. The in-house designed processor should debut in iPad 3 next year and eventually make its way into iPhone 6 .

Trade publication DigiTimes has it on good authority that Apple recently visited an assembly line of packaging and testing firm Siliconware Precision Industries (SPIL). Based on what they saw, they concluded that officials from Apple are reportedly willing to discuss the possibility of working together on the upcoming A6 processor:

Apple recently conducted a visit to SPIL’s assembly line, and both parties discussed opportunities for cooperation, the sources revealed. SPIL stands a chance of becoming the first packaging and testing service provider designated by Apple, cutting into the supply chain of the vendor’s processor line, the sources said.

The report explains SPIL is likely to “snatch outsourcing orders” for the A6 chip. Needles to say, SPIL is denying the story, which is what companies caught up in juicy Apple rumors always do.

If true, the report would seem to corroborate whispers that Samsung is losing orders to other Asian suppliers due to its legal wranglings with Apple. We heard before that Apple began test runs of the quad-core A6 processor with TSMC (Intel wants that biz, too). The deal with TSMC is also said to involve the A5 chip, implicating that Samsung could already no longer be the exclusive manufacturer of Apple-designed silicon for iOS devices.