Apple Uses Intel's Nehalem Die Shot in A5 CPU Slide

Intel influenced Apple on the A5... sorta.

At the Apple event with the big iPhone 4S reveal, the company took the time to highlight again its A5 processor – the same processor that's been running in the iPad 2 since earlier this year. The leap from the Apple A4 in the iPhone 4 to the A5 is fairly significant, as it moves up an ARM generation as well as adds a second core.

Graphically, the A5 is exceptionally strong compared to the previous Apple generation, and is besting today's strongest competition. Apple has a lot to be proud of for its package-on-package system-on-chip design choices.

At the mention of the A5's dual-core capability the official promo video (above), Apple used a fairly attractive-looking die shot. Our friend Anand of AnandTech also noticed the die shot and tweeted about the striking similarities between Apple's image of its A5 and Intel's 45nm Nehalem CPU.

We're sure that Apple wasn't trying to mislead anyone into thinking that its A5 chip is an equivalent to Intel's Nehalem design. They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and liberally borrowing from Intel's excellent die shots is nothing but a compliment… and likely the product of some uninspired Photoshopping.