The history of the first four decades of PCs has largely been defined in terms of OS: Apple's early lead with the Mac was taken over by Microsoft's Windows, which then lost ground to Google's Android. But this narrative fails to account for an even more powerful force than the middleware software platform: low-level hardware, and specifically the largest historical driver of technical progress in the industry: the silicon microprocessor.

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Apple hasn't been outpacing Samsung in mobile Application Processor design over the past decade simply due to a first-mover advantage or by just having smarter people designing its silicon. Here's a look at how Apple first snuck past a larger and more entrenched silicon rival to gain its lead in advanced mobile chips, and why it matters to the future of tech.

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A decade after Apple and Samsung partnered to create a new class of ARM chips, the two have followed separate paths: one leading to a family of world-class mobile silicon designs, the other limping along with work that it has now canceled. Here's why Samsung's preoccupation with unit sales and market share failed to compete with Apple's focus on premium products.

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In a report on Monday morning, Apple is again predicted to roll out its long-awaited augmented reality smart glasses and an ARM Mac in 2020.

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Samsung at its Unpacked event on Wednesday unveiled the Galaxy Book S, an addition to the company's Galaxy Book line that features an ARM-based Qualcomm Snapdragon processor for longer battery life.

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In 2005, Steve Jobs announced that Apple would transition Macs to use PC-standard Intel x86 processors. Fifteen years later, Apple appears poised to make another CPU shift that could prove to be far more significant in the future of technology. Here's why.

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This week on the AppleInsider Podcast, William and Victor talk about Jony Ive leaving Apple, the possible removal of the Lightning port from iPhone, and Apple taking on a new hire to work on ARM processors... maybe for Macs?

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Apple recently recruited Mike Filippo, a CPU architect with a long history and credits at ARM, Intel, and AMD.

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Chip designer ARM is reportedly cutting off business with Huawei, a move that could potentially cripple the Chinese smartphone maker on top of the existing U.S. restrictions.

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Apple CEO Tim Cook mentioned that Apple took about a five percent hit on Mac revenues because of constraints on Intel processors, and the company can't seem to break the 10nm process barrier. The last two times that a chip supplier couldn't keep its promises, Apple made a big move to another architecture -- and this is just another sign on the road to an ARM Mac coming relatively soon.

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The Mac shifting to ARM may come as soon as a full decade after Steve Jobs died. Yet, as well as championing and managing the Intel move in the 2000s, he also considered these major computer hardware architecture changes to be essential every decade or so.

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An unsubstantiated, and highly suspect, "leak" on Friday claims to reveal benchmarks from a pair of desktop-class ARM processors supposedly designed by Apple, offering what could be the first look at A-series silicon destined for Mac.

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Over the past two decades, Apple has proven capable of exercising its rapidly lithe, innovating ability to take its existing technologies and create new computing forms that retain its influence over the most commercially successful and strategically important markets. That winning strategy of the past also appears to be the best suited for the future of PCs.

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While a possible shift to an A-series processor in a Mac has been rumored for some time, a new report claims that Intel is certain that it is coming, and soon.

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Reports from the supply chain suggest that long-time Apple partner Pegatron will be tasked with assembly of any ARM-based Mac product.

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This week on the AppleInsider podcast, Mike with guest Charles Martin discuss the 2019 Mac Pro, Apple's possible shift to ARM in the Mac in 2020, Apple's poaching of a key AI executive from Google, and more!

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The identification of the "Meltdown" and "Spectre" vulnerabilities in Intel- and ARM-based processors -- including chips used in Apple's Macs, iPhones, and iPads -- can be credited almost entirely to a Google security researcher in his early 20s, Jann Horn.

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Israeli plaintiffs are seeking to file a class action lawsuit against Apple, ARM, and Intel over the Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities recently uncovered in Intel and ARM-based processors.

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Updates released in early December should already have dealt with "Meltdown" and "Spectre" vulnerabilities on older Intel Macs, according to Apple's release notes -- but a late Friday retraction of the claim has shed some doubt on the situation.

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Following the news that both Intel- and ARM-based processors can be susceptible to various hacks, Apple issued a statement on Thursday announcing that it has already implemented some fixes in the latest iOS and macOS releases, with more still to come. However, there are not currently any known exploits taking advantage of "Meltdown" and "Spectre."

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