Calcalist reports that Apple is hiring a number of chip experts to fill up their new Isreali research center -- the one aimed at developing new chip configurations that could help power future iPhone and iPad devices.

The company reportedly received “several hundred resumes” for various engineering positions. Specifically, Apple is seeking hardware engineers in chip development with strong emphasis on electrical circuits, analogue and hardware testing and verification.

News that Apple was interested in opening an Israeli research facility first surfaced back in December. Rumor had it they were interested in being in close proximity to the Technion Institute of Technology, an area already home to Intel, Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and Qualcomm.

According to this new report, Apple's recent acquisition of flash-storage wizards, Anobit has nothing to do with this new research facility. Instead these new specialists will focus on research and development of silicon, chip circuitry and hardware testing/verification.

The new facility should be up and running by the end of February, however it is unlikely we'll see new chip technology from these R&D efforts in the next iPhone or iPad given the lead time required.

Source: Calcalist.co via 9to5 Mac

Mark Gurman over at 9to5 Mac has discovered some code buried deep within the iOS 5.1 beta which might suggest Apple is prepping a quad-core chip to power future iPhone and iPad devices.

The references to quad-core iPhone and iPad chips come by way of a hidden panel that describes cores that are supported by iOS device hardware. The updated core management software includes an option of “/cores/core.3,” and this represents a fourth available processing core…

Gurman explains that people who work closely with iOS code advised the core count begins at 0, so a dual-core processor would be labeled as core.1 for its second core, and as such, a quad-core processor would carry a core.3 label for its fourth core.

Whether we'll see this in the Apple A6 chipset -- which is expected to power the iPad 3 and next-gen iPhone -- is another story. Although Apple doesn't like to tout specs as a selling point, they need great hardware to drive great software.

Source: 9to5Mac

According to TheStreet.com, Apple has struck a deal with San Diego based chip maker, Qualcomm, to supply the EV-DO chip for the rumored Verizon CDMA iPhone. Apple originally showed interest in a chip that would combine both wireless technologies, GSM and CDMA, to make it a world phone but then settled for CDMA when Qualcomm and other chip manufactures could not pull it off.

"Apple has chosen Qualcomm as its chip supplier [3G wireless technology chip for EV-DO] for the new version of the iPhone headed to Verizon this summer, according to Northeast Securities analyst Ashok Kumar," Moritz reports. "Kumar confirmed the decision with the manufacturers and suppliers involved with the phone."

Of course at this particular moment in time Apple has no comment but it just adds more fuel to the fire for the long awaited Verizon iPhone. This is Qualcomm's second big win this week as they are supplying the Snapdragon chip for the much hyped Google Nexus One.

[Via TheStreet.com]

We love it when a plan comes together. What plan? How'bout Apple buying super low-power fabless chip design firm Palo Alto Semiconductor (PA Semi) back on April 23, which Steve Jobs later said would make "system-on-chips" for the iPhone and iPod? How about PowerVR graphics cores reaching a mega-licensing deal with an unnamed company? (Which might just rhyme with Snapple...) And how about now, a Mr. Wei-han Lien, formerly of PA Semi, updating his Linked[In] profile to read: "Senior Manager Chip CPU Architect at Apple", and more specifically, "ARM CPU architecture team for iPhone"? (ARM having reportedly also reached a long term licensing deal with an unnamed company)

Put them all together, and what do we get? A scary hardcore look at what will drive the next (and/or next after next) iPhone v3. And according to Macrumors:

By developing its own ARM variant, Apple could create a processor that meets the specific needs of the iPhone and iPod, building support for functions such as the touch screen or scroll wheel into silicon and possibly savings on costs by reducing the number of processors needed in each device. In addition, Apple’ will be able to maintain tighter controls on who knows what about its future products by disposing of an outside chip supplier.

Wanna bet Steve calls them "screamers"? And Carmack claims PS2-class gaming?