Chief rivals Apple and Samsung will have to set their differences aside for longer, with the South Korean electronics giant tipped to manufacture the processor chip for the next iPhone.

According to South Korea's Maeil Business Newspaper, Apple will once again rely on Samsung to produce chips for its popular iPhones. Apple has tried to separate itself more from one of its biggest rivals in the past, and while the company was able to tap other manufacturers for the A8 chip (used in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus), it looks like the A9 chip won't be so easy to replicate elsewhere.

Apparently this is because of the chip manufacturing process. Samsung, a worldwide leader in chipsets, has developed a process that can produce transistors for its chips as small as 14 nanometers. Smaller transistors mean more processing power per square inch. Apple has eyed Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., but the company can only produce transistors as small as 20 nanometers. In the end, it looks like Apple will have to work with Samsung if its wants more power. The two companies have been entangled in a long-running legal battle, with Apple receiving $1 billion in settlements throughout.

With the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus releases only a few months old, information on the next-generation set of iPhones is scant. Among the rumors flying around in the technosphere are 2GB of RAM and a 14-megapixel camera. Hard to tell if they'll be true, but a 14-megapixel camera would be the first time Apple has moved on from 8 megapixels in a couple of years.

Oh, and if some reports are correct, Apple may release two different smartphones in 2015. If the shift in production cycles is indeed true, it looks like Apple could accompany the first-half release of its smartwatch with the iPhone 6s and roll out the iPhone 7 during its usual fall extravaganza.

"The iPhone 7 release date is coming sooner than expected, and the iPhone 6S is coming even sooner -- according to a source we have in the supply chain who now tells us that Apple is looking at a condensed six month release timetable going forward in order to not only keep up with the more frequent releases from Samsung but also to provide a boost to iPhone sales when the iWatch launches in the spring," writes Jerry Miller from Stabley Times.

Still, it's hard to see Apple jumping the gun and rolling out so many iterations of the same product in the same year. The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are selling incredibly well, and it wasn't even until recently that supplies of the smartphones caught up with demand.

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