iPhone 6S Chipgate: How To Tell Which A9 Chip Is In Your Phone -- Samsung Or TSMC

UPDATE: 12:50 p.m. EDT -- The Lirum app has been pulled by the developer from the App Store citing "serious issues" with the app and Apple's iPhone 6S and iPad Air 2. The developers say an update will take a few months to publish but that the app will continue to work on models earlier than the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

Another option to discover which chip your iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus uses is the snappily titled Battery Memery System Status Monitor which is still available in the App Store which also claims to give you details about your phone's chip manufacturer.

Original story:

Apple may have a new iPhone crisis on its hands, just as it did last year with Bendgate. This time around it's the so-called Chipgate controversy, centering on the A9 chips that power Apple's new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus and how they affect battery life.

In short, Apple used two suppliers to build the A9 chip -- Samsung and TSMC -- and though both are designed to Apple's specifications, users are reporting that those with the Samsung chip could have up to 20 percent less battery life. Apple has yet to respond to the controversy, but it will need to address the matter soon if it wants to avoid a repeat of the over-the-top Bendgate situation, where reaction exaggerated the actual incidence.

For consumers, the problem is there is no way of telling which chip you will get when you purchase a new iPhone 6S or iPhone 6S Plus. While most reports are coming from the U.S. there appears to be no discernable distribution pattern for the chips, in terms of geography, model (16GB, 64GB or 128GB) or color (silver, grey, gold, rose gold) with some customers reporting they bought a Samsung and TSMC version of the iPhone 6S in the same store.

While you won't be able to tell immediately which chip is inside your new phone when you turn it on, there is an app to help you out.

If you are interested in finding out which manufacturer made the A9 chip inside your iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus then all you need to do is download the free Lirum Device Info app from the App Store. After running the app, if your phone shows the codes N66AP or N71AP then you have the Samsung chip, while if it shows the codes N66MAP or N71MAP you've got the TSMC version.

There is no way of telling which chip you will get when you purchase a new iPhone 6S or iPhone 6S Plus.