Apple will use Qualcomm modems for next year’s iPhone, it has been revealed.
The company had reportedly been planning to move towards its own modem technology, but a new report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman confirms that Qualcomm will supply the “vast majority” of modem chips for Apple devices in 2023. The company had previously thought it would supply only a “fraction” of the chips needed.
Last year, Qualcomm seemingly confirmed that Apple was to move to its own modems after it said it expected to supply just 20% of the company’s modem chips in 2023. In recent years, Apple has been working to reduce its reliance on third-party companies, including Qualcomm, and has been developing its own in-house modem.
Earlier in the year, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that Apple’s research and development on a custom 5G modem chip had failed but that the project was still continuing.
Apple and Qualcomm entered a legal battle back in 2017 when Apple accused Qualcomm of collecting royalties for technology it wasn’t involved with. Apple confirmed then that it would move away from Qualcomm modems and turned to Intel technology, but ultimately, Intel’s 5G modems weren’t good enough. Apple was then forced to return to Qualcomm and its 5G smartphones and iPads as a temporary bandaid.
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