Apple to Use Qualcomm’s 5G Snapdragon Modems on Next iPhone Models Till At Least 2024, Roadmap Revealed

The new iPhone 12 series packs the Qualcomm Snapdragon X55 modem to enable 5G connectivity on the smartphone, a recent teardown video revealed. However, it now appears that Apple will continue its partnership with Qualcomm to provide the next generation Snapdragon 5G modems on the future iPhone models as well. According to a settlement filing between Apple and Qualcomm that was accessed by MacRumours, the two companies will collaborate to provide next-generation 5G solutions on the future iPhone models till at least 2024. The filing reveals that Apple will use multiple unannounced Qualcomm 5G modems like Snapdragon X65 and Snapdragon X70 that will be integrated on iPhone launching between June 2022, and May 2024.

Although Qualcomm launched its Snapdragon X60 in February this year, Apple went ahead with the previous-Gen Snapdragon X55 for the latest iPhone 12 models. However, the next iPhone models that would launch between June 2021 and May 2020, the US-based smartphone maker might use the Snapdragon X60 5G modem, the filing added. According to Qualcomm, the Snapdragon X60 modem that uses a 5nm manufacturing process, packs higher power efficiency into a smaller footprint compared to the Snapdragon X55. The Snapdragon X60 can also aggregate data from both mmWave and sub-6GHz bands simultaneously, therefore providing a better 5G experience with the smartphone.

At the moment, both Apple and Qualcomm have not publicly announced its partnership for the next 5G Snapdragon modems on the future iPhone models. Apple with the iPhone 11 series used Intel modem; however, the company settled for a more expensive deal with Qualcomm for the iPhone 12 phones due to alleged delay issues with Intel chips, according to Bloomberg. Notably, iPhone 12 and the iPhone 12 Pro phones come with a 2,815mAh battery that is smaller than the 3,110mAh and 3,046mAh batteries on iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro, respectively