Apple is rumored to have been working on its 5G modem for many years now, but so far has had little to show for it. The most recent rumors don’t paint a good picture on Apple’s progress, and we’re still expecting the iPhone 16 to come with a Qualcomm 5G modem like always. But that may not be the case next year.
According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the first phones with the Apple 5G modem are expected to be the iPhone SE 4 and the new “ultra-thin” iPhone 17 Slim. It sounds like the Apple modem will only appear in these two specific models, with the rest of the iPhone 17 line-up will likely stick with a Qualcomm model.
This makes sense considering Apple extended its supply agreement with Qualcomm earlier this year. That means the company will continue to supply its modems for cellular-connected Apple devices until March 2027 — preventing a full switchover before the launch of the iPhone 20 at the earliest.
Odds are Apple will be slowly adding its modem to various devices before that deadline — meaning we’ll probably see a gradual increase over the next few years. That's arguably a good thing considering all the problems Apple seems to have had developing its own modem the past few years. Should serious problems arise, it means that only a handful of devices would be affected rather than Apple’s entire iPhone portfolio.
The story of the Apple modem is pretty turbulent. Rumors have been all over the place the past few years, culminating in Apple reportedly canceling work on the modem last November. Rumors then switched over to Apple starting work on a 6G modem, presumably to be ready for whenever the first 6G towers start switching on.
But if what Kuo says is true, not only is the Apple 5G modem project still alive, we could see it bear fruit soon. Recent rumors tip the iPhone SE 4 to go into mass production as early as October, which could see it launch at the very end of this year or early on in 2025.
Just don’t expect to see it on the iPhone 16 when it launches at Apple's September event.
