Oliver Haslam·

Future Apple MacBooks Could Feature In-House Cellular Modems

Apple’s current MacBook Air and MacBook Pro lineup is the best that it’s ever been, but there is still one missing feature that a ton of people would like to see. That feature is a cellular modem, and it might be on the way.

While the iPad and of course the Apple Watch have cellular options available, the Mac is so far one lineup that hasn’t gone the cellular route.

However, a new report by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman hints that might be about to change, or at least, it will in a a few years.

Gurman was writing in the Power On newsletter when he said that Apple’s working on integrating its in-development in-house modem into the M-series chips so as to allow for MacBooks to launch with cellular connectivity available as an option.

However, Gurman says that Apple will “probably need two or three additional years to get that chip inside cellular versions of the Apple Watch and iPad – and the Mac, once the part is integrated into the company’s system-on-a-chip.”

Apple has been working on its own 5G modem since buying Intel’s modem business back in 2019 but has so far been unable to launch one.

The iPhone is the obvious place where a modem would be useful, allowing Apple to ditch Qualcomm’s Snapdragon modems. However, the Apple Watch and iPad are also set to benefit while talk of the Mac also going cellular will be music to the ears of road warriors who don’t want to — or can’t — tether.

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