Oliver Haslam on November 3, 2022, 5:14 pm

iPhone 15 Will Continue To Use Qualcomm 5G Modems

Apple’s next iPhone will continue to use Qualcomm 5G modems, despite initial expectations that the company would begin using its own ones.

Apple’s move to its own 5G modems was so likely that even Qualcomm said that it expected to only provide a small percentage of the modems used by Apple in 2023, but the company has now said that it will continue to provide the “vast majority” at least for 2023.

Bloomberg reports that Qualcomm’s news came as part of its earnings report released yesterday, but it might not be all that surprising to some.

While Apple bought Intel’s modem business in 2019 and has been working to produce its own ever since, a report by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo earlier this year claimed that Apple’s plans had “failed” and that Qualcomm would continue to provide the 5G modems that would power the 2023 iPhones.

If Apple’s release schedules go as they have for years, the company will announce the iPhone 15 lineup in September next year. While there might not be a change in modem, it does sound like there will be one big difference over the current iPhone 14 lineup.

Apple is expected to switch away from Lightning and use USB-C as a result of EU legislation that requires the use of a common charger — in this instance, USB-C.