It's still very early days for iPhone 15 rumors – what with the iPhone 14 only launching last month – but we are starting to hear a few whispers about what to expect next year. The latest prediction of note concerns the 5G modem inside the iPhone 15.
According to industry analyst Jeff Pu (via MacRumors), Apple is set to use the Qualcomm Snapdragon X70 to power its 5G capabilities, up from the Snapdragon X65 that sits in the current iPhone 14 line-up.
The upgraded chip offers lower latency and draws less power, and comes with a suite of artificial intelligence optimizations that should mean better speeds and more reliable coverage no matter the location of a phone.
Apple's modem plans
There is a subplot here, which is that Apple is known to be developing its own 5G modem, in the same way that it's been developing its own processors for the iPhone. Pu reckons that an Apple 5G chip is still some way off.
Apple will also stick with Qualcomm for its 5G modem needs in the iPhone 16 scheduled for 2024, Pu says. That should be the Snapdragon X75, though we haven't heard anything about it at the moment.
After that, we might see a handset in 2025 with a full set of Apple-made chips inside it – so consider this the very first rumor about the iPhone 17 as well. We will of course keep you posted on all the iPhone leaks and rumors in the meantime.
Analysis: Apple wants full control
Apple clearly likes to have as much control as possible over the hardware components that go in its devices: having made chipsets for the iPhone and iPad for years, it has now switched its Macs over to Apple-made silicon as well.
The 5G modem inside the iPhone is one of the few components that's still manufactured by a third party, but there's no doubt Apple wants to change that – that's why it spend so much money buying Intel's 5G modem business in 2019.
For whatever reason, the process of switching is taking longer than was perhaps anticipated. There had been some speculation that an Apple 5G chip could appear in 2023, but that now looks less likely.
It's going to happen eventually though, and Apple will be hoping that by being in charge of all of its own hardware and software development, it can make products that run even more efficiently and smoothly.
