5G on iPhone, in 2020 on all new models
The rumors had also confirmed Bloomberg- “Just as it happened for 3G and 4G, the two previous generations of mobile networks, Apple will wait up to a year after the initial launch of 5G cellular networks, before inserting into its chip products compatible. ” According to analysts, this move could pose a risk to the apple because the difference in performance between 4G and 5G is abysmal, and could lead to stagnation in sales. But there is the coup de théâtre: in 2022 a 5G chip arrives entirely developed in Cupertino.
“Apple has always been lagging behind in cellular technologies,” says Mark Hung, an analyst at Gartner. “In the past this has not been a problem, but with 5G things will be different. If they wait beyond 2020, they could face the problem.”
The problem is that, according to Qualcomm, all the main competitors of the apple will offer 5G support on their flagship smartphones by 2019. “All Android manufacturers are working on 5G, now” and Apple’s risk is to arrive late at a party that has already declared a winner. If from Cupertino they won’t review their strategy, users could put purchases on standby, further slowing down a season that isn’t exactly florid; or worse, prefer competition.
Update: And the reliable Ming-Chi Kuo from TF International Securities also confirms this. The new flagship iPhone coming next year will surely have 5G. “We estimate that the iPhone 5G will account for around 60% of all deliveries of the new iPhones in 2020 (against estimates by other companies of 20%).” The modem chosen by Apple will still be produced by Qualcomm, but it is confirmed that in Cupertino they are internally developing a completely developed modem at home that allows them to free themselves once and for all from dependence on manufacturers and competitors. And the lineup also seems to be very aggressive: according to the latest rumors, Apple plans to complete the development, testing and certification of the new modems in 2022, and to set them in the hardware of the iPhone coming out the same year.
A product line judged quite ambitious, and difficult to achieve; the optimization for mobile networks in fact takes a lot of time, and must be done with care, otherwise you risk creating conflicts with other operators. And to this must be added the perfect adherence to global standards as well as the requests of the FCC in the USA. In short, 2023 appears to be a more plausible date according to many of the observers.
Even if we imagine that, after the acquisition of Intel’s smartphone modem division and after the billionaire bleed with Qualcomm, it is quite natural that Tim Cook and his team want to see the fruits of these investments. And now, it’s a matter of just a few years: maybe a couple, probably three, and in any case no more than five to say the least.
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