Apple’s in-house 5G modem plans are just getting started with next year’s iPhone SE

Apple’s betting that its upcoming in-house 5G modem could help it beat Qualcomm’s performance eventually, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Apple has worked on developing its own modem for years, but the initiative reportedly experienced technical issues and other setbacks despite purchasing Intel’s modem unit in 2019.

The first Apple modem is rumored to come to the iPhone SE before appearing in the rumored iPhone “Slim” and entry-level iPads. Down the line, Apple is reportedly planning to roll out a second-generation modem with mmWave in 2026, putting it in the iPhone 18 line and higher-end iPads. In 2027, Bloomberg reports that Apple “hopes to top Qualcomm” with its “Prometheus” modem, which could support AI features and “next-generation satellite networks.”

However, its first chip may fall short of Qualcomm’s in terms of the absolute highest possible speed for a couple of reasons: lacking support for the mmWave technology available in some cities from carriers like Verizon and supporting four-carrier aggregation instead of six.

Those features boost the maximum bandwidth available to multiple gigabits per second, but speeds are typically much slower in the real world, and the current iPhone SE also lacks mmWave support. The new modem will, however, support dual SIM standby, allowing people to have two active SIM cards at the same time.