Apple’s aversion to solely using Qualcomm modems in its new iPhones will likely leave the devices unable to take advantage of 1-gigabit-per-second download speeds offered by cellular providers, Bloomberg reports. While AT&T, Verizon and other wireless carriers have upgraded their networks to be capable of gigabit transfers — which are up to 100 times faster than previous speeds — only Qualcomm’s modems can currently handle downloads at that speed.
Apple’s insistence on splitting its modem orders between Qualcomm and Intel, plus the serious court showdown with Qualcomm over royalties, means the company would be forced to disable some of the capabilities of devices running with a Qualcomm modem to keep its products consistent, since Intel’s modem with the same capacity won’t be ready for the new iPhone’s launch, according to people familiar with Apple’s decision. Samsung’s Galaxy 8 and HTC’s U11 are both already capable of the new faster download speeds due to their Qualcomm modems.
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