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Apple took another step toward the ambitious target of developing in-house 5G modems in 2027, which could shake up the global modem market. The tech giant, credited highly for innovation in hardware, reportedly will axe Qualcomm's Snapdragon modem from its iPhones. This is according to a new report from renowned analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Apple is preparing to phase in the replacement of Qualcomm's modems in its lineup of iPhones, starting in 2025. Over the next two years, this will ramp up to hit between 35 and 40 million units in 2025 and could increase as high as 160-180 million units by 2027, if all iPhones are to use Snapdragon-free modems.
Kuo said that this would hit Qualcomm very badly, which had been the key supplier to Apple of modem chips till now. "Apple's decision to design and fabricate its modems itself shows its increasing focus on self-reliance," he further added.
If Apple successfully pulls this off, the transition is bound to shake up the 5G modem market, lessening the dominance taken by Qualcomm. On the other hand, such a move can serve as an inspiration to other technology firms to develop modems on their own and easily tip the balance of power in the mobile connectivity sector.
That's a rather bold, calculated risk that Apple's taking," said one industry analyst. The company did pull off its transition to chips in-house, like the M1, but modems are much more difficult. Any hiccups could cause performance or connectivity issues, just like some of those non-Qualcomm modems of yore.
Other advantages of making this transition in technology in-house include cost savings and the optimization of modem features for iPhones. But experts caution, that missteps in developing those modems could result in performance impacts across the iPhone in particular, "That depends on how reliable the signal is, which it ultimately gets back to the user experience.".
Yet Apple remains sanguine about its engineering prowess. Success with the M1 chip provides a welcome precedent. The modem market, though, is a different kind of battlefield and one where missteps can have huge consequences.
The 5G Apple modem is being closely watched by the tech world. If this succeeds, it will mark the beginning of the tide of in-house hardware-making across the industry. If all goes well, Apple's modem will hint at a new world for corporations to stop taking dependencies on the hardware components of other companies.
This may be because the modem independence of Apple by 2027 is all it takes for the shift in fortunes to send ripples down the length and breadth of the mobile and telecommunications industries.
