Apple’s first internally developed modem will make its debut in the iPhone SE that will launching next yearand will therefore be seen in some low-end iPads in 2025. The modem, codenamed Sinope, has been in the works for more than five years, according to “people familiar with the matter,” according to a new report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. us today.
The next iPhone SE will feature support for Apple Intelligence and an “edge-to-edge screen design”. The modem developed by Apple “is not as advanced” as the latest modems from Qualcomm, which Apple currently uses.
The Apple modem does not support mmWave 5G, only Sub-6. It also only has an aggregation of four carriers, while the latest Qualcomm modems support six or more. In lab tests, Apple’s modem goes to “about 4Gbps,” which is less than even Qualcomm’s non-mmWave modems can do. Real world speeds obviously won’t come close to that.
While it won’t be as good of a modem as Qualcomm’s latest and greatest, the obvious benefit to Apple is that it won’t have to pay Qualcomm for it. The Apple modem is also said to be “tightly integrated with Apple-designed main processors to use less power, scan for cellular services more efficiently, and provide better support for on-device features for connecting to satellite networks.”
It will also support Dual Sim Dual Standby, and the SAR limits will be intelligently managed by the main chip. The Apple modem is made by TSMC. Apple’s modem will work with an Apple-designed front-end radio frequency system called Carpo, which helps devices connect to cellular networks.
In 2026, Apple wants to get closer to Qualcomm’s modems in terms of capabilities with its second generation modem. This will join the iPhone 18 family and become one of the top-end iPads in 2027. This modem will have mmWave support, six-carrier aggregation when using Sub-6, and eight-carrier aggregation on mmWave.
The third generation will arrive in 2027, and Apple hopes it will finally surpass Qualcomm’s offering by having built-in support for “next-generation satellite networks,” whatever that means, as well as “artificial intelligence features,” whatever. That means in the context of a modem.