When we look back on the iPhone 16e years from now, the thing we’ll all remember is that it was the first iPhone to use Apple’s own modem.
Even though the two companies have a testy relationship, Apple has historically relied on Qualcomm for modems. The C1 chip in the iPhone 16e is Apple’s first step toward breaking up with Qualcomm.
Qualcomm, however, says it’s not worried about the competition posed by Apple’s foray into modems…
At Mobile World Congress 2025 this week, Qualcomm unveiled its new X85 5G modem, as reported by my colleagues at 9to5Google. It’s an impressive modem with peak speeds of 12.5 Gbps up and 3.7 Gbps down. It also features a new “5G AI processor” that apparently leads to 30% faster inference.
In an interview with CNBC this week, Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said that this new X85 5G modem
“It’s the first modem that has so much AI, it actually increases the range of performance of the modem so the modem can deal with weaker signals. What that will do will set a huge delta between the performance of premium Android devices, and iOS devices, when you compare what Qualcomm can do versus what Apple is doing.
If modem is relevant there’s always a place for Qualcomm technology. In the age of AI, modems are going to be more important than they have ever been. And I think that’s going to drive consumer preference about do they want the best possible modem in the computer that’s in their hand all the time.”
Apple plans to bring its in-house modem to the entire iPhone lineup by next year as it adds new features like support for mmWave 5G. Following the iPhone 16e, the so-called iPhone 17 Air will feature the C1 modem when it launches this fall. Then, the entire iPhone 18 lineup will move from Qualcomm to Apple’s modems next year with the launch of the C2.
Early reviews of the C1 modem in the iPhone 16e are positive. Lab tests revealed that Apple’s modem in the iPhone 16e is comparable to Qualcomm’s modem in the iPhone 16, but significantly more power efficient.
See this timeline:
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