The 2018 iPhone lineup is back in the news, once again courtesy the usually reliable KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. This time, he claims that all the handsets launched this year will run Intel inside.
Specifically, each 2018 iPhone will run an Intel LTE modem chip inside. Apple has so far divided things up between Intel and Qualcomm, but this year the latter might be out of the picture completely. No one can blame Apple for wanting to cut ties with Qualcomm. After all, it’s been trying to get iPhones banned in the US.
Plus, there’s also the fact that both Apple and Qualcomm are suing each other. That’s not a great foundation for a partnership which will probably get ugly as it’s dragged through courts. Intel has a few advantages to offer as well. For instance, its newest XMM 7560 modem can support both GSM and CDMA.
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This would spare Apple the headache of producing a different model as per the carrier. The 2018 series of iPhones could effectively work across AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile. Kuo warns that Intel’s good luck might not last forever, since Apple may go back to Qualcomm if it agrees to concessions in the ongoing lawsuit being fought.
Apple has historically preferred to diversify its supply chain, so this makes sense. The analyst also went on to repeat his earlier claim that this year’s iPhones will feature 4×4 MIMO tech and faster LTE speeds thanks to an updated antenna design.