Apple's C1 Modem Put Through New Speed Test Ahead of iPhone 17 Air

[citysnaps]

Credit where credit is due. The C1 could easily have been rushed or half-baked. Instead Apple applied many of the painfully learned lessons from the Intel/infineon years and made a competent product. There are other areas where that should be applied but I won't get into that right now.

Absolutely!

Also... that Apple could design a cell modem chip from scratch that works well without stepping on Qualcomm (who pretty much wrote the book on modern digital communications signal processing techniques) IP and patents, while dissipating less power, is quite remarkable. A big hat-tip to Apple's team that created the C1 chip.

My last job was at a small Silicon Valley company where we developed high speed high performance signal processing ASICs for cellular communications infrastructure and other markets. We were *very* careful to stay clear of Qualcomm IP.

 

[mlayer]

Absolutely!

Also... that Apple could design a cell modem chip from scratch that works well without stepping on Qualcomm (who pretty much wrote the book on modern digital communications signal processing techniques) IP and patents, while dissipating less power, is quite remarkable. A big hat-tip to Apple's team that created the C1 chip.

My last job was at a small Silicon Valley company where we developed high speed high performance signal processing ASICs for cellular communications infrastructure and other markets. We were *very* careful to stay clear of Qualcomm IP.

Sure they could. It's clearly not one of their core competencies. Apple used to have a pretty large WiFi products group as well that got disbanded. Cook likes to go off-the-shelf for most components. The modem licensing stuff from Qualcomm is so onerous Cook had to make a major decision/investment, which I applaud. I suspect they may focus on 5.5G & 6G since that standard is not yet ratified and 5G is now mature, whatever that means.

 

[falainber]

If you examine the report, the differences aren't significant in most cases. However, when higher number of carrier aggregation and/or mmWave technology come into play, the iPhone 16 leads 16e. This is understandable because Apple's C1 chip is limited to 3 carrier aggregation (CA) and lacks mmWave technology, while the Qualcomm X71 chip in the iPhone 16 supports 4 CAand supports mmWave.

However, when you are in an area without 4 CA and/or mmWave, the iPhone 16e is on par with the iPhone 16, and even superior, particularly in terms of upload performance, all the while with longer battery life.

The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are expected to get Qualcomm X80 modem with support for 5 CA and with battery life optimization.

Given the fact that X71M is a crippled version of outdated Qualcomm modem, this report is quite pointless. Also, it focuses on speed (well, it's Ookla) which may not be the most important characteristic for most users. So, based on this report it's impossible to say how far Apple is behind Qualcomm.

 

[nutmac]

Given the fact that X71M is a crippled version of outdated Qualcomm modem, this report is quite pointless. Also, it focuses on speed (well, it Ookla) which may not be the most important characteristic for most users. So, based on this report it's impossible to say how far Apple is behind Qualcomm.

At the same time, what matters the most isn't the speed advantage, but the ability to connect and maintain a connection to a weak signal (the receiver’s sensitivity and reliability).

Most phone usage won't be impacted by the speed as long as it's at least 50 Mbps.

 

[rukia]

A more relevant test involves the antenna and modem together. In the real world what people actually care about is how well both the antenna and modem function under weaker reception areas.

 

[justanotherdave]

Yeah, what a coincidence, right?

Apple has been using publicly available Qualcomm modems since iPhone 4.

Apple just happened to use a custom de-featured X71M modem immediately before launching their own C1 modem.

If your agenda is to always paint Apple in a bad light than everything is a coincidence.

Doesn’t make it true. Again, I want to see a source.

 

[JPack]

If your agenda is to always paint Apple in a bad light than everything is a coincidence.

Doesn’t make it true. Again, I want to see a source.

Qualcomm is supplying OnePlus with X75, so maybe they ran out of capacity to supply Apple. Or maybe when Apple was integrating X75 into iPhone 16, the lead engineer fell out of a window. So Apple had to resort to using X71M.

Like you said, the possibility is endless.

Apple crippled the X12/X16 modem on iPhone 7/8/X to match Intel's performance. Qualcomm sued Apple for this. This is not a random, made up claim.

Rather than crippling X75, Apple likely asked for X71M to avoid legal issues. This far more likely than your claims of cost, supply, power consumption, or whatever else.

 

[Ethrem]

I won't be surprised if Apple continues to use SD X71 in this year's iPhones because Apple users deserve old tech.

I would be surprised if they don't use at least the X75. Apple is going to be left in the dust on 5G-Advanced otherwise.

 

[coolfactor]

There is a reason why Apple used old X71 modems in iPhone 16 series and not the then latest SD X80. That is because they didn't want their C1 to look poor in comparison with X80.

C1 is objectively poor in most instances.

...and also they can get away with using old stuff because most Apple users won't notice.

I won't be surprised if Apple continues to use SD X71 in this year's iPhones because Apple users deserve old tech.

You speak of "Apple users" as if you're not one of them.

The truth is we don't know why Apple chose the components that they did. Maybe the X80 drew far more power?

The fact that is known is that the C1 is achieving respectable performance while drawing far LESS power, which is *adding* value to the device for users.

 

[JPack]

It's almost like some people have memory loss.

Qualcomm Files Answer and Counterclaims to Apple Lawsuit | Qualcomm

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) today filed its Answer and Counterclaims to the January lawsuit brought by Apple against the Company in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. Qualcomm’s filing details the value of the

www.qualcomm.com

• Chose not to utilize the full performance of Qualcomm’s modem chips in its iPhone 7, misrepresented the performance disparity between iPhones using Qualcomm modems and those using competitor-supplied modems; and
• Threatened Qualcomm in an attempt to prevent it from making any public comparisons about the superior performance of the Qualcomm-powered iPhones.

Apple throttled the X12 and X16 modem back in 2016/2017. These were proven in third-party tests.

X71M comes out and is missing key features like 5G-A and aggregation. But no, it can't because Apple wants to throttle. It's gotta be some other reason. And it's purely a coincidence X71M came immediately before C1.

 

[edubfromktown]

Ookla web speetest reported 933 Mbps on S25 Ultra running latest Samsung updates on T-Mobile 5g.

Apple is starting to gain momentum toward better performing modems but they still have a long way to go.

Higher throughout definitely matters. My wife's iPhone mobile web browsing performance is noticeably slower. Wherever we travel I run speed.cloudflare.com tests and Samsung performance is always way ahead. I just ran it on my phone and it came in at 633 Mbps.

@justanotherdave - disagree all you like; others who switched from iPhones have had similar practical usage experiences...

 

[Cristim74]

C1 doesn’t have mmWave, which I actually use a lot on my iPhone 16 Pro.

mmWave is a thing only in the US and even there only in very limited areas. Outside US nobody cares about mmWave. It's a very limited technology working only in very specific scenarios.

It might be the first generation with an Apple badge, but it’s far from a first gen product.

If you're referring to the Intel heritage, I don't remember seeing an Intel modem with a minimum decent performance. Yes, they got Intel patents but this is a modem built from the ground up by Apple.

 

[Ethrem]

mmWave is a thing only in the US and even there only in very limited areas. Outside US nobody cares about mmWave. It's a very limited technology working only in very specific scenarios.

LOL what? Most of the developed world including Europe, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Australia, Hong Kong, and China, have mmWave in their plans or already have it deployed.

mmWave is superior to anything else that exists in high density situations, it's just expensive to deploy since it doesn't propagate through materials well.

It's also a part of the 6G spec.

 

[Populus]

I’m personally not interested in higher speeds or bandwidth (as long as it stays inside the 5G standards) but rather in connectivity (coverage) and power consumption. My iPhone’s snapdragon 5G modem still gets hot, and I have the hope that C1 and C2 are focused in keeping the same performance at much lower power consumption.

 

[justanotherdave]

@justanotherdave - disagree all you like; others who switched from iPhones have had similar practical usage experiences...

More anecdotal evidence. I thought your link was going to be to an actual study, not one single persons experience (claims).

 

[justanotherdave]

It's almost like some people have memory loss.

Qualcomm Files Answer and Counterclaims to Apple Lawsuit | Qualcomm

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) today filed its Answer and Counterclaims to the January lawsuit brought by Apple against the Company in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. Qualcomm’s filing details the value of the

www.qualcomm.com

• Chose not to utilize the full performance of Qualcomm’s modem chips in its iPhone 7, misrepresented the performance disparity between iPhones using Qualcomm modems and those using competitor-supplied modems; and
• Threatened Qualcomm in an attempt to prevent it from making any public comparisons about the superior performance of the Qualcomm-powered iPhones.

Apple throttled the X12 and X16 modem back in 2016/2017. These were proven in third-party tests.

X71M comes out and is missing key features like 5G-A and aggregation. But no, it can't because Apple wants to throttle. It's gotta be some other reason. And it's purely a coincidence X71M came immediately before C1.

I was hoping someone would bring up these third party tests. As I stated before, I have a friend who works for Apple as an engineer.

When this test came out I showed him and asked his opinion. He made two interesting comments:

- How does some no-name blog get access to several hundred thousand dollars worth of advanced cellular test equipment? The kind you don’t just buy or lease on a whim.
- With access to that specialized equipment why do they only conduct a single test out of the hundreds they’re capable of?

Answer is pretty clear. It’s a Qualcomm engineer pretending to be an independent reviewer.

 

[SpotOnT]

mmWave is a thing only in the US and even there only in very limited areas. Outside US nobody cares about mmWave. It's a very limited technology working only in very specific scenarios.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Yes, and for those of us who live in a part of the USA where mmWave is widely available, it can be a relevant factor. (I get at least 1 Gbps cell speeds everywhere here. At home. At the office. On the train between home and the office. At the grocery store. Pretty much everywhere I go.)

I am not even sure what your point is…Do you think Apple shouldn’t bother selling devices with Wi-Fi 7 support or 10 Gigabit ethernet because “most people” don’t have home internet speeds that get anywhere near to needing that?

Edit: Taking the kids for a walk in the park. Just did a speed test and I am getting 1.5 Gpbs. I will challenge your assertion that this is a “limited” technology.

 

[TechnoMonk]

My 13 PM smokes iPhone 16e in speed. But again my kids coming from iPhone SE appreciate 16E. For that segment of the market it is pretty good.

 

[svish]

Good to see the first generation of the chip performing well. Expecting Apple to incorporate it to other devices soon. Also waiting to see a cellular MacBook.

 

[Bodhitree]

To be honest, I ceased paying attention to mobile speeds after 4G, it was fast enough to do pretty much anything I wanted to on my phone. That’s about 100 Mbps as far as I have been able to tell.

On the whole I care more about not dropping connections in low-signal areas, battery performance, and the amount of radiation it is sending through my body.

 

[arc of the universe]

Great, so they both perform well in strong signal areas. What's more important is how well it can perform in weak signal areas. I know that's hard to test, but that's the most important factor at the end of the day.

in the referenced article, there is a large section that goes into detail this very point.
its entitled " iPhone 16e delivers better performance to the 10th percentile "

 

[yossi]

I thought apple's chip doesn't handle uwb? I am getting 650mbs on verizon 5g uwb with my 14 pro