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Qualcomm vs Intel chip. A bigger deal then you think.

G

Gooberton

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jun 20, 2010
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this is a huge deal going unnoticed, my 7 plus has the intel chip and it always had dropped calls and even worse I could only get 1 bar at my house. Now with the X I have the Qualcomm chip and no dropped calls and I get 2 bars at home consistently, (I live in a cell dead zone)
The other thing is I’ve been reading it even improves battery life sometimes significantly. The jury is out on that because I’ve only had the phone a day. But from what I’m reading the qualcomm chip most likely cost 5-7 dollars more and it’s far superior. So happy I didn’t get intel.
 
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How do you know that you don't have the Intel chip?? is the Verizon Model the only one that doesn't have it?
 
Gooberton said:
this is a huge deal going unnoticed, my 7 plus has the intel chip and it always had dropped calls and even worse I could only get 1 bar at my house. Now with the X I have the quallcom chip and no dropped calls and I get 2 bars at home consistently, (I live in a cell dead zone)
The other thing is I’ve been reading it even improves battery life sometimes significantly. The jury is out on that because I’ve only had the phone a day. But from what I’m reading the quallcom chip most likely cost 5-7 dollars more and it’s far superior. So happy I didn’t get intel.
Click to expand...
The jury is out? I would assume there is somebody out there having the complete opposite experience as you.
 
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Bersi
gigapocket1 said:
How do you know that you don't have the Intel chip?? is the Verizon Model the only one that doesn't have it?
Click to expand...
Verizon, sim-free and Best Buy international version are the ones that have it.

It’s the a1865
[doublepost=1509800959][/doublepost]
Closingracer said:
The jury is out? I would assume there is somebody out there having the complete opposite experience as you.
Click to expand...
There’s not because if you research it you’ll see. It’s not an opinion. It’s a far better chip. Apple chooses to use both to save money on the intel side.
 
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Gooberton said:
There’s not because if you research it you’ll see. It’s not an opinion. It’s a far better chip. Apple chooses to use both to save money on the intel side.
Click to expand...

Actually, I have quite the opposite experience, but without controlled tests YMMV. Had a Qualcomm iPhone 7 that would have garbled audio issues on my drive home with T-Mobile in the exact same spot every time. Received my Intel iPhone X yesterday, never had a single issue on the drive home. Tested again this morning back on the 7 just to make sure it wasn't a fluke in the network, garbled audio returned at the same spot.

I will say the speed tests appear to be slightly slower than they were previously, at least as far as download is concerned. Uploads with the Intel chip don't experience the spike and sudden drop-off while the test is running.
 
Your anecdotal evidence proves nothing. You are comparing two different phone design and trying to draw a conclusion.

The X could have better antennas or even that glass back might give better reception.

Report back when you have 2 identical phone models with the different chips.
 
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Stewie said:
Your anecdotal evidence proves nothing. You are comparing two different phone design and trying to draw a conclusion.

The X could have better antennas or even that glass back might give better reception.

Report back when you have 2 identical phone models with the different chips.
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I’m
Actually tempted . They are in stock at Apple right now
 
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Here's another (true) anecdote: my 7+ with Intel modem has never once dropped a call, nor do I remember experiencing that sort of thing ever before, except when on the train going through a tunnel. It also has the exact same ****** reception at my house as every other iPhone I've owned since the 3G.
 
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dotnet said:
Here's another (true) anecdote: my 7+ with Intel modem has never once dropped a call, nor do I remember experiencing that sort of thing ever before, except when on the train going through a tunnel. It also has the exact same ****** reception at my house as every other iPhone I've owned since the 3G.
Click to expand...

Are you using T-Mobile WiFi calling without realizing it
 
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My reason for wanting the Qualcomm is for safety. I'm on AT&T and I spend most of my time in areas of good GSM coverage. But about every two or three months, I'm skiing or hiking in rural areas without GSM coverage, and having a Qualcomm phone lets me access 911 via CDMA if need be, even if my screen shows "No service available." This is why I'm buying a Verizon iPhone X to use with AT&T.
 
dotnet said:
Here's another (true) anecdote: my 7+ with Intel modem has never once dropped a call, nor do I remember experiencing that sort of thing ever before, except when on the train going through a tunnel. It also has the exact same ****** reception at my house as every other iPhone I've owned since the 3G.
Click to expand...
Wrong again
 
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On TMob now, previously ATT. When I was on ATT never really had any reception issues and a few past ATT iPhone models had Intel chips. My time on TMob was with a 7, SIM-Free, so Qualcomm. Reception was variable, mostly because of TMob, based on it's reputation. So whether Qualcomm in the iPhone is better or same as Intel, who knows, esp. since we do know Apple gimped the QCom chip in the X to be on the same level as the Intel.

That said I did buy a VZW model to use on TMob. If you are paying full boat there is zero reason not to. The VZW model is more versatile and if the reception and battery life improvement proves true it's another bonus.
 
I had the Intel iPhone 7 and got it stolen so got the sim free version. My intel 7 had slightly better signal overall.
 
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Gooberton said:
this is a huge deal going unnoticed, my 7 plus has the intel chip and it always had dropped calls and even worse I could only get 1 bar at my house. Now with the X I have the Qualcomm chip and no dropped calls and I get 2 bars at home consistently, (I live in a cell dead zone)
The other thing is I’ve been reading it even improves battery life sometimes significantly. The jury is out on that because I’ve only had the phone a day. But from what I’m reading the qualcomm chip most likely cost 5-7 dollars more and it’s far superior. So happy I didn’t get intel.
Click to expand...
Confirmation bias, also called confirmatory bias or myside bias, is the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms one's preexisting beliefs or hypotheses.
Click to expand...
 
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It's fairly likely the Qualcomm chip will be better as Intel is still behind. That gap should narrow or be gone next year I hope as it's super annoying to jump thru hoops to get the Qualcomm chip. I agree tho we should wait to get testing from some of the labs to see the size of the gap.
More than likely it will be - slightly better reception in rough coverage areas and battery life.
 
Gooberton said:
this is a huge deal going unnoticed, my 7 plus has the intel chip and it always had dropped calls and even worse I could only get 1 bar at my house. Now with the X I have the Qualcomm chip and no dropped calls and I get 2 bars at home consistently, (I live in a cell dead zone)
The other thing is I’ve been reading it even improves battery life sometimes significantly. The jury is out on that because I’ve only had the phone a day. But from what I’m reading the qualcomm chip most likely cost 5-7 dollars more and it’s far superior. So happy I didn’t get intel.
Click to expand...

I can comment on this with facts. For the IP7 and IP8 I got the Qualcomm phones. These were both used for ATT. This time I got the ATT version or the Intel on my iPhone X. The Voice quality and the reception if far better than my IP8 with the Qualcomm chip. So far battery life is fantastic, so to all of the instigators who are trying to push the Qualcomm chip as the one to get I am not buying it. Also realize Qualcomm is being replaced by Intel in the future.
 
Gooberton said:
this is a huge deal going unnoticed, my 7 plus has the intel chip and it always had dropped calls and even worse I could only get 1 bar at my house. Now with the X I have the Qualcomm chip and no dropped calls and I get 2 bars at home consistently, (I live in a cell dead zone)
The other thing is I’ve been reading it even improves battery life sometimes significantly. The jury is out on that because I’ve only had the phone a day. But from what I’m reading the qualcomm chip most likely cost 5-7 dollars more and it’s far superior. So happy I didn’t get intel.
Click to expand...
I had ATT Phone 7+ and reception left a lot of to desire, it was OK, but not great. Now I have ATT iPhone 8+ with Intel modem, and reception improved dramatically. Not sure, maybe there are some changes to Intel modem this year as well?
 
if it makes you happy, then all is good

otherwise it can be a variety of external factors - new tower was built, new small cell, new 600 / 700 mhz LTE expansion, increased broadcasting power / beam forming from base station... among the big 4 carriers all these activities are currently on going across all markets

qualcomm was significantly better than intels first gen radio chip set. not sure how intels second gen stacks up but i expect the gap to shrink a bit

Gooberton said:
this is a huge deal going unnoticed, my 7 plus has the intel chip and it always had dropped calls and even worse I could only get 1 bar at my house. Now with the X I have the Qualcomm chip and no dropped calls and I get 2 bars at home consistently, (I live in a cell dead zone)
The other thing is I’ve been reading it even improves battery life sometimes significantly. The jury is out on that because I’ve only had the phone a day. But from what I’m reading the qualcomm chip most likely cost 5-7 dollars more and it’s far superior. So happy I didn’t get intel.
Click to expand...
 
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