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What You Should Know About Apple's 5G Modem

vmiyoshi said:
I don’t believe Apple’s modem will surpass Qualcomm’s. Qualcomm is the industry standard. Furthermore, Apple’s decision not to support mmWave is a negative move. I understand that mmWave doesn’t travel as far and has other drawbacks, but it’s faster and has been a part of the 5G standard since its inception. Limiting 5G to mid-band is a step backward. Additionally, there’s no support for NR-DC.
Click to expand...
mmWave is US only and by the time the Apple modem launches, mmWave will be obsolete
 
Chuckeee said:
If Apple really believe their modem offered superior performance (sensitivity and/or power consumption) they would not be debuting it on the lowest rung SE iPhone. It is obviously less expensive but its other capabilities (in the wild) is a big unknown. It makes the iPhone SE4 just a paid beta test vehicle. It might work GREAT but it might not.
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No matter your confidence, there are always complications when you ship millions of devices into the real world. It is obviously better less risky for Apple to put new chips like this into a lower volume device like the SE.

In addition, since they are evidently not ready to include mmWave bands, that would not work in the main line of phones.
 
kamyk35 said:
Good move by Apple, if they launch it, it will work, I have no qualms about it.
Qualcomm is a monopoly, no ifs & buts!
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How is Qualcomm a monopoly when they have 45% modem market share? Mediatek and Intel had the remainder. I don’t think you know what a monopoly is. A hint is in the first half of the word…mono.
 
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Apple is welcome to come over and buy my USRobotics Courier 56K and reverse engineer it for their uses. That thing was ROCK SOLID.
 
Harry Haller said:
How is Qualcomm a monopoly when they have 45% modem market share? Mediatek and Intel had the remainder. I don’t think you know what a monopoly is. A hint is in the first half of the word…mono.
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While I don’t wish to argue whether Qualcomm has a monopoly, your understanding of antitrust and monopoly activities is sorely mistaken if you believe having only “mono” company is required. In law, a monopoly is a business entity that has significant market power to charge overly high prices, which is associated with unfair price raises. (Wiki link for easy reading.)

Apple is currently being sued by the US Justice Department for antitrust monopolist activities in the mobile phone market. Surely Apple aren’t the ONLY or “mono” mobile phone manufacturer. Apple reportedly has 17.7% global recently and 55.9% in US. Surely the US DOJ understands the definition of monopolies better than most of us.
www.justice.gov

Justice Department Sues Apple for Monopolizing Smartphone Markets

The Justice Department, joined by 16 other state and district attorneys general, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit against Apple for monopolization or attempted monopolization of smartphone markets in violation of Section 2 of the Sherman Act.
www.justice.gov www.justice.gov
 
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kamyk35 said:
mmWave is US only and by the time the Apple modem launches, mmWave will be obsolete
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Can anyone comment on this?

The article also stated
"which is essentially U.S. iPhones. mmWave is still limited in availability in many countries, so Apple only has mmWave-capable modems in iPhones sold in the United States."

However back in 2022 mmWave was already deployed in many cities in Japan.

According to
www.qualcomm.com

5G mmWave making waves in Japan

Explore how 5G mmWave technology is transforming Japan. Learn more about the potential of 5G mmWave and how it is revolutionizing the way we use technology.
www.qualcomm.com www.qualcomm.com

All four major mobile operators in Japan have launched 5G mmWave​


So... the iPhones in Japan must have it, otherwise they couldn't have tested it back in 2022
 
vegetassj4 said:
What to expect?

CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA Apple today introduced the new Apple 5G Modem, supercharged by the iModem Pro chip and Apple Intelligence, the all in one communications package will deliver groundbreaking communications intelligence that is helpful and relevant while protecting user privacy. With a beloved ultrafast design, the Apple 5G modem will be available in four gorgeous finishes, including blue and purple, and features a brilliant laser etched logo. iModem Pro delivers a huge performance boost for even the most demanding tasks, with faster WiFi and 5G than ever before, and support for Apple Intelligence. The versatility and advanced capabilities of the new Apple 5G modem are taken to a whole new level with support for Apple Pencil Pro and Apple Vision Pro, opening up entirely new ways to be even more productive and creative. The Apple 5G modem is years ahead of any other modem, we think you are going to love it.
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OMG. I started reading this with John Ternus (Senior Vice President Hardware Engineering) in my head… and was going, Communication Intelligence - yes (tick), Protecting Privacy - yes (tick) … purple? Well done I tell you 😃.
 
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My intel Modem was fine. The samsung modems in my pixels were fine (in fact out performed the qualcoms in the galaxys I had) Antenna design is Key. I'm sure this will be fine.
 
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Karllake said:
[...] the next generation won't accept that iPads can have cellular but Laptops can't. Next, if your laptop and phone have cellular, do you need Cable/Wifi or could units such as ATVs have their own cellular plans and create a P2P mesh for everything else.
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Laptops can have cellular data, but not Apple laptops. 3G/4G/etc modems have been available in ThinkPads for at least a decade.

My personal opinion: I'd rather have wired Internet service instead of cellular data per-device. Aside from questions of per-device fees and additional costs of adding modems to more devices, the radio spectrum for cellular data is limited (compared to WiFi). But yet Verizon/T-Mobile/etc offer 4G/5G-based "home" internet that operates similar to this - essentially just a box that does WiFi tethering onto cellular data...

In the rare occasions I do need mobile data on my laptop, I'd just tether to my phone...
 
Harry Haller said:
How is Qualcomm a monopoly when they have 45% modem market share? Mediatek and Intel had the remainder. I don’t think you know what a monopoly is. A hint is in the first half of the word…mono.
Click to expand...

The other hint is in the word… poly

A monopoly is what it says. It’s a single company that has control over selling or supplying something. There is no competition that can disrupt their market influence. The monopoly sets the terms for that product or service. Qualcomm chips have become the "standard" and being the only producer, are considered a monopoly in that area. It doesn’t mean they are the only company that makes modems. It means they single handedly control the mobile phone modem market.

In mobile phone terms, we have a Duopoly of Phone operating systems. The competition Between the 2 with regard to hardware is great and is spread amongst a large number of manufacturers . It helps keep prices competitive. However the monopolistic behaviours of both of those companies is the tragedy.

Often Monopolies occur in countries with things like Mail Delivery, Utilities, Roads, Transport and importantly Patents. .

A monopoly doesn’t mean there is no one else in that market, it means a single company controls that market.

Maybe Apple can break the monopoly of Qualcomm who force massive licensing fees to use their patents, just like LIV Golf are providing an alternative to the Monopoly that is or was PGA Tour. It takes very deep pockets to break a monopoly and often fails. We should be hoping Apple do this.
 
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steve09090 said:
The other hint is in the word… poly

A monopoly is what it says. It’s a single company that has control over selling or supplying something. There is no competition that can disrupt their market influence. The monopoly sets the terms for that product or service. Qualcomm chips have become the "standard" and being the only producer, are considered a monopoly in that area. It doesn’t mean they are the only company that makes modems. It means they single handedly control the mobile phone modem market.

In mobile phone terms, we have a Duopoly of Phone operating systems. The competition Between the 2 with regard to hardware is great and is spread amongst a large number of manufacturers . It helps keep prices competitive. However the monopolistic behaviours of both of those companies is the tragedy.

Often Monopolies occur in countries with things like Mail Delivery, Utilities, Roads, Transport and importantly Patents. .

A monopoly doesn’t mean there is no one else in that market, it means a single company controls that market.

Maybe Apple can break the monopoly of Qualcomm who force massive licensing fees to use their patents, just like LIV Golf are providing an alternative to the Monopoly that is or was PGA Tour. It takes very deep pockets to break a monopoly and often fails. We should be hoping Apple do this.
Click to expand...

Will that be before or after Apple’s monopoly is broken?
 
Harry Haller said:
Will that be before or after Apple’s monopoly is broken?
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It’s an ongoing struggle. 😃 And different things. If people want to whinge about Apple (and Googles) Monopolisation of an operating system then they can’t complain about Apple trying to break Qualcomms. Well then can complain and they will, but they are hypocrites when they do.
 
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