Apple put its first homemade C1 modem chip inside the iPhone 16e. The company kept quiet about how good this chip really is because more expensive iPhones still use Qualcomm parts. Tim Cook finally spoke up during a money report call about these new parts. He said Apple makes better products that focus on customer battery life. The tech boss called it the start of a journey.
The C1 modem beats the Snapdragon X71 found in other iPhone 16 models. It helps the iPhone 16e last longer on a charge than any other 6.1-inch iPhone from Apple. But the company stays careful with its marketing because the iPhone 17 family, coming later this year, will still carry Qualcomm modems. Apple wants to avoid hurting sales of those future phones.
Apple is already working on the next C2 modem chip. The new version should support faster mmWave networks missing from the current C1. Most experts think the C2 will first appear in the iPhone 18 series. This shows Apple plans to keep making its wireless parts instead of buying them from other companies.
The C1 modem beats the Snapdragon X71 found in other iPhone 16 models. It helps the iPhone 16e last longer on a charge than any other 6.1-inch iPhone from Apple. But the company stays careful with its marketing because the iPhone 17 family, coming later this year, will still carry Qualcomm modems. Apple wants to avoid hurting sales of those future phones.
Apple is already working on the next C2 modem chip. The new version should support faster mmWave networks missing from the current C1. Most experts think the C2 will first appear in the iPhone 18 series. This shows Apple plans to keep making its wireless parts instead of buying them from other companies.
