Apple’s yet-to-be-announced “iPhone 13” lineup will use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X60 5G modem, with Samsung handling the manufacturing of the X60, says a report from DigiTimes.
The X60 is built using a 5nm process and offers improved power efficiency jammed into a smaller footprint compared to the current 7nm-based Snapdragon X55 modem used in iPhone 12 models. The X60 should offer a longer battery life. The X60 modem would also allow iPhone 13 models to aggregate 5G data from both mmWave and sub-6GHz bands simultaneously.
mmWave offers the fastest 5G technology and is used in dense urban areas, while sub-6GHz (which offers faster than 4G connections but is slower than mmWave) is used more broadly in suburban and less densely packed urban areas.
mmWave support on iPhone 12 models is limited to the United States, but rumors suggest that iPhone 13 models may support mmWave in additional countries.
Apple is expected to start using its own in-house 5G modems for iPhones as early as 2023.