Revealed: All the ways Apple's first modem will lag behind even old Android phones

Apple has been working on its own 5G modem for a long time, with reports over the years pointing to a raft of issues and delays. We previously heard that this in-house modem could debut on the iPhone SE 2025, and we’ve now heard plenty more apparent details about the company’s modem roadmap.

Bloomberg reports, citing people familiar with the matter, that Apple will indeed debut its 5G modem inside the iPhone SE next year. This first effort is apparently codenamed Sinope and is also slated to appear in some lower-tier iPads next year. Furthermore, the outlet adds that this modem will come to a slimmer “mid-tier” iPhone codenamed D23, which sounds like the rumored iPhone 17 Air.

Apple’s first 5G modem could be a big downgrade

This first modem will actually be a step back from the Qualcomm-supplied modems used in the last few generations of iPhone, though. It won’t support the fast but temperamental mmWave 5G standard which is used by T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T in certain areas. That differs from many top Android phones in the US, which typically support mmWave connections in addition to the more widespread sub-6GHz 5G standard. In fact, many old flagship Android phones offer mmWave connectivity in the market. This omission might not be a train smash, though, as most cheap Android phones lack this feature in the US, and we’re expecting the iPhone SE 2025 to be a mid-range proposition.

Bloomberg also shed more light on this first-generation custom Apple modem, saying it supports four carrier aggregation. By contrast, the Snapdragon X80 modem supports 6x carrier aggregation and 10x carrier aggregation for mmWave. The new part is said to top out at 4Gbps downlink speeds in lab conditions, far short of the 10Gbps theoretical speeds seen in Qualcomm’s last three flagship processors. But real-world speeds are much lower than lab tests so we’re keen to see what kind of speeds you can actually get with a commercial device.

Apple purportedly believes that the new modem will deliver better performance relative to SAR limits, better support satellite capabilities, and efficiency improvements. The company is also said to be working on support for dual-SIM dual-standby capabilities.

Either way, it’s clear that this first Apple modem will be inferior compared to previous iPhones and many old Android phones. But we’ll have to wait to see whether consumers will notice this degraded experience. After all, it’s one thing to see slightly slower real-world speeds, but it’s another matter entirely to experience dropped calls, slow switching between Wi-Fi and cellular connections, and unreliable data connectivity. Just ask Google and its Pixel 6 series.

Apple’s roadmap to beat Qualcomm

The outlet shed light on Apple’s sophomore modem too, said to be codenamed Ganymede. This modem will apparently be used in the iPhone 18 series and high-end iPads in 2026. Ganymede is poised to feature mmWave support, 6Gbps downlink speeds, 6x carrier aggregation for sub-6GHz 5G, and 8x carriers for mmWave.

Apple’s third-generation modem is apparently called Prometheus (in keeping with the moon-themed names). The company hopes this part will catch up to Qualcomm’s modems in terms of performance and AI capabilities while offering support for next-generation satellite networks.

Following these releases, Apple is discussing integrating the modem into the chipset down the line. By contrast, Qualcomm’s own 5G modems have been integrated into its top Snapdragon processors since 2021. An integrated approach typically results in improved efficiency and, therefore, better battery life.

We wouldn’t blame you if you were skeptical about Apple’s lofty ambitions with its modems. After all, numerous reports over the years painted a picture of a project that was in shambles and well behind the rest of the industry. However, Bloomberg reported that Apple hired “scores” of employees from Qualcomm while also reorganizing management and changing development practices in a bid to improve matters.