After many rumors about the technology that Apple will use to equip its iPhones with 5G technology, it seems that the company will end up using its own antenna design, mainly because it is not satisfied with what Qualcomm offers them. It will use its chip, but the antenna will be designed in Cupertino.
5G connectivity is the future. Despite the fact that the operators, and to a lesser extent some manufacturers, want us to believe that it is already the present, the reality is that the infrastructure is still far from offering real 5G coverage in most cities (we are not even talking about rural areas). The models with 5G technology inside come with a dropper, reserved for the most exclusive smartphones, and at quite high prices.
Apple appears to be taking the plunge this year, with iPhones launching after the summer. And it looks like it will do so by combining Qualcomm's technology and its own. On the one hand it will use the Qualcomm chip, but as regards the antenna it will use its own design. The reason for this decision lies in the design of the iPhone. According to company sources, the Qualcomm antenna would not fit into the design that Apple wants to give to its next iPhone.
This is a real challenge for Apple, since combining two different technologies for such an essential element is not an easy task. For that very Apple reserves a different, thicker design in case its antenna design fails, something that they do not expect to happen but that they admit that they cannot rule out today. In addition, the company wants to depend as little as possible on Qualcomm, it is not necessary to remember the confrontation between the two companies that ended with an agreement but whose ashes are still hot.
This decision to combine different technologies would only be for this year 2020. Apple's plans include ending up using its own 5G chips, which is why they bought Intel's modem business, but the development of these own chips will not arrive, at the earliest, until 2021, so for now you need Qualcomm if you want to use 5G on your iPhone.