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According to a fresh report from DigiTimes, Apple is in preliminary conversations with new vendors regarding backend orders for its first in-house 5G modem chips for iPhones. Apple is said to be in talks with ASE Technology, the parent company of Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE) and Siliconware Precision Industries (SPIL), to package some of its first self-designed 5G modem chips.
Custom made iPhone 5G modems production starts
According to the article, Qualcomm has worked with ASE and SPIL to package 5G modem chips for iPhones, including Qualcomm’s newest Snapdragon X65 5G modem-RF system, which is now being built by Samsung Electronics.
According to the sources, Apple is expected to ship at least 200 million new iPhones in 2023, and will almost certainly rely on a number of partners to handle backend processing of its in-house 5G modem chips and RF transceiver ICs, based on its standard supply chain management policy for its devices.
The majority of Apple’s new in-house modem chips, which are expected to debut in the 2023 iPhone, have already been ordered from TSMC, the company’s main chip manufacturing supplier. Apple and TSMC are now evaluating Apple’s in-house modem designs using TSMC’s 5-nanometer process, but mass production will shift to the more advanced 4-nanometer technology.
The flagship A-series chip in the 2022 iPhone range will be made using 4-nanometer technology, while the A-series processors in the 2022 iPads and 2023 iPhones will be made with 3-nanometer technology.
Businesses will be able to shift away with Qualcomm as a supplier of critical processors that enable cellular connectivity, a move that has been in the works for years and was aided by Apple’s acquisition of the majority of Intel’s modem division in 2019.
What else we know so far:
According to a fresh rumor from a Chinese news agency, TSMC is prepared to fill all of Apple’s 5G modem orders for the next iPhone 14 series. This revelation contradicts a previous rumor that said TSMC would only accept a fraction of the orders.
The 5G modem is said to be built on TSMC’s 6nm node, which is a major advance above the Qualcomm modems currently in use in iPhones. As a consequence, electricity usage should be lowered.
There’s also inside information regarding an Apple power management chip that’s being developed to enhance the modem. Other mmWave and radio frequency improvements are planned as well.
