Apple's 5G iPhone May Rely on a Custom Antenna: Report

Seems like Qualcomm's antennas are too big for Apple and that's why the iPhone maker is designing the antenna module that will be used in its 5G iPhone models. According to a report in Fast Company, in a year where the 5G radio will be the new iPhone's spotlight feature, Apple has decided to design the phone's antenna itself.

Apple balked at the QTM 525 millimetre-wave antenna module offered to it by Qualcomm because it doesn't fit into the sleek industrial design Apple wants for the new phone, a source with knowledge of Apple's plans told Fast Company on Friday.

However, chipset making giant Qualcomm will still provide the 5G modem chip used in the new iPhones.

Apple typically designs on several tracks, and it's concurrently working on another design that uses both the Qualcomm modem and antenna.

It could default to this option later this year, our source said. But that would require Apple to settle for a slightly thicker iPhone than it wants. Qualcomm has said that its QTM 525 antenna module will "support 5G smartphone designs sleeker than 8 millimetres thick", the report added.

Apple is expected to launch as many as four new iPhone models spread across different display sizes in 2020. The recent report claimed that the iPhone 12 will come in three size versions, including 5.4-inch, 6.1-inch, and 6.7-inch, but Apple will release two distinct 6.1-inch models, according to a source. The 6.7-inch model will have a thickness around 7.4mm, which would be nearly 10 percent thinner than the iPhone 11 Pro Max at 8.1mm.

Additionally, it also claims that the 6.7-inch model will be slightly taller than the iPhone 11 Pro Max and feature a triple-lens rear camera.

Is Realme C3 price likely to usher in a budget smartphone revolution? We discussed this on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.