One of Apple’s key marketing plays surrounding the upcoming iPhone 17 Air will be that it will be the company’s first device to not just ship with an in-house Wi-Fi chip, but also a custom 5G modem. In a previous report, we mentioned that the ultra-sleek flagship would ship with these two components, but at the time, it was unclear if Apple was going to source the best baseband chip for the iPhone 17 Air or re-use a part that already exists in an existing model. Turns out that it is the latter, and while there are some useful scenarios of the device housing the C1 modem, the drawback is that, like the iPhone 16e, it will miss out on mmWave network support.
A switch from a Qualcomm 5G modem to the C1 on the iPhone 17 Air could result in better battery life, just like it did with the iPhone 16e
The entire iPhone 17 lineup, with the exception of the iPhone 17 Air, is expected to ship with a Qualcomm 5G modem, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Unfortunately, no C2 baseband chip will arrive for the slimmer version, as it will also ship with the same C1 found in the iPhone 16e. Perhaps one of the biggest drawbacks of this in-house silicon was that it did not support mmWave networks, only sub-6GHz ones. In most cases, any device connected to a mmWave network can reach up to 1Gbps+ downlink speeds, while sub-6GHz ones can reach between 100-700Mbps.
However, sub-6GHz has significantly higher coverage and range, making this band much more reliable, not to mention less taxing on the battery. Fortunately, despite the lack of this upgrade, the iPhone 16e was marketed as the best 6.1-inch model if you were looking for top-end battery life, and this was in part due to the use of the C1 modem. The same benefits are expected to arrive for the iPhone 17 Air, which will be necessary, considering that the latter is rumored to feature a measly 2,800mAh battery.
These improvements will be made possible because the C1, working with the smartphone’s A19 Pro chipset, will intelligently determine which data traffic should be given priority, thereby adapting to the user’s needs and saving battery as a result. In short, the perks arriving to the iPhone 17 Air in exchange for the lack of mmWave network support should be well worth it, but we expect some fair criticism to arrive in Apple’s direction, especially when the company is expected to charge a premium for this upcoming release.
News Source: Mark Gurman
About the author: Omar Sohail is a reporter and analyst for Wccftech's mobile section, specializing in the technology and business of the mobile industry. His expertise lies in the intricate hardware supply chain, covering developments in semiconductor manufacturing, chip lithography, and camera sensor technology.
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