Today, " Apple analyst" Ming-Chi Kuo broke the news on Twitter . The latest investigation shows: Apple's self-developed iPhone 5G baseband chip development may have failed. Qualcomm will continue to be the exclusive 5G chip for the new iPhone in 2023. Supplier, the supply share is 100% (Qualcomm previously estimated 20%). The
baseband chip is regarded as the "nerve center" of smartphones and is responsible for encoding and decoding digital signals between mobile phones and communication networks. Without a baseband chip, the mobile phone will not be able to generate and analyze signals, and will not be able to implement communication network functions.
In December 2020, Apple executives publicly announced plans to develop self-developed baseband chips, preparing to "say goodbye" to Qualcomm baseband. Apple's senior vice president mentioned that research and development of baseband chips is a long-term strategic investment and the key to having rich innovative technologies.
If other companies threaten to develop self-developed chips, they will be questioned, but no one should underestimate Apple's strength. At present, Apple has developed operating systems such as iOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS, as well as the A-series processors in the iPhone product line, and the M-series processors in the Macbook product line, and is famous.
In November 2021, Qualcomm also seemed to be ready to "break up" with Apple. Qualcomm revealed that by the time Apple’s new machine is launched in 2023, the proportion of Qualcomm baseband chips in the iPhone will be reduced from 100% to 20%.
Currently, the only companies in the world that can supply 5G mobile phone baseband chips are Qualcomm, MediaTek , Huawei HiSilicon, UNISOC and other companies. According to the latest smartphone chip share rankings, Qualcomm has the highest revenue, MediaTek has the highest shipments, and Apple ranks second with a market share of 26%.
Qualcomm said at the end of 2021 that excluding Apple's sales, its mobile phone business revenue will grow faster than the overall market, mainly due to its cooperation with Xiaomi , OPPO and vivo and other Chinese smartphone manufacturers.
Of course, Apple will continue to develop 5G chips, but it may have to wait a few more years. However, by then, and Huawei should have their own chips available, which is a happy thing. According to reports, Huawei is developing a processor chip called "Pangu", which is likely to use the ARM architecture and will be used in PC computer equipment.
