Apple’s understood to be working on heavily enhanced cellular technologies for its next smartphones. According to a research note from reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the company will fit next year’s handsets with new liquid crystal polymer (LCP) antennas. The note, passed to MacRumors, said the upgraded modules will support 4×4 MiMO transfers, improved from 2×2 MiMO on current iPhone models.
MiMO technology allows devices to make multiple simultaneous connections to a cell tower, increasing bandwidth and improving resilience to poor network quality. 4×4 MiMO raises the maximum number of connections to four, providing considerably greater throughput between the handset and the tower. This helps to deliver 1Gbps LTE speeds.
Another factor in the speed boost will come from enhanced modems capable of supporting the higher transfer rate. Apple will source components from both Qualcomm and Intel, using chips from each which are able to support the gigabit standard. Apple’s currently working with Intel to develop 5G modems for use in future iPhones, intending to reduce its reliance on Qualcomm.
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All this progress could allow Apple to start to catch up with the cellular capabilities offered by Android smartphones. Several Android devices already feature gigabit LTE support, including high-profile handsets like the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Sony Xperia XZ Premium. Adding gigabit modems to the iPhone will help to future-proof the device while demonstrating Apple’s commitment to improving cellular connectivity.
At present, the release of gigabit-capable smartphones is still overshadowed by a lack of gigabit LTE networks actually in deployment. Mobile carriers are yet to release their next-generation mobile networks and many 5G technologies are still in development. All the concerned parties are starting to prepare themselves though, meaning faster mobile networks might not be too far off.
While 1Gbps connections won’t be available to all users, gigabit networks should considerably raise average network speeds too. The technology’s also more resilient than regular LTE to heavy usage, poor signal and the demands of streaming high-bitrate content, making it more suited to the modern Internet. You could download a new film or game in a matter of seconds, utilising speeds faster than most broadband connections.
