One of the upcoming iPhone 17 models is expected to feature a Wi-Fi 7 chip designed in-house by Apple, reports always-informed supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Currently, iPhones rely on Broadcom’s combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, but Ming-Chi Kuo predicts that Apple will move “nearly all” of its products to in-house Wi-Fi technology within three years.
WiFi 7, where to find it in France?
You weren’t dreaming, all iPhone 16 models already support Wi-Fi 7 via Broadcom’s chip. But as with Qualcomm’s 5G modem, the Cupertino company wants to develop its own components.
The analyst Kuo notes that Apple’s own chip will be fully compatible with the latest Wi-Fi 7 specifications. Manufactured using the TSMC 7nm process, it should improve performance in terms of bandwidth but also, and above all, energy efficiency. The autonomy could increase further, which will not displease anyone. This information supports previous observations from analyst Jeff Pu, who predicted that Apple’s Wi-Fi 7 chip would first appear in the iPhone 17 Pro models and spread across the entire iPhone 18 lineup.
Wi-Fi 7 supports data transmission on the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz bands simultaneously, enabling higher speeds, lower latency and more reliable connections. The technology can reach peak speeds of over 40 Gbps, which is significantly faster than Wi-Fi 6E.
This change would allow Apple to reduce component costs and deepen hardware and software integration, just as it plans to do with the 5G modem. Except that the latter gives engineers a lot of trouble, with some rumors even suggesting that the project will be abandoned.
Regardless, Apple is aiming for a completely in-house iPhone, which will be profitable for customers and shareholders.
