Qualcomm today announced the renewal of its global patent licensing agreement with Apple, effective April 1, 2027. No further details were provided.
This patent agreement is separate from Qualcomm’s agreement to supply Apple with cellular modems for smartphone launches through 2026, so we expect Apple’s transition to its own custom-designed modems to continue. Among the latest iPhone models, only the American version of the iPhone 18 Pro Max still has a Qualcomm modem.
The smaller iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo feature Apple’s C2 modem worldwide, as does the iPhone 18 Pro Max in all countries beyond the US, while cellular models of the latest iPad Pro and iPad Air use Apple’s previous generation C1X modem.
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Apple says the iPhone 18 Pro Max sold in the US differs in one way
As noted by Nicolas Lellouche, who writes for French tech site Numerama, Apple has updated its technical specifications pages for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max to clarify which models are equipped with its new C2 cellular modem and where. Apple now says the iPhone 18 Pro has a C2 modem worldwide, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max uses the chip in every country except the United States.
iPhone 18 Pro Max in the US features Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X80 modem
TechInsights has published a teardown of the iPhone 18 Pro Max which confirms that the US version of the device is equipped with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X80 modem. The device’s modem firmware was already pointing to the Snapdragon X80 modem. The smaller iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo use Apple’s custom-designed C2 modem worldwide, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max uses the C2 modem in all other…
Qualcomm increases chip prices starting tomorrow
Qualcomm is raising its chip prices by double digits starting tomorrow. Qualcomm announced an impending price hike in July, informing customers that prices for chips shipped after September 1 would increase. Qualcomm said it could not continue to absorb rising supplier costs. “We are simply experiencing large cost increases,” Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said in a statement.
