TechInsights has <a href="https://www.techinsights.com/blog/apple-iphone-18-pro-max-teardown” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank”>published one of the first in-depth iPhone 18 Pro Max teardowns. Most notably, the teardown confirms that the iPhone 18 Pro Max sold in the United States still uses a Qualcomm modem.
On its tech specs website, Apple says the iPhone 18 Pro uses the Apple C2 cellular modem. In every country other than the United States, Apple says the iPhone 18 Pro Max also uses its C2 cellular modem.
The company, however, doesn’t specify which modem the U.S. variant of the iPhone 18 Pro Max uses. Speculation suggested the iPhone 18 Pro Max used a Qualcomm modem, and this teardown confirms it.
According to the TechInsights teardown, the iPhone 18 Pro Max variant sold in the United States uses the Qualcomm Snapdragon X80 modem. This is the same modem used worldwide in the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max.
So, to recap, here’s how Apple’s transition to its own in-house modem technology has played out in the United States specifically:
- iPhone 16 / 16 Plus / 16 Pro / 16 Pro Max: Qualcomm Snapdragon X71
- iPhone 16e: Apple C1
- iPhone 17 / 17 Pro / 17 Pro Max: Qualcomm X80
- iPhone Air: Apple C1X
- iPhone 17e: Apple C1X
- iPhone 18 Pro: Apple C2
- iPhone 18 Pro Max: Qualcomm X80
- iPhone Duo: Apple C2
Apple touts that the C2 brings “AI-powered improvements to cellular quality and reliability.” In comparison to the C1X, Apple says the C2 delivers “meaningfully faster uploads when compared to C1X while consuming 15 percent less energy.” The C2 modem also supports mmWave 5G, unlike the C1 and C1X.
It seems clear to me that Apple has caught up to Qualcomm, now that the C2 supports mmWave 5G connectivity. Apple’s C-series modems have always been more power-efficient than Qualcomm’s (which, I’d wager, is something most people care more about than raw download and upload speeds).
Apple hasn’t said why the iPhone 18 Pro Max still uses a Qualcomm modem. The likely explanation, though, is that the decision is purely contractual, and Apple will ditch Qualcomm once and for all as soon as it can.
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