Apple has just introduced the iPhone 16E, a spiritual successor to the iPhone SE line that has a significant first: it introduces Apple’s long-awaited in-house 5G modem called the C1. The chip, which Apple says is the most power-efficient modem in a phone, is Apple’s bid to end its reliance on Qualcomm’s 5G chips.
Apple says the chip contributes to the 16E’s longer battery life. The company says the phone’s internal design is optimized to support a larger battery, giving it up to 26 hours of video playback. According to Apple’s technical specifications for the iPhone 16E, its new chip covers much of the same low-end 5G spectrum as the iPhone 16 but lacks mmWave — that’s the 5G with gigabit-territory throughput.
The C1 starting in the 16E makes sense: the $599 device is now the cheapest way to get one of Apple’s thin-bezel phones with Apple Intelligence. If this inaugural outing for the chip doesn’t end up being great, people may chalk it up to this being a more affordable phone.
This has been nearly six years in the making, with Apple having bought Intel’s cell modem business in 2019. There’s every reason to be skeptical that it will perform as well as Qualcomm. In 2023, the company extended its deal with Qualcomm. The news was followed by a report that it was struggling with its in-house modem’s design. But 2026 is coming, and the C1 may be the first step toward Apple weaning itself off of Qualcomm once and for all.
The iPhone 16E is available to preorder tomorrow and ships on February 28th.
