When Apple introduced the iPhone 16E a few weeks ago, one aspect that attracted the most attention was its network chip. C1 is the first in-house modem of Apple that appears inside an iPhone, which digs the company’s total dependence on Qualcomm. However, there was also a concern whether it was a modem competitive.
People at the popular internet speed testing platform, Ocla tested the Apple-designed modem and found that it defeats Qualcomm’s solution within the iPhone 16 on some important parameters. The analysis, which lasted for about two weeks, covered AT & T, Verizon and T-Mobile Cellular Network.
On a general note, the iPhone 16E performed better than the iPhone 16 when the AT & T and the verson network was taper, while the reverse for T-mobile was correct. Ookla states that the opposite T-Mobile results can be attributed to the carrier’s nationwide 5G standalone network (SA), while Apple’s C1 modem comes with limited SA compatibility.
When it becomes hard, C1 increases
Interestingly, the iPhone 16E is better than the Qualcomm Modem-Operated iPhone 16 in the scenarios where network connectivity is challenging. Ookla refers to it as the 10th percent bracket below. Across all three carriers, Apple’s C1 modem provided better download speed than its Qualcomm counterpart.
Even on T-Mobile waves, the iPhone 16E downloaded the download speed of 57.34 Mbps, while the iPhone 16 is behind at 27.27 Mbps. But even at the download speed at high end, the iPhone 16E is not a slut. This tied the speed of the peak downlink in the border of 140–264 Mbps, which is sufficient for social media, streaming and cloud gaming.
When it comes to extreme download speeds, tables are flipped as Qualcomm modem offers 5G sharp mmway support for taste. However, Ookla notes that the lower percentage score are more meaningful matrix.
The report stated, “Performance in the lowest 10th per cent often offers a greater accurate reflection of the overall quality (QoE) compared to the fastest 90th percent, which can be slanted by deployment in mmwave-cover locations and is subject to a decline in marginal returns.”
Another surprise win
Interestingly, the iPhone 16E won another important victory over the iPhone 16 over all the important network metrics of uplink speed. Once again, on Verizone and AT & T network, Apple’s C1 modem proved faster than the modem of Qualcomm, taking a lead of up to 38% at upload speed.
The results are notable, given the fact that Qualcomm’s modem provides better downlink carrier comparison than the C1 modem of Apple. In addition, despite the lack of support for the uplink carrier aggregation technology, the iPhone 16E was still able to improve the iPhone 16 at uploaded speeds.
Another independent testing stated that the C1 modem was more energy efficient than the option of Qualcomm, meaning that the connectivity tax on the battery is low. In addition, the small size of its in-house modem allowed Apple to introduce more battery juice on the cheaper iPhone 16E than the pricier model in the iPhone 16 series.
