iPhone 17 to feature Apple’s in-house Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Chips

Although it has taken a while, Apple may be nearing the conclusion of its quest to produce its own wireless processors. According to a post by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo on X, Apple will begin using its own proprietary Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chips with the iPhone 17 in the second half of next year.

According to information released by Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TF Securities International, Apple may incorporate its own Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip into the iPhone 17 series. In order to lessen its reliance on current suppliers like Broadcom, the business has been working on creating additional components for its devices. Beginning in H2 2025, Apple is also predicted to include its own 5G chip, which is anticipated to debut on the iPhone SE 4, as well as its in-house Wi-Fi and Bluetooth processors into further devices.

Apple wants to “rapidly reduce its reliance on Broadcom” for the more than 300 million chips that allow Wi-Fi and Bluetooth communication on its devices, according to a post on X (previously Twitter) by Kuo. According to the expert, the corporation will begin using its own CPUs in future devices, beginning with the iPhone 17 series, in order to achieve this.

According to Kuo, TSMC’s N7 (7nm) technology will be used to build Apple’s own Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, which will handle the most recent Wi-Fi 7 communication protocol. Apple will release new smartphones with its own processor, but the iPhone 17 series, which is the replacement for the iPhone 16 range that was announced in September, is reportedly the first to use Apple’s chip.

Kuo shares the same belief with 9to5Mac’s prediction that Apple’s in-house 5G modem would be used for the first time with the iPhone SE 4, which is anticipated to launch in the spring of 2025. He claims that the iPhone 17 will be the first handset to have both an Apple-made modem and Wi-Fi chip, and that the SE would continue to use a third-party Wi-Fi chip manufactured by Broadcom.

There are further Apple in-house chips that are anticipated to be released in 2025. According to Kuo, the business intends to release the fourth-generation iPhone SE model with an Apple 5G modem. It will have a Broadcom processor for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity.

In the second half of 2025, Apple is anticipated to introduce new products, including the rumored iPhone 17 series. These phones will not have the new 5G modem, but they will have the new in-house Bluetooth and Wi-Fi chip.

Additionally, the analyst notes that the timeline for integrating the chips may overlap because Apple’s Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chips, as well as the future 5G chip, are unique and made using various TSMC processes. According to Kuo, Apple intends to install its own CPUs in nearly every device within the next three years.

Apparently, modems are difficult. Since at least 2019, when it acquired Intel’s modem group, Apple has been attempting to move away from utilizing Qualcomm’s RF modems. This is due to Qualcomm and Apple’s intense animosity for one another and Apple’s well-known tendency to dictate its own fate. The iPhone 15 was reportedly intended to be the first Apple phone to use the new modem, but that goal turned out to be unattainable. Additionally, the modem wasn’t prepared for the iPhones of this year.

A significant update is overdue for the low-cost iPhone SE series, and it appears that Apple plans to provide much more than simply a new bespoke modem. According to rumours, it will feature Apple Intelligence, have Face ID, and have an OLED screen for the first time. These improvements aren’t the only ones, though; a greater price tag could also be on the horizon.