Skip 5G and go straight to 6G! How likely are the latest Apple rumors to come true?
Skip 5G to 6G! Will Apple's latest rumors come true?
When it comes to phone chips, everyone seems to think that Apple is the industry leader – with the performance of its A-series and M-series processors leading the competition. However, when it comes to baseband chips, Apple's performance is not as good as it could be. Although the company has already announced that it will develop its own 5G baseband chip in 2019. Not only has there been no progress on this project so far, but Apple has also announced that it will skip 5G and move directly to 6G. With such a risky decision, will Apple be able to overcome technical hurdles and achieve its ambitions in the baseband chip market?
As a key component of communication technology, the development threshold for baseband chips is very high. The so-called self-developed baseband is by no means as simple as an app processor: it requires a lot of time to accumulate various wireless communication technologies, including 2G, 3G, 4G and other network standards. It's like learning math, starting with basic operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, and progressing to calculus. As you can imagine, it's a long and painstaking process. For a new entrant like Apple, the hurdles are even greater. For a long time, industry giants Huawei, Qualcomm and MediaTek have set up insurmountable technical barriers around the baseband. The tree wants to be quiet but the wind does not stop, and the child wants to raise but does not wait. Whether Apple will succeed in gaining a foothold in the sands of the baseband is hard to say.
Apple is developing the credibility and possibility of the claim of 6G baseband.
At a time when the 5G baseband has not yet blossomed, Apple's 6G development slogan has puzzled many people in the industry. Some commentators sneeringly pointed out that Apple"If you can't take the road that doesn't work, you can't run if you want to", the 6G dream is completely reckless. In fact, the current commercial time of 5G is far from enough, and in the case of the maturity of the corresponding equipment and technology, vigorously developing 6G is tantamount to putting the cart before the horse. However, the possibility of Apple breaking through the existing framework and making breakthrough innovations cannot be completely ruled out. After all, whether it's wireless technology or consumer electronics, the United States is a world leader in research and development. Moreover, the industry has determined that 2030 will be the first commercial node for 6G. For a tech giant like Apple, an 8-year R&D cycle isn't too long. Of course, one of the most critical questions is whether the United States** will actively engage in the creation of some kind of 6G alliance to guide the development of standards. If a strong environmental coalition can be formed, Apple's expectations for overcoming the current obstacles will be greatly raised.
Question 1: Why does Apple need to develop its own baseband chips? Wouldn't it be more economical to rely on companies like Qualcomm?
In fact, independent R&D is a consistent principle of Apple. On the one hand, it avoids high licensing fees; On the other hand, it increases the opportunities for customization, maximizing the sheer benefits of Apple products. Of course, the focus is on maximizing profits. Question 2: Is the technology collected by Apple enough to support R&D in the field of 6G?
This is a question that has no practical meaning. After all, communication technology requires long-term accumulation and verification, and Apple is significantly lagging behind established companies in terms of baseband design. Of course, the possibility of obtaining patented technology through mergers and acquisitions and cooperation is not ruled out. Question 3: Will Apple finally be able to control its own baseband chips?
As things stand, Apple's success rate is low. Industry barriers are still high, and the external environment is more complex. However, as a super-large company, it has the hardware strength to overcome these obstacles. The key is to look at the attitude of the first and the influence of the environmental alliance.
As soon as this topic came out, it immediately sparked heated discussions among netizens on the Internet. Some netizens believe that Apple is self-sufficient, and the baseband technology cannot be achieved overnight, and it is difficult to establish its own position in the middle of the day. Some netizens believe that the United States is still researching and formulating the environment and standards, which is the key to supporting Apple's research and development of 6G. Some netizens also believe that Apple's decision to gamble is mainly due to the potential lucrative benefits of 6G.
Regardless of the stance, most netizens believe that Apple is lagging behind when it comes to baseband chips. It takes a lot of effort and luck to break through this technological fortress. There is no doubt that the attitude of the United States is crucial. Without political and financial support, it will be much more difficult to go it alone. Apple, on the other hand, is well-funded and technologically advanced, and has the ability to quickly catch up through mergers and acquisitions and joint development. The future potential of Apple's self-developed baseband chips is difficult to assess, but it should not be underestimated.
To sum up, Apple's attempt to break through the technical fortress of baseband chips and achieve completely autonomous control and research and development is based on long-term interests and strategic considerations. However, there is still a gap between the company's strong potential in terms of communication technology accumulation and that of established manufacturers, which hinders the independent development process of 5G baseband. As a result, Apple has chosen a more radical path, announcing that it will skip 5G and go straight to 6G. This revolutionary path carries great business opportunities, but it also carries high risks and uncertainties. After all, Apple was a late starter in this area and faced many obstacles. Therefore, it remains to be seen whether Apple can break through the existing framework and effectively improve its position in terms of baseband chips and voice through this high-risk measure.
Still, there is no doubt that Apple is establishing itself as a new market leader in baseband chip production with similar momentum. This process is bound to have a strong impact on the competitive landscape of the industry and the development of 6G technology. As consumers, we can only wait and see!
Apple's path to self-developed baseband chips seems to be forever thorny: from 5G to 6G, the company has been working hard to overcome this technical barrier. But the dilemma for Apple is, will it go for it or will it be all or all-or? Will it really gain a foothold in the baseband camp? How will the industry change? We may have placed too many unnecessary expectations on Apple's self-developed baseband chips.