Apple not likely to make its own baseband chips until 2015: JP Morgan

JP Hall, who is an analyst from JP Morgan has specified to the investors that Apple is unlikely to use its own baseband chips for the iPhones and iPads, at least until 2015. This comes as a recent report suggested that Apple will start designing its own baseband chips. It is believed that Apple is currently discovering alternatives to merge the baseband chip with the standalone A series chipset, much like Qualcomm does with its Snapdragon chips. Apple has recently hired a few Broadcom engineers to help streamline the manufacturing process, but it’s likely an uphill task at the moment according to the analyst. It is believed that Apple might even contract its current baseband chip supplier Qualcomm to devise a method which would integrate the baseband chip with the main chipset. Since Qualcomm probably owns patents for the technology, Apple might have to end up paying licensing fees as well. But at the end of the day, it’s a win-win result for both companies as Apple’s business accounted for up to 25% of Qualcomm’s revenues in 2012. The analyst reaffirms that although it will take time, Apple will succeed in designing and developing its very own baseband chip to control the cellular radios and mobile networks on its devices. For the foreseeable future however, Apple will have to rely on Qualcomm for these chips. [Via Apple Insider] Continue reading →

from iPhone Hacks | #1 iPhone, iPad, iOS Blog » iPhone 4 Camera Beats HTC EVO 4G, Samsung Galaxy, Droid X In Showdown