LTE+LTE support prepared by Apple for special model

Nov 21, 2017 05:49 GMT  ·  By

Even though 2017 brought us the anniversary iPhone X with some pretty huge upgrades, including the OLED screen and the facial recognition system, it turns out this was just the beginning of a bigger series of hardware upgrades prepared for the next generations.

Next year, for example, Apple is expected to expand the OLED display to more iPhone models in its lineup, with Face ID to also become available on other devices, no matter the screen tech.

And now well-known Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says Cupertino could even launch a dual-SIM iPhone next year, with at least one model to feature such support.

In one of his latest investor notes, Kuo claims the 2018 iPhone will offer faster LTE speed thanks to an upgrade from Intel’s XMM 7480 and Qualcomm's MDM 9655 to Intel’s XMM 7560 and Qualcomm's SDX 20, which both support 4x4 MIMO tech, versus 2x2 MIMO. Intel will supply some 70 to 80 percent of the chips.

Dual-SIM iPhone also in the works

But the more interesting forecast concerns the dual-SIM support. Kuo says at least one of the 2018 iPhone models will come with dual-SIM dual standby (DSDS), with Apple planning some substantial upgrades over the devices that are currently on the market.

While dual-SIM support has been around for a long time in the Android world, most of these devices offer LTE+3G connection support, so what Apple is planning to do is go for LTE+LTE support, meaning fast LTE transmission speed would be available on both connections.

The essential question right now concerns the way Apple plans to integrate the dual-SIM support into its devices, with the SIM tray obviously eating up more space inside the phone.

The company could go for an approach similar to the one on the Apple Watch Series 3 and offer an embedded SIM and a physical one, though these are all questions that are expected to be answered in the coming months.