Apple’s new products add C1X chip for three unique advantages

Apple announced two new products today: iPhone 17e and an iPad Air with M4. Both devices include a C1X 5G chip, offering three unique advantages over non-Apple modems.

#1: Faster data speeds

When you buy a device with Apple’s latest in-house 5G modem, one of the benefits is speed.

C1X offers, per Apple, “up to 50 percent faster cellular data performance” in the M4 iPad Air than what the M3 model’s Qualcomm modem provides.

iPhone 17e’s predecessor, iPhone 16e, already used an Apple-designed C1 modem. But the C1X in the latest iPhone is still a big year-over-year leap.

Apple says the C1X is up to 2x faster than C1.

Speed gains aren’t just raw numbers though. Apple says that its in-house modems are able to intelligently adapt when facing congestion to provide better overall performance. Per Reuters: “the phone’s processor can signal to the modem which traffic is the most time sensitive and put it ahead of other data transfers, making the phone feel more responsive.”

#2: ‘Limit Precise Location’ privacy feature

In iOS 26.3, Apple introduced a new privacy feature called ‘Limit Precise Location.’

The feature is limited to only devices with an Apple-designed modem—which now includes iPhone 17e and M4 iPad Air.

From Apple’s support document:

Cellular networks can determine your location based on which cell towers your device connects to. The limit precise location setting enhances your location privacy by reducing the precision of location data available to cellular networks.

With this setting turned on, some information made available to cellular networks is limited. As a result, they might be able to determine only a less precise location — for example, the neighborhood where your device is located, rather than a more precise location (such as a street address). The setting doesn’t impact signal quality or user experience.

Only select carriers support the feature for now, but that list should grow in time. And if you have a supported carrier and buy one of Apple’s latest products, you’ll be able to use the new feature now.

#3: Battery life gains

Ever since the first Apple-designed modem launched, it’s been clear that Apple’s 5G modems have an advantage over third-party solutions when it comes to power efficiency.

Cellular connectivity is one of the biggest battery drains, but C1X fares better than non-Apple modems.

With the M4 iPad Air, for example, Apple says that “for active cellular users, C1X offers up to 30 percent less modem energy usage than iPad Air with M3.”

We’ve similarly seen with iPhone Air how the C1X is able to deliver surprisingly great battery life in an iPhone. And the efficiency gains that iPhone 16e first brought with its C1 modem extend to the iPhone 17e too.

Does having a C1X modem in your device make a difference to you? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments.

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