Abstract created by Good Solutions AI
In abstract:
- Macworld stories that future iPhones might achieve full satellite tv for pc web connectivity past the present emergency SOS characteristic.
- The iPhone 18 Professional might assist NR-NTN know-how by way of Apple’s C2 modem, enabling world web entry impartial of cell towers.
- A number of dependable leakers and sources together with The Info and Bloomberg corroborate Apple’s plans for broader satellite tv for pc connectivity capabilities.
The iPhone was one of many first telephones to realize satellite tv for pc connectivity again with the launch of the iPhone 14 in 2022, however this characteristic was meant primarily as an emergency measure. Break a leg or run out of water when climbing within the wilderness, and emergency SOS might save your life, but it surely wasn’t a lot assist for shopping social media. However a extra accessible general-purpose satellite tv for pc characteristic may very well be coming to the iPhone as quickly as this yr.
In a Weibo put up this week (by way of AppleInsider), leaker Fastened Focus Digital predicts that Apple’s C2 modem (which is anticipated to make its debut alongside the A20 processor within the iPhone 18 Professional this fall) “will assist NR-NTN this yr.” That stands for New Radio Non-Terrestrial Networks, and refers to a know-how that may join smartphones to the web by way of low-orbit satellites. This could imply you may entry a 5G web connection virtually anyplace on the planet, no matter your distance from a cell tower.
“Huawei said that it performed public testing on the finish of final yr, and progress in China is presently slower, however there will probably be excellent news this yr, so hold an eye fixed out,” Fastened Focus provides.
“From this angle, 2026 seems to be a place to begin for satellite tv for pc web entry for varied cell phone producers.” And that, importantly for us, consists of Apple.
Whereas leakers on the Weibo social community usually are not at all times essentially the most dependable, Fastened Focus is among the extra respected names. They appropriately predicted again in August that the iPhone Air would ship with an A19 Professional processor relatively than an A19, and as way back as April 2025 predicted an early-2026 launch for the iPhone 17e, which now appears to be like extraordinarily seemingly.
What’s extra, this isn’t a brand new rumor. Final October, The Info reported that Apple had plans to assist “5G networks that aren’t tethered to Earth’s floor” in an effort to “give the iPhone full web entry over satellite tv for pc.” And in November, Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman corroborated The Info’s idea and agreed that the following technology of iPhone would characteristic broader 5G NTN assist.
On the time, there have been some doubts over the accessible infrastructure, a lot as 5G protection lagged behind the provision of 5G telephones again in 2020. It wasn’t clear who would supply the satellite tv for pc service, even when the most recent iPhones had the {hardware} to assist it. However primarily based on Fastened Focus’s optimism, it seems like progress is being made on that entrance.
For all the most recent information and rumors, bookmark our often up to date iPhone 18 megaguide. And in case you can’t wait till the autumn, be sure you get the most effective value on the present fashions with our roundup of the greatest iPhone offers.
