In a note to clients — as noted by MacRumors — analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reiterates that he expects four 5G-enabled iPhones to launch in the second half of the year. And he thinks there will be models with both sub-6GHz and mmWave support, depending on the region.
The analyst expects iPhone models with mmWave will be available in five markets, including the U.S., Canada, Japan, Korea, and the United Kingdom. Kue says that Apple may disable 5G functionality in countries that do not offer 5G service or have a shallow 5G penetration rate to reduce production costs.
A Jan. 6 report from Susquehanna analyst Mehdi Hosseini said Apple will have two 5G iPhone launches this year: sub-6GHz models in September, and the mmWave launch in December (or possible even January 2021).
mmWave (millimeter wave spectrum) is the band of spectrum between 30 GHz and 300 GHz. Wedged between microwave and infrared waves, this spectrum can be used for high-speed wireless communications. Another part of the spectrum that’s being used in 5G is sub-6 GHz, which includes the portion of spectrum lower than 6 GHz. These bands are effective at providing coverage and have capacity for a wide range of uses.
”The delay in the launch, according to our checks, stems from Apple’s decision to in-source the Antenna-in-Package (AiP) modules instead of purchasing from the third party,” he said.
According to the Sellers Research Group (that’s me), Apple will launch four 5G-enabled iPhones with both sub-6GHz and mmWave support this year. However, I predict that all models will be available before the end of 2020.
