7 ms·

Has anyone else been experiencing horrendous data speeds with their iPhone XS? I only ask because this was the first model shipped with an Intel modem, amd com

by smaili 8y ago

Has anyone else been experiencing horrendous data speeds with their iPhone XS? I only ask because this was the first model shipped with an Intel modem, amd compared to my 6S this is nowhere near as fast or reliable over 4G and LTE.

jak92 8y ago
actually, most of the carrier locked iphone x's were also shipped with intel chips.
swozey 8y ago
Yeah I've been heavily following phones the last few weeks as I was considering switch to an iPhone (just ordered the s10 5 minutes ago) and the XR modem is a constant complaint on reddit and in reviews. I'd send links but I'm walking through to work. I can't remember if the non XR phones have the same complaint off the top of my head. I feel like they did and the XR was just way more common to hear about (probably due to far more people with XRs). It was a very common complaint in youtube and reddit comments anytime a review was posted.
ksec 8y ago
>I only ask because this was the first model shipped with an Intel modem 7, 8 / X All had a version with Intel Modem. XS is, however the first model to ship only with Intel Modem. I don't think it has horrendous Data Speed. But it is certainly has a different characteristics to Qualcomm Modem. XS is generally weaker with signals, and we are not quite sure if it was the 4x4 MIMO or the Intel Modem. XR doesn't seems to be as bad so a guess would be due to Apple's implementation of 4x4 Antenna. While ALL phones had problems with 4x4 Antenna in their first generation, that includes Samsung and Huawei, you generally expect Apple, being a year late to the tech would have ironed out most of it. But generally speaking, a Qualcomm Modem would still get better signal than Intel. This is especially a problem in US where the Cell Tower Density is lower as compared to Asia / EU counterpart. There has also been 3 to 4 Modem Firmware revision since launch, and likely more to come in iOS 12.2, let just hope ( pray ) Intel's next Modem 7660 is actually better. And Apple could actually put a rounding error budget into their Antenna Design, because as far as Flagship Smartphone is concerned, iPhone has the worst one. Or Qualcomm will relent and work with Apple again, but judging from the Court testimony this seems highly unlikely.
- dmix 8y ago
  This is interesting. Do you work in a field where you get to test phone modems?
  - phonon 8y ago
    http://cellularinsights.com/iphone7/ http://cellularinsights.com/iphone7/ AFAIK there is still a sensitivity and LTE capability gap between Qualcomm and Intel. Kind of sad Apple doesn't think that's worth the extra ~$10 or so on a $1000 phone.
    - wolfgke 8y ago
      > Kind of sad Apple doesn't think that's worth the extra ~$10 or so on a $1000 phone. I believe cost is only one part of the reason. The much more important part is, I think, control.
      - mises 8y ago
        I think at this point the bridge between Apple and Qualcomm is pretty well burned, especially after all the legal nastiness. I'm wondering if Apple will move some of its chip design talent to fabricating their own modems. It seems that Apple has been trying to pull more stuff in-house for greater integration and performance (plus more profit). This is also supported a job posting someone uncovered: https://bgr.com/2018/05/01/iphone-5g-chip-apple-qualcomm-intel/ https://bgr.com/2018/05/01/iphone-5g-chip-apple-qualcomm-int...
      - dwaite 8y ago
        Apple really doesn't like putting all their eggs in a single vendor basket. It was my understanding that when Apple started using both Intel and Qualcomm modems that Qualcomm started telling Apple they would have to pay "full price" for patent licensing on the Intel modems, and things deteriorated.
    - bunnycorn 8y ago
      Who paid for that "study"? Qualcomm... Yeah, no.
phyalow 8y ago
My XS has given me mindblowing performance on Vodafone UK, certainly better than my iPhone 7. I guess your mileage may vary.

by smaili 8y ago

jak92 8y ago

actually, most of the carrier locked iphone x's were also shipped with intel chips.

swozey 8y ago

Yeah I've been heavily following phones the last few weeks as I was considering switch to an iPhone (just ordered the s10 5 minutes ago) and the XR modem is a constant complaint on reddit and in reviews. I'd send links but I'm walking through to work. I can't remember if the non XR phones have the same complaint off the top of my head. I feel like they did and the XR was just way more common to hear about (probably due to far more people with XRs). It was a very common complaint in youtube and reddit comments anytime a review was posted.

ksec 8y ago

>I only ask because this was the first model shipped with an Intel modem 7, 8 / X All had a version with Intel Modem. XS is, however the first model to ship only with Intel Modem. I don't think it has horrendous Data Speed. But it is certainly has a different characteristics to Qualcomm Modem. XS is generally weaker with signals, and we are not quite sure if it was the 4x4 MIMO or the Intel Modem. XR doesn't seems to be as bad so a guess would be due to Apple's implementation of 4x4 Antenna. While ALL phones had problems with 4x4 Antenna in their first generation, that includes Samsung and Huawei, you generally expect Apple, being a year late to the tech would have ironed out most of it. But generally speaking, a Qualcomm Modem would still get better signal than Intel. This is especially a problem in US where the Cell Tower Density is lower as compared to Asia / EU counterpart. There has also been 3 to 4 Modem Firmware revision since launch, and likely more to come in iOS 12.2, let just hope ( pray ) Intel's next Modem 7660 is actually better. And Apple could actually put a rounding error budget into their Antenna Design, because as far as Flagship Smartphone is concerned, iPhone has the worst one. Or Qualcomm will relent and work with Apple again, but judging from the Court testimony this seems highly unlikely.

dmix 8y ago
This is interesting. Do you work in a field where you get to test phone modems?
- phonon 8y ago
  http://cellularinsights.com/iphone7/ http://cellularinsights.com/iphone7/ AFAIK there is still a sensitivity and LTE capability gap between Qualcomm and Intel. Kind of sad Apple doesn't think that's worth the extra ~$10 or so on a $1000 phone.
  - wolfgke 8y ago
    > Kind of sad Apple doesn't think that's worth the extra ~$10 or so on a $1000 phone. I believe cost is only one part of the reason. The much more important part is, I think, control.
    - mises 8y ago
      I think at this point the bridge between Apple and Qualcomm is pretty well burned, especially after all the legal nastiness. I'm wondering if Apple will move some of its chip design talent to fabricating their own modems. It seems that Apple has been trying to pull more stuff in-house for greater integration and performance (plus more profit). This is also supported a job posting someone uncovered: https://bgr.com/2018/05/01/iphone-5g-chip-apple-qualcomm-intel/ https://bgr.com/2018/05/01/iphone-5g-chip-apple-qualcomm-int...
    - dwaite 8y ago
      Apple really doesn't like putting all their eggs in a single vendor basket. It was my understanding that when Apple started using both Intel and Qualcomm modems that Qualcomm started telling Apple they would have to pay "full price" for patent licensing on the Intel modems, and things deteriorated.
  - bunnycorn 8y ago
    Who paid for that "study"? Qualcomm... Yeah, no.

phyalow 8y ago

My XS has given me mindblowing performance on Vodafone UK, certainly better than my iPhone 7. I guess your mileage may vary.