The 5g modem itself is expensive due to (I assume) licensing. Just look at the difference between a 5g iPad or not: $200 and the watch which is $100. It's not

The 5g modem itself is expensive due to (I assume) licensing. Just look at the difference between a 5g iPad or not: $200 and the watch which is $100. It's not just the part itself but its context. You are asking for engineering to spend time figuring out how to integrate that into a current (potentially hyper-optimized) design, supply chain management, lawers, etc. Additionally, in terms of alternatives, phones almost universally tether, you can buy specific 5g devices that you can fit in your palm. You can buy a phone battery for $30 and run your phone all day no matter how hot you are running your phone. It's expensive and complex to implement and there are plenty of good enough easily attainable alternatives, I'm not sure why a company would implement a niche product like that.