iPhone Air Gets Faster and More Efficient C1X 5G Modem, But No mmWave

Tuesday September 9, 2025 3:04 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Before the iPhone Air debuted, rumors suggested that it would adopt the C1 modem chip that Apple first introduced with the iPhone 16e. It turns out Apple had another idea in mind, and the ‌iPhone Air‌ is equipped with a new C1X chip.

iphone air silver
Apple says the C1X modem is up to 2x faster than the C1, while using the same cellular technologies. It is apparently faster than the Qualcomm modem in the iPhone 16 Pro, while using 30 percent less energy. According to Apple, the C1X is the most power-efficient modem in an iPhone.

Apple seems to be referring to sub-6GHz 5G speeds when it says the C1X is faster than the modem in the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro, because the chip still doesn't support mmWave 5G speeds.

The C1X is limited to sub-6GHz 5G bands, while the Qualcomm modem in the iPhone 17, ‌iPhone 17‌ Pro, and ‌iPhone 17‌ Pro Max supports both sub-6GHz and mmWave. Sub-6GHz is the more widespread version of 5G, while mmWave is more limited and is typically found in major cities and urban areas.

The ‌iPhone Air‌ has longer battery life than the ‌iPhone 16‌ despite its thin size, and it also offers better battery life than the iPhone 16e with C1 modem. The ‌iPhone Air‌ lasts for up to 27 hours when watching videos, while the iPhone 16e lasts for up to 26 hours.

Related Roundup: iPhone Air

Buyer's Guide: iPhone Air (Neutral)

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Top Rated Comments

Woodcrest64

14 months ago

Total missed opportunity by Apple not to offer the iPhone Air MagSafe Battery Pack Bandoleer with 5 day battery life. 😂

Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Falco McGregor

14 months ago

I have to hand it to Apple. The iPhone air is an amazing feat of engineering.

When people complain about the lack of innovation, they're definitely discounting how Apple's work in miniaturization and in-house chip design enables these sorts of designs with fewer trade-offs (at least before reviewers tell us otherwise) than initially thought.

Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Michael Scrip

14 months ago

Remember when mmWave was supposed to be the hottest new thing?

But it only worked well if you were standing on the street directly under the antenna?

🤣

Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)

ipedro

14 months ago

Energy efficiency was one of the reasons Apple had to abandon Intel and make their own silicon. The same is true for their modems and radios. The iPhone Air would not have been possible with Qualcomm and Broadcom's chips.

I've been a Pro user since there's been iPhone Pro but I'm definitely getting the iPhone Air this time around. It feels like "the future of smartphones today", the direction they're going in just like the iPhone X launched the next generation iPhones at the time.

Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)