Rumors of a 5G-modem enabled MacBook Pro have been gaining more and more traction in 2023. With Apple completing its acquisition of Intel's failed modem business in 2019, and increasing reports that Apple is now developing its own 5G modems in-house for use in the iPhone, the ground may be being laid for a cellular enabled Laptop. When we'll actually see a cellular MacBook Pro is a matter of debate, but there's one question to discuss in the interim. Do users really want a cellular-enabled laptop? We think so, and we'll explore some of the reasons why we think that cellular connectivity might be a huge upgrade for the MacBook Pro.

We'll be focussing exclusively on the MacBook Pro here, as that seems the most likely product to support an initial modem rollout, since it's usually professional laptops that have cellular connectivity. However, it is possible that this might eventually also extend to the MacBook Air.

A fresh market to disrupt

Apple has a history of taking an existing technology and just doing it... better?

While it's not clear when we can expect in-house modems from Apple, rumors have been building of an in-house 5G modem equipped iPhone in 2025. However, The Wall Street Journal also recently published a damning report detailing Apple's naivety in the wireless space, leaving the question of when Apple will be ready to come to market with modems open.

Through 2023 we've seen several Apple patents filed in support of their modem business, which not only outline some technological improvements specifically designed to improve the reliability and speed of 5G internet when on high-speed transit, but that also specifically highlights laptops as a potential device where this might be implemented.

The integration of modem technology follows a pattern we've seen before from Apple. By leveraging its size and extensive engineering ability to immediately enable economies of scale, the company has been able to bring technologies that would traditionally be outsourced to third-party partners under its own roof. This allows Apple to iterate and improve on them while also padding its margin and improving its control over the supply chain (not to mention dodging Qualcomm's high per-modem fees that Apple currently pays.)

Note that the techniques described in the patent may be implemented in and/or used with a number of different types of devices, including but not limited to base stations, access points, cellular phones, portable media players, tablet computers, wearable devices, and various other computing devices.

This trick has been most obvious with Apple Silicon - breaking Apple's decade-long dependence on Intel to provide it with performant and power-efficient chips, improving margins, availability and pushing the market forward overnight. But if rumors are to be believed, this is a technique we'll see more and more from Apple in the coming years. Whether it's producing screens in-house to break a dependence on Samsung, or moving more payment-processing services under its own roof.

If there's one thing we can learn from this pattern, however, it is that it seems unlikely that Apple will move into this space at a disadvantage. Ignoring the jumps between standards (i.e. 4G -> 5G), modems have struggled to be standout features on phones for years now. Most of us, myself included, take the capabilities of our phone's modem as a "get what you're given". This leaves Apple with scope to make some iterative improvements, and then market them as innovations (just like it did with the original 'retina' HD displays), giving a new generation iPhone another standout feature that no one else is talking about.

You can check out Apple's original patent and follow up online with the US Patent and Trademark Office (UPTO).

The MacBook Pro could be a great test-bed

A soft landing for Apple's in-house modems might be a good idea.

When Apple does come to market with its own modems, the MacBook Pro may be a great first-instance test bed. The MacBook Pro is already a lower volume product than either the iPhone or iPad, with an already ludicrously high sales-price at the high end; the cost of an integrated modem may be less of a hit to Apple's margin (or less of a significant bump to price) when talking about $2000+ laptops to start with, especially if Apple is ironing out any kinks on a smaller production scale first.

The MacBook Pro is also less clearly space-constrained than the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch (though they're hardly full of air), with lighter requirements for the size of integrated modems and potentially more scope for large antennas. Any teething issues with Apple's modems are also likely to have less of an immediate effect on MacBook Pro users than on the iPhone, where signal or firmware issues can turn quickly into expensive repair and recall programs. The iPhone 4's infamous antennagate is a good example of the dangers when this kind of thing goes wrong, and that wasn't even a new modem — merely a new shell.

Obviously, consumers should rightly expect a product to work to the full advertised spec. But from Apple's perspective, the lower volume, possibly increased availability of space, easier disassembly/repair processes, and the lack of complete dependence on a cellular connection (like the iPhone) could give their in-house modems a softer landing than going directly to the iPhone or even the iPad.

There's a compelling case for business users

Business users might be an easily overlooked market for a 5G MacBook Pro

The MacBook Pro is a business users' dream. For professionals generally spending on the company tab and looking to get work done effectively, they're essentially de-facto. Favored by everyone from creatives to developers, the large upfront cost and difficult maintenance/repairability often isn't enough to offset the benefits they offer. You don't have to look too far to find jobs in the software or engineering space that offer the 'latest Apple hardware' explicitly as a job benefit.

Contextualize this alongside two other key changes - the rise of remote working, and the post-pandemic ubiquity of video meeting services like Teams and Zoom. Traditionally, a business that needs to communicate with an employee while they're traveling might issue a company phone, or expect them to bring their own device (as is the case with a large majority of businesses). With cellular-enabled MacBooks, a business could now provide a user internet access alongside their laptop using its built-in eSIM, allowing them to work anywhere without a separate company phone or the need to hotspot from a personal device. This would allow an employee to take meetings and calls remotely or while traveling, and might also help to improve a work-life balance, as a laptop is subjectively easier to step away from than a phone.

This could also help businesses with compliance issues - for example by requiring an employee to use their laptop's modem when out of the house instead of connecting to public Wi-Fi networks to work on the go. In some high-security businesses, this is already the case, with Wi-Fi disabled altogether in favor of a VPN connection that can only be made using the laptop's cellular modem.

Do we want a post-Wi-Fi world?

Maybe Apple is telling us what we want, then giving it to us

All this discussion of in-house modems and cellular MacBook Pro raises another question. Considering the average 5G speed in the United States is now 52Mbps, is 5G a better default option? The availability and affordability of contracts with unlimited (or very high) data has improved massively in the last few years, and public Wi-Fi is often a slow and cumbersome option involving a mess of endless signups, captive portals, and slow connections.

5G obviously comes with its disadvantages and mirrors some of the same problems Wi-Fi has. 5G suffers on high-speed transit (an issue Apple is clearly thinking about with their recent patents), and can also suffer from the same overloading and saturation issues that Wi-Fi, or indeed most wireless standards, does.

Maybe it's not as far-fetched as it seems, though. Apple sold more than 50% of its iPad's with a cellular modem in Q3 2022. Wi-Fi at scale is a huge sector in its own right, and it can often turn into an expensive nightmare. Could this be the future Apple envisions for us, where our reliance on Wi-Fi on the go is replaced by fast, functional and scalable 5G networks? Maybe it's a pipe-dream, but it doesn't sound too bad to me.

With Apple, there are normally added extras

Apple could leverage its ecosystem to break free from the competition.

Apple has a long history of providing 'something extra'. Whether it's the AirPods' excellent pairing experience, handoff capabilities, and Find My integration improving an otherwise unremarkable wireless pair of headphones, or the reliable and seamless pairing of nearby personal hotspots to Wi-Fi-only devices. Apple leverages the integration of its products better than anyone else to provide a more seamless experience.

But is there scope to do this with a 5G MacBook Pro? We think so. We're purely speculating here, and there are some obvious technical challenges to these ideas, but imagine a 5G-enabled MacBook Pro that could bond its connection to your iPhone's cellular connection over Wi-Fi, theoretically doubling your bandwidth. Imagine being able to hand off a large download or video playback to your phone's connection, while keeping your laptop's cellular connection free to browse and work at the same time. Maybe the MacBook Pro could come equipped with a far larger antenna, and the ability to boost its power in low-signal situations where your phone would otherwise struggle (though regulatory issues might sink this one quickly).

While this is obviously an ambitious (and optimistic) idea, it's a demonstration of the type of functionality that could be possible.

There are downsides to a 5G MacBook Pro

And plenty of upsides for Apple

We've discussed at length the potential use cases and benefits for a cellular MacBook Pro, but it's important to acknowledge that there are obvious downsides. Apple's laptops are already extremely expensive, and any cost savings Apple may generate with in-house modems aren't guaranteed to be passed onto consumers. Cellular contracts are also expensive, and are an ongoing cost many can't justify for the ease of having constant internet access on their MacBook Pro. And besides — can't most people just tether to their phone?

The usefulness of a 5G MacBook Pro may also depend heavily on where you live. 5G in the US can often be slow and unreliable, with small pockets of useful high-speed generally found in high-density urban areas. It also seems likely that whatever improvements Apple is able to make with its own modems, they'll serve to reinforce their walled-garden ecosystem.

The MacBook Pro only gets better

The MacBook has been on a hot streak the last few years (following the disastrous era of the 2017 refresh), and Apple has a strong track record of taking technology in-house and making tangible improvements to it. We'll have to wait to find out, but I'm allowing myself to be excited about the prospect of a 5G-enabled MacBook.