This is why the iPhone 11 doesn't have 5G

It's not called the "iCamera," but Apple spent zero time talking about how its brand-new iPhones, the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro, work as, you know, phones.

As other smartphone makers race towards 5G, Apple is holding back. There are both sensible business reasons and Apple-specific reasons for doing so.

5G right now is a mess. The only US-compatible 5G chipset ready for a fall launch is the Qualcomm X50. It's in all of the existing 5G phones, but it doesn't "just work" the way Apple wants its devices to work. It isn't compatible with the US carriers' upcoming multi-band networks, and it appears to make devices overheat in the summer. The antenna modules for the early 5G networks are also finicky at best. Read more...