Apple this year introduced C1, its first in-house 5G modem, with the iPhone 16e. However, the company isnt expected to bring its own modem to more expensive iPhones until at least next year. Analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities has now corroborated this rumor by saying that Apple is working on a new version of its modem for the iPhone 18 Pro models.Apples plans for its 5G modem in the iPhone 18 ProIn a note to investors seen by 9to5Mac, the analyst says he expects Apple to put the C2 chip in the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max in 2026. This aligns with a recent Bloomberg report about C2 coming next year to higher-end iPhones.Apples C1 chip combines 4 nanometer baseband technology with 7 nanometer transceiver technology. Aspreviously revealed by a lab test, the new 5G modem is much more efficient and uses less power than the Qualcomm modems in other iPhones. Pu says that Apple wants to put the C1 chip in the ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air later this year, but the company may end up backtracking.Given all these reports, its unclear whether the base iPhone 18 model will also get the C1 chip while C2 will be exclusive to the Pro models, or whether the less expensive model will still feature a Qualcomm 5G modem for another year.Of course, since the modem is one of the most crucial components of a phone, Apple probably wants to make sure that its modem is good enough to replace Qualcomms modems. Although tests show that Apples C1 modem in the iPhone 16e reaches similar speeds to Qualcomms modems in most scenarios, it still lacks support for the higher 5G mmWave speeds.Personally, I wont be surprised if Apple puts the C1 chip in other products such as cellular versions of the iPad and Apple Watch before bringing them to more iPhone models.Gadgets I recommend:Add 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre reading 9to5Mac experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Dont know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel