iPhone 7 Intel Modem

I live in a weak signal area and I have a iPhone 7 1778 model intel modem with AT&T. My boyfriend has the iPhone 7 1660 with the Qualcomm modem. My boyfriend and I are on the same plan, with different iPhone 7 models. From my experience in the last 2 months, I’ve had frequent quality of service issues, while my boyfriend does not. Apple replaced my phone with another 1778 model, and I’m still having all the same problems. The intel modem seems to have inferior cellular connectivity compared to the Qualcomm modem.

Forbes, CNN, and MAC rumors are correct about the differences in cellular connectivity in weak signal areas.

The performance differences between the intel chipsets and the qualcomm chipsets have been largely overblown. There is very little difference. Certainly nothing that's noticeable in real world use. It's my understanding that aside from not supporting CDMA networks at all, the only other significant difference is that phones with the intel chipset will potentially be able to support newer, significantly faster implementations of LTE. The qualcomm chips will not.

I have an iPhone 7 with the Intel Modem, and have noticed no performance impact. It works fine, all around, calls are not dropped, and I can hear other parties just fine, Data access is perfectly fine at 4G speeds. average of around 60Mbps.

Both modems are designed for similar operation, the qualcomm just supports the extra CDMA network types the Intel modem does not.

Speed difference while it does exist, should be negligible for most regular uses.

Unless you are really benchmarking each modem in lab controlled settings, there's no reason to think the Intel model will perform significantly worse than the Qualcomm modem in real world scenarios.

Wifi is not related to the cellular modem. That's an entirely different chip, and is the same one for both types of iPhones.

The modem just makes a difference with cellular connections.

If you aren't getting correct speeds over cellular, that may likely be more your carrier than the modem in the iPhone.

5Mbps over cellular is the low end of the 4G/LTE bandwidth and is most likely due to your carrier.

If you bought it directly through Apple, then you could exchange it, and get an unlocked Verizon / Sprint model from Apple directly which has the Qualcomm modem, and it would work just fine on T-Mobile and see if that improves yur experience.