Leak suggests iPhone 6S will improve connectivity and battery life

Latest Apple smartphone to feature the same exterior but performance-enhanced innards

According to images leaked to 9to5Mac, the Apple iPhone 6S will feature a new modem with myriad performance benefits.

The images show a new Qualcomm modem peeking out of the phone's motherboard. We know, a modem isn't exactly top of the wishlist for the next iPhone, but the specifications of the new chip also open doors to other improvements.

The next iPhone appears to feature the MDM9635M Qualcomm modem, also known as the 9X35, as opposed to the current generation's 9X25. Technically the chip isn't all that new - it was first featured in the Samsung Galaxy S5 after its debut in late 2013. However that does make it two years newer than the 9X25. 

The new modem can facilitate 300Mbps data transfer, which is twice the current limit of 150Mbps. These speeds are only theoretical and in practice may not equate to a two-fold increase, but there will likely be significant gains.

As well as allowing faster data transfer, the chip is more energy efficient and smaller. It has been constructed using a new 20mm production process as opposed to the 9X25's 28mm. In conjunction with rumours that the 6S will feature a more slimline motherboard, this could leave more room for that all-important battery. A double win.

Greater energy efficiency also means less heat, which could prevent the new iPhone from heating up when transferring large amounts of data wirelessly. Any owner of an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus will have experienced scary heat spikes when their device is working hard, a problem that needs addressing in the next generation.

As we approach September the rumour mill will continue to churn. Clues so far point to a phone that is exactly the same on the outside but features "force touch" pressure sensitivity and faster, more efficient vital statistics, but we also had a go at making some predictions in our iPhone 6S / iPhone 7 preview.

[Source/images: 9to5Mac]