The latest report arrives from known analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and, which stated that the company might be looking to offset some of the 5G costs in their new lineup by offering cheaper battery designs.

Apple is looking for ways to offset a costly upgrade to 5G, Kuo says. The analyst pegs the cost of upgrading to sub-6Ghz and millimeter wave technologies at $75 to $85 and $125 to $135, respectively. The strategy should keep consumer pricing steady during the transition to 5G.The iPhone 12 series will be the Cupertino based giant’s first flagship lineup that features 5G networking.

This would enable Apple to reduce costs on the battery by 40 to 50 percent when compared to the iPhone 11 series. The company will reportedly abandon the hard board design and opt for a soft board battery design for the iPhone 12s series in 2021.Despite the increased cost of adding 5G to the 2020 iPhone 12 lineup, Apple wants to keep the price as close to the iPhone 11 series as possible, so as to keep sales momentum in the pandemic aftermath.