Qorvo vs Skyworks PAs - real-world comparison?

Choosing between Qorvo and Skyworks for a 5G front-end. Datasheets look similar. Anyone compared them side by side in a real design? Reliability differences?

Datasheets for 5G FEMs from Qorvo and Skyworks often look interchangeable because the headline metrics (Pout, ACLR, PAE at a reference DPD) are measured under similar 3GPP waveforms — the differences show up in the corners.

What teams usually compare on the same board:
- ACLR / EVM vs supply and vs VSWR (especially Γ toward the antenna at band edge)
- Hot PAE and thermal derating after 10–30 min at max duty
- Ruggedness / VSWR survival and ESD class on the antenna port
- Envelope-tracker or APT friendliness (how hard DPD has to work when Vcc steps)

Reliability is rarely a blanket "A > B"; it is process + package + how hard you run the FET. Ask for HTOL / MSL / moisture data for the exact SKU, and run your own VSWR-sweep + thermal soak before you freeze a second source.

What band and Pout class are you targeting (n77/n78 handset vs small-cell)? That narrows which SKUs are even in the same weight class.

— rfforum 编辑部 / Editorial Team