Status: 04.11.2021 9:17 a.m.
5G, the technology for super-fast communication networks of the new generation, is becoming more and more popular on the smartphone market. The chip company Qualcomm expects a significant market share as early as 2021.
More and more consumers are buying smartphones that can use the new super-fast 5G data transmission. The chip company Qualcomm expects 500 to 550 million 5G-compatible cell phones to be sold in 2021. That would correspond to a 5G market share of 36 to 40 percent, based on the forecast of the analysis company IDC: IDC expects sales of a total of 1.37 billion smartphones worldwide this year.
Qualcomm has a good insight into the business, as the US company is a leading supplier of modems for connecting to the radio network. Qualcomm supplies, among other things, 5G modems for iPhones from the US company Apple. In addition, the main processors of many smartphones with the Google Android operating system come from the company.
3.5 billion 5G connections by 2026
The Qualcomm forecast is similar to the forecasts of other corporations and analysis houses. The Gartner analysis company, for example, expects sales of 539 million 5G smartphones for the current year.
The Swedish mobile communications supplier Ericsson is forecasting 577 million 5G connections worldwide for the same period. According to Ericsson, the 5G triumphant advance is still at the very beginning: by 2026 there should be 3.515 billion 5G connections.
5G in front in Germany – in terms of sales
5G is also on the advance in Germany. According to a study by IFA organizer gfu Consumer & Home Electronics, the 5G models surpassed the previously dominant smartphones with 4G technology in the third quarter of 2021 for the first time – but only in terms of revenues: 57 percent of smartphone sales totaling more than 5G devices sold accounted for 1.7 billion euros.
However, this is hardly surprising when you consider that 5G technology is more likely to be used in the medium to higher-priced segment, where prices are naturally higher.
Vodafone is pushing ahead with “5G standalone”
In terms of unit numbers, however, 5G models lagged behind 4G devices in the third quarter: 55 percent or more than 3.1 million of the almost 5.7 million smartphones sold in Germany in the third quarter were 4G models.
Just two days ago, the British mobile operator Vodafone announced that it would switch its 5G mobile network across Germany to the next stage of development. The real-time network “5G standalone” manages without the previous LTE technology.