5G is bringing hope to the hitherto dying smartphone markets. Why do people love it? It seems to bring what promises other mobile networks could not promise. The network itself is hardly out of the doldrums yet and many people in several continents have fully embraced it.
For example, as I write, about two million 5G smartphones have been sold in South Korea alone. One question I ask myself is why people are buying 5G phones even in areas where there is no coverage for the network? I suppose people are just buying the smartphone in hopes that the network will get to their area. Or, they probably move around and in some of the areas where people find themselves, there are 5G networks.
The truth is that humans love speed. How nice would it have been if everyone can travel long distances with the speed of light! The truth also is that 5G networks enable us to do so on our smartphones. No one needs to wait any longer. 5G networks present new speeds that unlock virtual and augmented reality, embedded smart tech in cars, on roads, in factories and many places. There seems to be no limit on the wonder that 5G is bringing, yet it promises more as soon as it is fully operational in most areas of the world.
5G Promises
Think about the promises- fast or blazing speeds for downloads, low lag times, high network reliability, and this is not just for smartphones, but also for augmented smartglasses, virtual headsets, vehicle to vehicle/vehicle to infrastructure smart cities communication and connected smart factories. With this, anyone can understand that 5G goes beyond mobile broadband as some experts have promised at the beginning.
What about Smartphone Sales?
If about two million 5G smartphones have really been sold in South Korea; something we no iota of doubt about, this could be the panacea for the dwindling smartphone sales worldwide, at least for now. But they are expensive. Yet, they have been accepted wherever people can find them. So, it may not be a matter of how much a 5G smartphone sells but what a smartphone can do to satisfy a user.
The early momentum gained from the limited 5G network up till now is a testimony to the fact that the network is able to break barriers and give a new lease of life to phone manufacturers. We still don’t know how many 4G Android users will ditched their phones for 5G before 2019 runs out. Already, some analysts are basing the current trends on what the trend will look like for 5G smartphones in 2024.
The Race is On
We have seen the beginning of 5G network inclusions all around us. At this time, wireless network operators are making headways in lighting up more and more cities this year. In addition to that, about 150 tech device manufacturers have told Qualcomm to provide 5G chips for their products for optimal speed.
In the race for speed, it appears that most of the flagship smartphones that will be released in 2024 will be coming as 5G smartphones. With some manufacturers also promising to break the price and make it cheap for buyers of smartphones, the possibility of owning 5G phones in places like Africa is almost a reality.
Not even the insinuation that 5G brings increased health issues will stop the race that is already at a break-neck speed.
