5G Smartphones ‘Primed and Ready’ for ‘Fast Rollout,’ Says IHS

As the wireless industry begins transitioning to 5G, it's “doing so with a robust and coordinated ecosystem of carriers, handset OEMs, component suppliers and government support,” said IHS Markit. “A ‘perfect storm’ of 5G capabilities and interested parties are coming together to shape the impending technology transition,” said the report emailed Wednesday, concluding that 5G smartphones are “primed and ready” for a “fast rollout.” Citing Qualcomm’s CES forecast that 30 models are scheduled to debut globally in 2019, IHS said: “With the industry aligned and momentum clearly behind 5G smartphone introductions in 2019, the lead-up to the 5G transition is shaping up to be much more coherent than it was for the LTE transition.” In 2020, the second year of 5G smartphone commercial introductions, IHS forecasts that handset adoption will reach six times the volume of LTE smartphones during the time frame.