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At its big press conference in Hawaii, Qualcomm announces two chips with 5G support on that will be used by smartphone makers in millions of Android phones.
The company said a substantial number of smartphones will be sold next year that will support 5G, not just the high-end, low-volume devices currently on the market.
Qualcomm predicted last month that 200 million phones with 5G would ship to retailers in 2020. A separate estimate from J.P. Morgan analysts this week estimated 229 million in 2020, going up to 462 million in
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2021.
“In 2020, for what it’s worth, all of the premium chips that we sell with our new chip will be 5G-capable,” said Keith Kressin, senior vice president of product development. “So every new high-tier phone.”
Qualcomm also announced its new top-tier chip for 2020, Snapdragon 865, which it will sell to smartphone OEMs for high-end Android phones like Samsung’s Galaxy or Google’s Pixel. Qualcomm says the 865 will be shipped only in new 5G devices and will be bundled with a separate 5G modem—the X55, also sold by Qualcomm, which is necessary to deliver 5G service.
The company also announced a less expensive and slightly slower chip, the Snapdragon 765, that can come with a 5G modem integrated into the chip.
As the 5G penetration rate is expected to reach 50% in 2023, and smart AR glasses will begin entering the consumer market.