Commercial 5G networks were first rolled out in South Korea in 2019. Three years later, sales of 5G phones surpassed 4G phones for the first time.
In January 2022, the contribution of 5G mobile phones reached 51% of the total of all types of mobile phones sold. According to Counterpoint Research data, China, North America and Western Europe are the regions with the largest growth in the 5G mobile phone market.
In China, 5G cell phone sales accounted for 84% of total 4G and 5G cell phone sales in January. Meanwhile, 5G mobile phone sales in North America and Western Europe were 73% and 76%, respectively.
Currently, Apple is the vendor that dominates 5G phone sales worldwide. As is well known, Apple launched its first 5G phone, iPhone 12, in 2020. iPhone accounted for 37% of 5G phones sold worldwide in January 2022.
Samsung, which launched its first 5G phone, the Galaxy S10 5G in 2019, only accounted for 12% of the total 5G phones sold in January 2022 due to its not so high popularity in China, as quoted from ZDNet, Friday (18/3/2022) .
Next there are Vivo and Xiaomi which account for 11% of the total sales of 5G phones, followed by Oppo with 10%. These three mobile phone vendors are certainly popular in China.
After 5G phones have become commonplace in the United States and Western Europe, this market can still be boosted by launching cheap 5G phones. As Apple launched iPhone SE 2022 which is the most affordable 5G phone they have to offer.
On the Android side, Counterpoint says the new, cheaper chips from Qualcomm and MediaTek allow this fifth-generation network to reach low-cost phones in the $150-200 price range, and boost sales of 5G phones from Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo.
"Asia Pacific, Middle East and Latin America are the next focus areas for OEMs to increase 5G penetration. 5G phones in the below USD 150 price segment are the sweet spot for this region, which is currently dominated by 4G," said Counterpoint analyst Karn Chauhan. .