India’s 5G smartphone shipments are set to surpass 4G shipments by the end of next year, buoyed by mass adoption of the high-speed network and surge in sales of lower-priced handsets, market research firm Counterpoint said on Thursday.
Although India’s total smartphone shipments are estimated to decline annually this year due to component supply issues and macroeconomic factors, 5G will continue to drive smartphone demand in 2023, Counterpoint added.
5G Data speeds in India are expected to be around 10 times faster than 4G, with the network seen as crucial for new technologies such as self-driving cars and artificial intelligence.
The share of 5G handsets in the lower price segment (less than 20,000 rupees) is expected to increase from 4 percent last year to 30 percent in 2023, Counterpoint said.
India’s Telecoms Leader trust works with Alphabet Google to launch a budget 5G smartphone after it emerged as the biggest bidder in India’s $19 billion auction in August (c.
According to Counterpoint, cumulative 5G smartphone shipments will surpass 100 million in the second quarter of 2023 and surpass 4G smartphone shipments by the end of next year.
The analytics firm expects constraints such as component supply shortages, inflation, geopolitical conflicts and limited 5G network availability to ease by the end of 2023, leading to mass 5G adoption.
Meanwhile, the Indian government is trying to apply pressure Apple, Samsungand other handset makers to prioritize rolling out software upgrades to support 5G in the country, as many models aren’t ready for the recently launched high-speed service, Reuters reported.
© Thomson Reuters 2022
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