2019 5G Mobile Phone Buying Guide

In the second half of 2019, with the issuance of 5G licenses in my country, 5G commercialization has taken an important step forward, and 5G has become an increasingly high-frequency word; at the same time, as a complex system engineering, operators, communication equipment manufacturers, and terminal manufacturers are all making intensive preparations for the commercialization of 5G. However, in the eyes of ordinary consumers, 5G is just a consideration when they buy new mobile phones:

Should I buy a 5G phone next?

Following this question, let’s first take a look at the development status of the 5G smartphone industry.

my country's first batch of 5G commercial mobile phones have been released

As of now, the first batch of 5G mobile phones that consumers in my country can buy have been released, and it is ZTE and Huawei that have seized the opportunity.

On the evening of July 22, Huawei announced the release and launch time of the Mate 20 X 5G version. However, the next day, ZTE announced that its first 5G mobile phone, the Axon 10 Pro 5G version, has started pre-orders on JD.com, Tmall, and ZTE Mobile Mall, and will be shipped in early August. The price is only 4,999 yuan. This phone uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor and an external Qualcomm Snapdragon X50 5G baseband chip.

[[272236]]

Compared with ZTE, Huawei's 5G mobile phone was released a few days later, but it seemed more formal and grand. On July 26, Huawei held a media communication meeting in Shenzhen and released the Mate 20 X 5G version of the mobile phone. Leifeng.com (official account: Leifeng.com) learned that this mobile phone is the only one in the world that supports both independent networking (SA) and non-independent networking (NSA), and it is also the first 5G mobile phone in China to obtain a 5G terminal telecommunications equipment access license.

In addition to 5G, the phone is also compatible with 2G/3G/4G modes, supports dual SIM dual standby, and any card slot supports 5G cards. At the same time, it also provides consumers with flexible usage methods. There is also an independent 5G switch in the settings, which can be turned off directly when the 5G function is not needed to extend the battery life of the phone.

Compared with the standard version released earlier, the biggest advantage of the Mate 20 X 5G version is speed. After comparative testing, the download speed of the 5G version reached 1735 Mbps and the upload speed reached 212 Mbps, while the download speed of the 4G version was only 94.4 Mbps and the upload speed was only 12.0 Mbps. In terms of specific usage scenarios, when updating apps at the same time in the Huawei App Store, the 5G version of the Mate 20 X has an obvious speed advantage, which is 10 times faster than the 4G version.

In terms of configuration, the Mate 20 X 5G version is not much different from the 4G version. For example, it uses the Kirin 980 chip, a 7.2-inch pearl screen, supports rear triple cameras, supports 40W fast charging, etc. The difference is that the 5G version has an external Balong 5000 baseband chip, a 5G logo on the back, and a new Emerald Green color.

In terms of price, the Huawei Mate 20 X 5G version (8GB+256GB) is priced at 6199 yuan. It has been available for reservation at 16:08 on July 26, and the official sale time is August 16.

Regarding this mobile phone, He Gang, president of Huawei's mobile phone product line, said in an interview that "profitability is not the primary consideration for this 5G mobile phone." Huawei is more concerned about quickly launching appropriately priced mobile phones to the market, allowing users to get in touch with 5G mobile phones earlier, accelerating the construction of 5G networks with operators, and making more optimizations to the network.

There will be more 5G phones coming

Huawei has seized the limelight of the first 5G commercial mobile phone by relying on its independent research and development strength and advantages; however, in addition to Huawei, other mobile phone manufacturers are also gearing up to join the competition for 5G mobile phones this year.

In fact, since the end of June, various mobile phone manufacturers have had a series of 5G-related developments. For example, on June 25, Huawei Mate 20 X 5G version obtained the first domestic 5G terminal telecommunications equipment access license, license number 001; and in mid-July, some media inquired from the China Quality Certification Center that 8 5G mobile phones have obtained 3C certification. Among them, Huawei has 4 models, and OnePlus, ZTE, vivo, and OPPO each have one 5G mobile phone certified.

Leifeng.com learned that 5G mobile phones need three certifications to be put on the market, namely 3C certification, network access certificate and radio approval certificate (China's National Compulsory Product Certification Certificate, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's telecommunications equipment network access trial approval, radio transmitter equipment model approval certificate). These three certificates are independent and indispensable. At present, Huawei, OV and other manufacturers' 5G mobile phones have all three certificates.

As far as the current situation is concerned, in addition to the 5G mobile phones that Huawei and ZTE have already released, 5G mobile phones from other manufacturers are also just around the corner:

• vivo's iQOO 5G version of the phone is scheduled to be launched in August. The first batch of 5G phones will be sold at close to cost price to lower the experience threshold of initial 5G phones.
• OPPO officially confirmed that the OPPO Reno 5G version will be launched in China in the third quarter, but more specific launch time and price information have not yet been announced.
• Xiaomi currently has 5G mobile phones registered with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Previously, Lei Jun, chairman and CEO of Xiaomi Group, revealed that Xiaomi will launch a new 5G phone in the second half of the year.
• Samsung has actually launched the "5G Pioneer Plan" in China earlier. If you buy a designated Samsung phone and pay 99 yuan to join the plan, you can be the first to replace it with a 5G phone after the new Samsung 5G phone is released by paying the price difference. However, at present, Samsung has no clearer plan to launch 5G phones in the Chinese market.

In addition, regarding 5G services, China Unicom has also issued an official statement, stating that 5G services are not yet open to the public, and users can apply to join China Unicom's 5G Pioneer Experience Plan; however, China Unicom's online and offline channels have begun to accept 5G mobile phone purchase reservations. Old users do not need to change their cards or numbers. They can experience 5G services in advance by inserting a Unicom card into a 5G mobile phone in the 5G coverage area. 5G-related business policies are under study.

However, there are also reports that operators will officially launch preferential packages for 5G products in the next two months.

5G iPhone to be released as early as next year

In the smartphone camp, Apple and its iPhone have always been the most eye-catching; therefore, its 5G mobile phone release plan is also a hot topic in the industry. However, compared with the Chinese mobile phone manufacturers who have spared no effort to promote 5G, Apple's attitude towards 5G is not so enthusiastic.

As of now, almost all sources point to the same conclusion: Apple will not launch a 5G version of the iPhone this year - the earliest possible release date is 2020.

In addition, well-known Apple product analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes in his latest report that Apple will support 5G network functions in the three iPhones launched in 2020. He gave three reasons:

• After acquiring Intel's mobile baseband business, Apple has more resources to develop 5G iPhone;
• Consumers will consider 5G to be a necessary feature next year. Therefore, higher-priced iPhone models must support 5G to attract mobile operators and consumers;
• The push for 5G technology could help bolster Apple's AR ecosystem.

Leifeng.com once reported that after experiencing a 5G puzzle, Apple chose Qualcomm as its modem partner, and Intel also announced its withdrawal from the 5G smartphone modem field; Apple then spent US$1 billion to acquire Intel's smartphone modem business, intending to develop its own 5G baseband chips.

[[272237]]

Nevertheless, considering the difficulty of 5G research and development, if Apple launches a 5G iPhone in 2020, it must use Qualcomm's 5G modem chip - after all, there are multiple sources that believe that it will take at least several years for Apple to develop its own modem chip, and 2020 is definitely too late.

It is worth mentioning that even if Apple launches the 5G version of the iPhone in 2020, it may not be available in the Chinese market in a short period of time. After all, it has to go through a network certification process, which involves great uncertainty.

Leifeng.com Summary

There is no doubt that 5G mobile phones are heading towards ordinary Chinese consumers, and they are only one step away; and many mobile phone manufacturers (except Apple) are also ready to go. However, as Qin Fei, general manager of vivo Communication Research Institute, said in an interview, in the early stage of commercial use this year, the production and sales of 5G mobile phones will not be as large as 4G mobile phones. By next year, with the support of chip manufacturers and operators, the market will be activated. It is worth mentioning that Qin Fei's outlook for 5G mobile phone sales next year is 100 million units.

So the final question is:

• Will you choose to be the first to use a 5G mobile phone this year? Or wait until next year?

This article is reproduced from Leiphone.com. If you need to reprint it, please go to Leiphone.com official website to apply for authorization.