Qualcomm Strengthens Its 5G Offensive, Brings 19 Vendors & 18 Carriers On Board

The technology world can be a lot of fun to watch sometimes, because you really don’t know what’s going to happen. Earlier this week, Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) shot over a second unsolicited acquisition proposal to Qualcomm, and to date, there’s been no response from the San Diego native. That could be due to the fact that it’s in the middle of showing press what’s in store for 5G, perhaps at the same time strengthening its own worth.

Today, Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) has announced that it has secured the partnerships of 19 phone vendors and 18 carriers to help turn its 5G dreams into realities. On the vendor side, companies like ASUS, HTC, LG, Sony, Xiaomi, and ZTE are in for the fun, and as for carriers, a select few include AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, Orange, SK Telecom, Telstra, and Vodafone.

Qualcomm’s Cristiano Amon talking about his company’s X50 5G modem in 2016

An obvious absence (which may be because I’m currently evaluating the 5T) is that OnePlus hasn’t made the list. However, its parent company Oppo has, and since OP’s MO has always been to launch its flagships with Qualcomm’s latest high-end Snapdragons, I feel it’s very likely that we’ll see a Snadragon 5G OP phone in 2019.

And speaking of 2019, it’s clearer than ever that 2018 isn’t going to be the big year for 5G, but it will be the big year for 5G implementations and roll outs. Following all of the testing conducted this year, a full roll out of 5G products will take place in 2019, giving us lots of mobile speed while we’re on-the-go.

Qualcomm’s announcement comes less than two months after the 5G spec was finalized by 3GPP, with Qualcomm’s X50 5G NR chip built to that spec. While any mention of 5G is likely to elicit thoughts of smartphones, the wireless tech will be found in many more places than just our handhelds. Always-connected PCs are going to be treated to 5G flavor, and so too will HMDs used for AR, VR, or XR. Users requiring mobile internet at home could benefit, as well, since both latencies and bandwidth will be vastly improved.

With the full roll out due in 2019, you can rest assured that your meager 4G device will suffice at least through the end of the year. At least we see a great sign of progress; 2019 is going to be extremely interesting on the mobile front, it goes without saying.