Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 could be the first commercial 5G-ready phone to hit the market. (Image: Donovan Sung/Twitter)
Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 launch is set for October 25, which is tomorrow and this is speculated to be the first 5G-ready phone. The company has posted a slew of official teasers that hint at 5G support in Mi Mix 3. The phone could be followed by OnePlus’ next flagship (likely to be called OnePlus 7) in 2019, which could be among the first 5G-ready smartphone in 2019.
Qualcomm president Cristiano Amon said at the company’s 4G/5G summit in Hong Kong earlier this week, that two major flagships with 5G radio are expected to launch next year. While the first smartphone will be announced in the first half of the year, the other will make its debut during the holiday season.
More smartphone makers including HMD Global, Sony, Vivo, Oppo, Motorola, HTC, LG, Fujitsu, Sharp, etc are also gearing up to announce 5G smartphones next year. Let us take a look at a list of phones expected to come with 5G capabilities:
Xiaomi Mi Mix 3
In Xiaomi Mi Mix 3, 5G components could be build into the hardware as the upcoming Snapdragon 855 processor will feature external support for the network. The phone is speculated to launch with Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor, yet to be announced.
— Donovan Sung (@donovansung) October 16, 2018
Xiaomi itself has not revealed many details around 5G capabilities in Mi Mix 3, but posted a teaser image, which has a notebook with 5G written on it. The teaser image was shared by Donovan Sung, who is the head of product management at Xiaomi. If one goes by the hint, Mi Mix 3 could be the first commercial 5G-ready phone to hit the market.
OnePlus 7
OnePlus’ upcoming flagship, which will likely be called OnePlus 7, will also feature 5G support. This was confirmed by OnePlus co-founder, Carl Pei at Qualcomm’s 4G/5G summit. At the summit, Qualcomm itself made a slew of announcements around 5G including the latest QTM052 mmWave antenna module in its line-up of fully integrated 5G NR millimeter wave (mmWave) modules for smartphones and other mobile devices.
Pei announced that OnePlus and his team has conducted a 5G test at Qualcomm’s headquarters in San Diego in August. The phone will be powered by the Snapdragon X50 5G modem and the QTM052 mmWave antenna module.
.@oneplus to be among the first vendors to launch #5G #smartphone in 2019. – Carl Pei @getpeid #4G5GSummit pic.twitter.com/YGIR6kBgWh
HOT DEALS— Ericsson Networks (@EricssonNetwork) October 23, 2018
Samsung Galaxy S10
Samsung is said to launch a 5G variant of Galaxy S10+, as per a report from South Korean The Bell. Samsung Galaxy S10+ 5G model could release around March 5, 2019, which is when operators start to commercially roll out 5G services. Only higher-end version of Galaxy S10 or Galaxy S10+ will apparently be available in 5G variant, which will have 5G antenna system. The phone could launch after Galaxy S10 series makes it official debut.
Samsung has partnered with Qualcomm develop 5G small cells to effectively scale 5G NR networks. The small cell solutions will act as a catalyst to support 5G experiences and help with uniform delivery of 5G experiences, especially indoors.