5G Phone Shipments Are Slightly Ahead of 4G Devices For the First Time

5G phone shipments are now slightly ahead of 4G mobile devices for the first time since the former saw the light of day roughly three years ago.

An analyst points out that while 5G devices surpass their older sibling by a minuscule lead, it still shows how the trend is going these days.

5G Phone Shipments vs. 4G Devices

As per the latest report by CNET, the shipments of 5G smartphones globally have exceeded the performance of 4G phones.

The milestone for 5G phones comes roughly three years since the next-generation wireless connection debuted in flagship smartphones.

According to a report from GSM Arena, the first-ever 5G phone to make it to launch is none other than the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G.

While other phone makers have been teasing their fair share of 5G offering, the South Korean phone maker won the race, albeit with its slightly delayed launch. And as such, the first 5G smartphone debuted last April 2019.

And since then, it appears that the sales of 5G phones have been trying hard to catch up with their 4G counterparts. But it is only in the second quarter of 2022 that the decline of 4G phone shipments and the rise of 5G devices have met along the way.

5G Phones Now Surpasses 4G Device Shipments

The research vice president and partner of Counterpoint, Neil Shah, shared a graph on Twitter showing the decline of 4G phone shipments since 5G debuted in 2019.

At first glance, it looks like 5G and 4G mobile devices had a tie at global shipments in the second quarter of this year.

But upon profusely looking closer, 5G won over 4G for the first time, at least in phone shipments globally.

CNET dishes out the numbers. 5G phones now take 49.9% slice of the pie in the global smartphone shipments, whereas its 4G counterpart only holds 49.7% share for the 2022 second quarter.

5G Smartphones Dominate the Market

Well, the latest data shows that more and more people are getting their hands on the newest smartphone offerings.

But it is worth mentioning that there are not many 4G options anymore - except if you opt to buy a phone that still comes with a keypad.

In fact, the budget-friendly iPhone SE now rocks the next-generation connection. Samsung's affordable Galaxy A32 5G --- as its name suggests --- readily supports it as well. The mid-range Google Pixel 6a also comes with it.

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Teejay Boris