The 5G Samsung smartphone will use Qualcomm’s processor and a concept device will be shown off this week at the Qualcomm Snapdragon Technology Summit in Hawaii
One of the world’s first 5G smartphones will launch in the US in the first half of 2019. The smartphone will be made by Samsung and the network will be provided by Verizon. The device will be powered by the Snapdragon 855 chipset which comes integrated with a 5G modem. There is no information on the model number of the smartphone, what it will look like or how much it will cost. However, Samsung is rumoured to release a 5G variant of the Galaxy S10 next year and it's possible that this could be the device in question. Samsung and Verizon plan to show a concept phone with 5G features at Qualcomm's ongoing Snapdragon Technology Summit in Hawaii. At the Summit, Qualcomm announced the 5G-enabled Snapdragon 855 SoC. You can read more about the SoC here.
During the event, Justin Denison, Senior Vice President of mobile product strategy and marketing at Samsung Electronics America, discussed the company’s commitment to 5G, including bringing the first flagship 5G smartphone to the U.S. in the first half of 2019 using the Snapdragon 855 Mobile Platform with the 5G X50 modem. “At Samsung, we have a vision of a connected world powered by 5G that will benefit consumers, communities, industries and governments,” Denison commented during the Snapdragon Technology Summit. “5G will fuel collaboration, connectivity and productivity worldwide, and we’re excited to be at the forefront working alongside partners like Qualcomm Technologies to make the transformation to 5G a reality,” he added.
5G networks are expected to give users better mobile service, better bandwidth and improved network reliability. When fully implemented, 5G will offer capacity and download speed many times faster than today’s 4G LTE network. 5G connectivity is expected to be faster than the blink of an eye.
“5G will usher in a new era of mobile connectivity, allowing people to connect to data, experiences and other people in ways never thought possible,” said Brian Higgins, Vice President, wireless device and product marketing at Verizon. “Together, Samsung and Verizon have made huge gains in bringing 5G commercial services to consumers in several cities. Now, we’re partnering to create a smartphone to put the power of 5G in the palm of your handl,” he added.
Coming back to the Samsung 5G smartphone, it "is the result of years of collaboration to deploy an end-to-end solution for commercial 5G services using Samsung network equipment and personal devices," Samsung said in a press release.
Samsung isn’t the only one gunning to be the first to launch a 5G smartphone. Back in August, Lenovo Vice President Chang Cheng claimed on Chinese micro-blogging website Weibo that the world’s first 5G phone will be from Lenovo. He said that the device will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset. Code-named “Odin”, the smartphone could be the Motorola Moto Z4. As per XDA developer, this Moto flagship sports 4GB RAM and 32GB storage, and it is expected that the phone could also have higher RAM and storage models. The device, which is in its early stages of development, is said to be running on Android 9 Pie. It is also said that this phone is being developed keeping in mind Moto Mod support. There is no clarity on whether this device will support the existing Moto Mods, but it is said that “Odin” will have a 5G Moto Mod. You can read more about "Odin" here. Currently, the Moto Z3 is the first 5G upgradable phone if one purchases the 5G mod with it. Moto is yet to put the 5G mod on sale.
5G connectivity is expected to bring about drastic improvements in network connectivity and improve on things like latency, buffering and more. How and when 5G will make its debut in India is yet to be seen. 5G is also expected to help with game streaming. Microsoft, Google and more are reportedly working on game streaming services where users will be able to stream console games in 1080p to their smartphones, tablets and any other device. Game streaming requires low latency which theoretically can be achieved using 5G.
Speaking of gaming on the go, Samsung is looking at gaming as an avenue to distinguish itself from the competition in the mobile world. The South Korean tech giant is planning to invest $40 million in Niantic. Niantic is the studio behind the successful Pokemon Go Augmented Reality game. The main focus of this deal will be on an exclusive Harry Potter game. Niantic's is currently working on a Harry Potter game titled, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. It isn’t clear whether the exclusive game for Samsung devices will be a reworked version of Harry Potter: Wizards Unite or a new Harry Potter game entirely. You can read more about the deal here.
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Sameer Mitha
Sameer Mitha lives for gaming and technology is his muse. When he isn’t busy playing with gadgets or video games he delves into the world of fantasy novels. View Full Profile
