Qualcomm introduced its Snapdragon 855 on Tuesday, a product the San Diego-based wireless pioneer said is the first commercial 5G platform for smartphones and other portable devices.
President Cristiano Amon said 5G will be a commercial reality starting in early 2019 with mobile device launches and network rollouts across North America, Europe, Japan, South Korea, Australia and China.
“Today marks a massive and exciting step forward underscoring how Qualcomm Technologies and ecosystem leaders are driving 5G commercialization, a journey that went from R&D, accelerated standardization and trials, the launch of innovative products and technologies, to the imminent launch of 5G networks and smartphones across the globe starting in early 2019,” said Amon.
Amon was joined on stage at an industry conference in Hawaii by senior executives from mobile operators AT&T, Verizon and Britain’s EE to demonstrate a worldwide commitment to the new Qualcomm technology.
“Through our close collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies, Verizon reached a number of milestones over the last year to help make 5G a reality for consumers in 2019,” said Nicki Palmer, chief network engineering officer at Verizon.
A Samsung representative told the conference that his company would bring the first high-end smartphone using using the Snapdragon 855 to market in the first half of the year.
5G stands for 5th generation wireless system and promises a tenfold increase in speed from the current 4G. For example, with 5G a full HD movie can be downloaded in a matter of seconds.
