More affordable 5G handsets will keep China’s smartphone market on level ground after three years of decline, IDC report says

5G phones will become more affordable next year, with some priced at less than half the cost of Apple’s new 4G iPhone11 released this year, helping the Chinese smartphone market recover from three years of declining growth, according to research firm IDC China.

More than 20 per cent of 5G phones will cost less than 2,000 yuan (US$286) next year and prices will be even cheaper over the next five years, says IDC. That will see China’s smartphone market eke out a 0.7 per cent year-on-year increase in shipments after three straight years of decline.

“There is no doubt that 5G phones will have a positive effect on the entire smartphone industry, which will make all-round changes to meet the new era,” said Wang Xi, an IDC China research manager who specialises in the Chinese smartphone market.

Countries around the world are locked in a race to roll out 5G wireless networks, which offer faster data rates, reduced latency, energy savings and massive device connectivity. The mobile technology is seen as key to dominance in fields such as factory automation, robotics and autonomous driving.

China is expected to be a front-runner in the roll-out of commercial 5G services with an estimated 600 million 5G subscribers by 2025, according to trade body GSMA, as Beijing presses ahead with plans to lead the next-generation wireless technology. Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies is widely considered the market leader when it comes to building the network infrastructure for 5G although it has faced setbacks after being placed on a US trade blacklist.