A vendor survey by the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) found 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) customer premises equipment (CPE) shipments more than doubled to 3.6 million units in 2021, with the group forecasting a similar increase this year.

The GSA predicted shipments to hit 7.6 million, around 25 per cent of total shipments by the 26 vendors it quizzed.

It clarified 5G devices shipped in 2021 included 4G technologies and stated 84 per cent of all FWA CPE moved during the year was LTE-only. The overall market declined compared with 2020, but the GSA predicted a return to broader growth this year.

Vendors told the GSA they planned to bring more 5G models to market moving forward, with 88 per cent highlighting plans around mmWave equipment over the next three years.

Out of all 5G units shipped in 2021, 160,000 were mmWave-based devices, up from 130,000 in 2020.

Most respondents expect component shortages to ease in the next year, but remain braced for ongoing inflationary issues.