Shipments of 5G smartphones in China reached nearly half a million units in the third quarter, despite the country’s three major mobile operators not officially launching 5G services until the end of October, IDC reported.

The operators started signing up 5G customers in September, and by early October reportedly registered more than 10 million users. They received their commercial licences from the government in June.

IDC placed 5G device shipments at 485,000 units, the majority of which were high-end flagship models (see chart below, click to enlarge), though the company also noted activity in lower price bands.

Vivo gained an early lead after releasing a high-end model for more than $700 and a lower-priced device in the $450 to $550 range.

It garnered a 54.3 per cent share of 5G shipments in the July to September period, following by Samsung (29 per cent), Huawei (9.5 per cent), Xiaomi (4.6 per cent), ZTE (1.5 per cent) and China Mobile (1.1 per cent).

Huawei and Samsung focused on the high-end segment, while ZTE and China Mobile offered devices in the $600 to $650 range.

Growing demand
Following the commercial launch, demand for 5G devices is expected to accelerate rapidly.

GSMA Intelligence forecasts China will have 460 million 5G subscribers by 2025, accounting for 36 per cent of the worldwide total.

Last week, Vivo Telecom Research Institute GM Qin Fei said it plans to release at least five 5G models in 2020 with a heavy focus on the mid-tier and the goal of launching devices in China priced from CNY2,000 ($286).