Well for one thing MediaTek was late to adopt the previous 4G technology for its range of mobile chipsets. However the CEO of the company Rock Tsai has assured its users that MediaTek has no plans to repeat the same mistake with the upcoming 5G technology. Moreover they are also approaching what seems to be the next big step in terms of mobile phone connectivity which will be quite different from many of its competitors which according to the laws of economics should give them a somewhat competitive advantage.
TL Lee, who is currently the firms general manager for mobile, revealed the secret weapon they have in-store and says that this weapon will ensure that MediaTek is at the forefront of the 5G race. The ‘secret weapon’ seems to be a 5G capable system on a chipset! That will in turn take up less space inside the device hardware and moreover does not require the same level of power input as other devices at the time may require! It is said to arrive in 2020 and tests will start in 2019.
Moving on so far the only 5G product we have seen is probably the Motorola Moto X device. This device looks big in terms of size and has an external battery pack and also has a large antenna inside of it. The Moto Mod will connect to the 5G networks using a system which is being called the Millimeter Wave or the mmWave. Furthermore the device is not an actual cellular system as we know it, but it will however rely somewhat on the network of the 5G wifi routers which in turn connect the mobile devices to the new high-speed networks.
MediaTek has been reported to spend about $1.8 Billion alone on research and development, with the Ceo stating the 5G has been a major part of their plans for some time now! He further revealed to have put about 10 times the resources in to the research and development of 5G on their chipsets since the middle of last year and have revised their strategy. Moreover he talked about the mmWave and says that MediaTek will continue to develop the mmWave technology but he feels that the first few years of the 5G internet mobile connectivity will be dominated by a much more alternative state of technology which they have dubbed the Sub-6Ghz.
The reason for backing up the Sub-6Ghz 5G technology has to do with the fact that, MediaTek believes that the market for 5G will be around this state of technology in the first two to four years of launch, while the demand for mmWave technology will increase gradually side by side. Moreover the Sub-6 5G is being adopted in the country China, in some parts of Asia and in Europe and Tsai called them “ The most important regions for 5G in 2020 and 2021”.
Moreover the 5G technology is considered to consume a lot of power in comparison to the previous 4G technology, hence the need for companies to put powerful batteries in their phones will increase. MediaTek already takes immense pride on the power efficiency it has for its chipsets already, which somewhat indicates that the new 5G SOC will not be that power hungry as once considered.
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Well the fact that the new MediaTek 5G chip will only support Sub-6Ghz and not mmWave still remains to stand. TL Lee called the 5G critical and essential for the company’s business but if the new chip only supports the so called Sub-6Ghz technology, well then is that not a little bit below par? The decision is hence a tradeoff said TJ Lee and further on carried that statement to say that the larger population in the market which is present in China and most of Europe, will help them grab the 5G rush that the people mostly missed when it came to the 4G technology! He called the 5G a “ level playing field” . Currently with all of the manufacturers dedicated to working on the same goal it will take some strong cooperation between the networks, device manufacturers, and the SOC creators to make the 5G full operational and up to speed.
Moving on the Sub-6Ghz is top of the MediaTek’s priority list for the time being, but it is certainly not ignoring the possibility of the mmWave technology, if that’s what you’re thinking. Lee confirms that both technologies are in the works of being developed and this shows that MediaTek is ready to grab whatever chance they get to get the technology in and completely dominate the market. Moreover one of their fierce rivals Qualcomm also seem to be developing both the Sub-6Ghz and the mmWave technology for their future 5G compatible devices as well!
When we discuss the 5G technology, speed is probably the most important part of the discussion, most of the time. Now after the mistake MediaTek made on the 4G LTE, I am sure that many of us would be thinking whether MediaTek stray away from that mistake this time around? Rick Tsai took charge and he talked about the changes since then that the company has made, he added that Humility is now in the firm’s heart, but it does not just want to be another pawn in this game, which the company has been thought of for some notable years now. Now the aim of the company is to be the technological leader and these ambitions start at the very top of the food-chain. Tsai further adds that “Our mobile business has turned a corner and we are investing in 5G to become a market leader”
It has been revealed that MediaTek will be testing its new Hello M70 5G modem with the global carriers, this chipset is destined to be for the non-smartphone devices. MediaTek has also revealed its ambitions for the automotive sector as well and believes that 5G will also play a major part. MediaTek already pretty much owns the smart speaker and the smart TV market. If you’re not already up to date, well then you should know that everything starting from the Amazon Dot and ending at the Sony Android TV has a built in MediaTek processor inside of it. They have already announced that the M70 will replace a currently un-named 5G mobile SOC, and MediaTek has revealed its desires to demonstrate its 5G capability at the upcoming 2019 Mobile World Congress technology show. Lets see how they end up!
Finally the time has come to discuss how affordable the new technology will be for the many consumers. Now we know, that this may sound way down the road but we should not forget that 5G isn’t coming any sooner then 2020(global launch year). Moreover MediaTek also expects the mobile devices with built in chipsets to cost less then the $350 mark, making the devices very reasonably priced and affordable for the consumers. The CEO of MediaTek Rick Tsai is aware of the hype surrounding the 5G technology and hence spoke about the potential usage. He said that many creators are creating uses for the 5G that they have not yet thought of in a similar way to when the 4G was in its development stages and was set to replace the then 3G technology. Well we assure you that MediaTek will definitely be in the first wave of the 5G products when 5G hits the markets, stated Tsai. Moreover he emphasized that the company is on the right track in the highly anticipated launch of the new technology and confirms they will be ready this time around!
