Strategy Analytics: LTE mobile phone shipments will increase tenfold to 67 million units in 2012

According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics' WDS, global LTE mobile phone shipments will increase tenfold in 2012, and 2012 will be a year of breakthrough development for 4G technology. Companies leading this trend include Apple, Samsung, HTC, etc.

Strategy Analytics estimates that global LTE mobile phone shipments will increase tenfold from 6.8 million in 2011 to 67 million. Countries such as the United States, Japan, and South Korea will be important drivers of LTE development. Companies such as Verizon Wireless, NTT Docomo, and SK Telecom will actively expand their LTE networks. Major players in the mobile phone market such as Apple, Samsung, HTC, LG, Nokia, Moto, Pantech, and Fujitsu will focus on LTE mobile phones.

The mobile phone industry will enter a breakthrough year for 4G LTE technology, and multiple operators and mobile phone manufacturers around the world will release multiple LTE mobile phones. LTE will quickly become a high-tech, high-value market, which operators, service developers, mobile phone manufacturers and equipment manufacturers cannot ignore.

LTE phones will grow rapidly this year, but they still face many obstacles in the early stages of development. Many LTE phones and data services will be expensive. This means that operators will have to invest higher subsidies to make 4G phones and services affordable for users. At the same time, the usability issues of LTE phones that users are concerned about, such as short battery life, weight of the device, and high bills caused by high data consumption, all need to be resolved.