ABI Research: 4G Remains the Preferred Solution for Internet of Things Connectivity

A survey conducted by ABI Research found that 4G is still the preferred solution for Internet of Things connectivity. The new year did not bring a new dominant IoT connectivity standard, and ABI Research monitored the activity of 1,037 IoT models from 52 module vendors and found that competing standards still have a ways to go to catch up with 4G. 4G accounts for more than 60 percent of cellular modules - covering high-bandwidth CAT12 through CAT20 and high-bandwidth CAT1 through CAT4. 5G accounts for just 4.34 percent. While 5G is nothing new, there are only 45 5G IoT module models available," said Harriet Sumnall, research analyst for IoT hardware and devices at ABI Research. This is not surprising, as 5G is not available for many IoT applications outside of the automotive space, nor is it available for fixed wireless terminals, as the initial release of 5G baseband modems was aimed at the consumer mobile broadband market. While 2G and 3G networks are starting to shut down globally, 4G is unlikely to be threatened for a significant period of time. NB-IoT and LTE-M are the leading solutions in the LPWAN space. As these technologies gain a foothold in the IoT space, module vendors will release more 5G and LPWAN module models," Sumnall added. "However, it's important to note that the slow adoption of any technology is not due to a lack of available module hardware. 4G is expected to remain the preferred connectivity technology for IoT devices in the long term and for the future. At the same time, LPWAN will become the preferred solution for applications such as smart street lighting in the coming years. To date, most of the sales activity for LPWAN modules has occurred in China. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)