Americans, Koreans buy 5G phones even if they can't get 5G
Soon, buying a 4G phone won't make sense except for the poor. Counterpoint Research is the first with data on where people are buying 5G phones, including in Korea. Many live in areas not yet serviced. Verizon 5G phone purchasers often live far from any 5G coverage, as you can see in the illustration from Counterpoint. Everyone in telecom is now rethinking 5G strategies.
In hindsight, it makes sense. Who wants to buy a phone likely to be obsolete soon? If you are buying a US$1200 phone, US$100-200 more is a reasonable price to pay for assurance you'll still be happy in two years. 70% to 80% of sales of Samsung's top-of-the-line Galaxy S10 are the 5G model. It has sold over a million units in 80 days, 12,500 per day.
My forecast is that sales of 5G phones will explode when prices come down. China Mobile predicts prices of US$150-300 in 2020, as does Huawei.