Mobile Phones Adding Wi-Fi Jun 26, 2007 – eMarketer Staff
Almost half of early adopters who plan
to replace their mobile phones want Wi-Fi capability, according to an
In-Stat survey.
The firm noted that early adopters will
have a wide range of options from which to choose, since the Wi-Fi Alliance
is set to certify over 100 different models of Wi-Fi mobile phones by the end
of 2007.
Worldwide, the number of Wi-Fi mobile
phones shipped is expected to exceed 50 million by 2011.
Allen Nogee of In-Stat said, "In the
years ahead, dual-mode VoIP-capable phone systems will have increasing
competition from other technologies, like femtocells for cellular coverage,
but widespread Wi-Fi deployment and the variety of Wi-Fi cellular handsets
offers Wi-Fi cellular-based systems a significant head start in the market."
Other technologies, such as WiMAX and ultra-wideband, are also poised to
enter the handset market, but Wi-Fi fills a unique niche that WiMAX and UWB
cannot match."
