Dell, HP Plan 5G PCs for 2021, But Will They Work in the US?

(Microsoft Surface Pro X)

MediaTek and Intel announced today that they're putting MediaTek 5G modems in Intel-based Dell and HP PCs starting in 2021, revving up an always-connected PC market that has risen and died several times over the past decade.

But while MediaTek's products generally promise good performance at a reasonable cost, the company says its 5G solution is based in part on its Helio M70 5G modem, which doesn't include the millimeter-wave technology AT&T and Verizon will be relying on to accelerate mobile business to gigabit speeds. That makes these PCs more likely targeted at Europe and Asia.

There's a weird timing issue here. MediaTek is working on millimeter-wave devices to launch in 2021, CEO Joe Chen told me in February. But maybe the laptop development cycles are so long that those fully US-compatible modems can't make it into this first round of PCs? Or perhaps MediaTek plans to integrate newer modems into these PCs, but wanted to make this announcement with Intel now and can't describe an unreleased product.

Cellular-connected PCs are a category I've seen wax and wane over the past decade. They first really became prominent at the beginning of the 4G era, when four major laptop makers joined with Intel to build WiMAX-capable PCs. In general, the category has never taken off in the US because of limited carrier compatibility and expensive service plans; businesses prefer to use Wi-Fi hotspots or the hotspot mode on their phones for laptops on the go.

The most recent round of attempts at cellular-connected PCs involve a partnership between Microsoft and Qualcomm, putting Qualcomm processors and modems into full Windows 10 PCs. But those devices (most notably the new Surface Pro X, shown above) haven't set the market on fire, in part because of compatibility problems between their ARM-based processors and some common third-party applications. By using Intel processors, the MediaTek-based ones will get around those compatibility issues.

Lenovo has already pre-announced an integrated 5G PC with Qualcomm's technology for early 2020. Qualcomm President Cristiano Amon said at a recent analyst day event that 5G-integrated PCs will be compelling because their high capacity, speedy data rates, and low latency means PCs will be able to treat cloud storage essentially as local storage. In an ideal 5G world, lightweight corporate PCs would be able to stream files, games, and even app experiences over 5G networks with relatively little lag.

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But that assumes good 5G coverage with high capacity and affordable, even disruptive 5G service plans, neither of which US carriers have been able to deliver in the seven months since Verizon launched the nation's first retail 5G network. Maybe in 2021, the situation will be different.

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