According to a new report from In-Stat, The Wi-Fi Chipset Market: Portable Connectivity Applications Drive Volumes, portable connectivity applications are driving the global Wi-Fi chipset market, with shipments growing on account of big growth from the mobile PC segment, the portable consumer electronics segment, and the dual-mode handset segment.

"Dual-mode cellular/Wi-Fi handsets are pushing hard into the market in 2007, with handset vendors Nokia and HTC really leveraging Wi-Fi as an alternative high-speed broadband connectivity option," said Gemma Tedesco, In-Stat analyst. "Wi-Fi for voice is expected to pick up this year, with T-Mobile's nationwide FMC rollout in the U.S."

In-Stat reported the following from itsresearch:

• In 2006, 213 million Wi-Fi chipsets shipped out worldwide, representing a 32% growth rate over 2005 shipments.
• Dual-mode cellular/Wi-Fi handsets will be the breakout market segment in 2007, and will reach 20% of the total chipset market in 2009.
• A notable market subsegment to watch in 2007 is the portable media player market, with Microsoft’s Zune ramping up, and a Wi-Fi-enabled Apple iPod scheduled to hit shelves in the second half of 2007.
• Although 802.11n is expected to provide for +100 Mbps, In-Stat expects Wi-Fi uptake in device categories such as DTVs and set-top boxes to be very slow.

Despite the onslaught of WiMAX (IEEE 802.16e) for mobile connectivity, it’s interesting that Wi-Fi continues to grow with new applications such as dual-mode cell phones. The Wi-Fi infrastructure around the globe continues to expand through homes, businesses, corporations and metropolitan areas. These structures will most likely stay in place as WiMAX becomes more ubiquitous over time. Then, we might have triple-mode cell phones – or maybe back to single-mode, just WiMAX-based VoIP with Internet access. Time will tell.

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