China Mobile Stores Going All Out for iPhone and iPad Promotion
Following the start of pre-orders for the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c on China Mobile earlier this week, new photos from PRC and ME show just how much the world's largest carrier is emphasizing its launch of Apple's products.
The carrier's relatively small store at the Link City shopping mall in Shenzhen is covered in Apple promotional signage, including wall-mounted banners and a large scrolling digital ribbon sign advertising discounted pricing on the new iPhones, extra free-standing signage, and even a flatscreen television replaying video of Apple's iPhone 5s/5c introduction from September.
Not only were there Apple advertisements all over the place, but even Phil Schiller was present, his A7 chip announcement playing on a flatscreen TV. A majority of the ad and display space in the store had been dedicated to Apple. If this is any indication, China Mobile is planning to aggressively promote their new Apple partnership in the hopes of blunting any advances from China Unicom and Telecom.
One of the store's two display tables is entirely devoted to Apple products, with iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPad, and iPad mini units on display for customers to try out, extra iPhone 5c samples showing the various color options, and a China Mobile salesperson staffing the table at a large iMac.
The China Mobile iPhone launch comes just as market research firm Counterpoint Research revealed a significant jump in Apple's smartphone market share in China in October, with Apple leaping from sixth place to third with over 10% of the market on the strength of the iPhone 5s and 5c launches. With China Mobile opening iPhone availability up to millions of potential new customers beyond launch partners China Unicom and China Telecom, Apple is clearly looking to make a significant move in the world's largest market.
Popular Stories
Apple has announced that iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS Sequoia 15.2 will be released today following more than six weeks of beta testing.
For the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models, the update introduces additional Apple Intelligence features, including Genmoji for creating custom emoji, Image Playground and Image Wand for generating images, and ChatGPT integration for Siri. There is also ...
Next year's iPhone 17 Pro models will reportedly feature a major redesign, specifically centering around changes to the rear camera module, and now new supply chain information appears to confirm the striking change, according to a Chinese leaker.
iPhone 17 Pro concept render
Late last month, The Information's Wayne Ma claimed that the rear of the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro...
Developers now have access to cloud-based M4 and M4 Pro Mac mini units via MacWeb, a Silicon Valley-based provider of cloud services.
The company has launched three configurations of the new Mac mini, powered by Apple's M4 and M4 Pro chips. Developers and IT teams can rent these machines for tasks ranging from basic development to advanced artificial intelligence modeling, providing an...
Wednesday December 11, 2024 10:02 am PST by
Juli CloverApple today released macOS Sequoia 15.2, the second update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that was released in September. macOS Sequoia 15.2 comes over a month after the release of macOS Sequoia 15.1.
Mac users can download the macOS Sequoia update through the Software Update section of System Settings.
macOS Sequoia 15.2 adds Image Playground, an app that lets you create...
Apple plans to refresh both the Apple TV and the HomePod mini in 2025 as part of a major push into refreshing its smart home product offerings, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In a report on an upcoming Apple-designed Bluetooth and Wi-Fi chip, Gurman says that the chip will be introduced in a new Apple TV and HomePod mini that are "scheduled" for 2025. While there is no exact timeline...
Wednesday December 11, 2024 10:54 am PST by
Juli CloverApple today made a mistake with its macOS Sequoia 15.2 update, releasing the software for two Macs that have yet to be launched. There is a software file for "Mac16,12" and "Mac16,13," which are upcoming MacBook Air models.
The leaked software references the "MacBook Air (13-inch, M4, 2025)" and the "MacBook Air (15-inch, M4, 2025)," confirming that new M4 MacBook Air models are in...
Wednesday December 11, 2024 10:03 am PST by
Juli CloverApple today released iOS 18.2 and iPadOS 18.2, the second major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 updates that came out in September. The new updates come over a month after Apple released iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General >...