Mobile analytics firm Flurry today reports Apple accounted for just over half of new mobile device activations for the holiday season, with 51.3 percent of worldwide activations going to the Cupertino-based company.
Using data from more than 600,000 tracked apps, Flurry focused on the week leading up to and including Christmas, from December 19-25. Trailing Apple in worldwide device activations was Samsung with nearly 18 percent and Nokia at almost 6 percent. Xiaomi, Huawei, and HTC all had less than one percent of device activations, which Flurry notes could be related to their popularity in Asian markets where the holiday season isn't the big gift-giving event it is in other parts of the world.
To put this in perspective, for every Samsung devices that was activated, Apple activated 2.9 devices. For every Microsoft Lumia device activated, Apple activated 8.8 devices. While, the holidays in general and Christmas in particular are not the sole indicator of the smartphone market share and trends, it is safe to say that Apple’s newly released iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have had a blockbuster holiday season, despite a lackluster holiday season for the consumer electronics industry.
Flurry also notes that on Christmas Day the number of app installs more than doubled compared to the early weeks of December, pointing to games and messaging apps as seeing the biggest jumps on Christmas morning.
The analytics firm also notes that "phablets" are gaining significant share in the market thanks to Apple's entry with the iPhone 6 Plus. "Medium Phones" such as the iPhone 6 still dominate the market as in years past, but the growth of the phablet in 2014 has taken share away from "Full-size Tablets" and, less drastically, "Small Tablets."
Looking at the year ahead, Flurry predicts iOS devices will continue to perform well alongside a continued shift in public opinion that will drive continued growth for the phablet form factor.
Monday December 1, 2025 4:37 pm PST by Juli Clover
We're getting closer to the launch of the final major iOS update of the year, with Apple set to release iOS 26.2 in December. We've had three betas so far and are expecting a fourth beta or a release candidate this week, so a launch could follow as soon as next week.
Past Launch Dates
Apple's past iOS x.2 updates from the last few years have all happened right around the middle of the...
Tuesday December 2, 2025 11:09 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple is encouraging iPhone users who are still running iOS 18 to upgrade to iOS 26 by making the iOS 26 software upgrade option more prominent.
Since iOS 26 launched in September, it has been displayed as an optional upgrade at the bottom of the Software Update interface in the Settings app. iOS 18 has been the default operating system option, and users running iOS 18 have seen iOS 18...
Monday December 1, 2025 3:00 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone next year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that 2026 could indeed be the year that Apple releases its first foldable device.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that ...
Tuesday December 2, 2025 9:44 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple's iPhone 17 lineup is selling well enough that Apple is on track to ship more than 247.4 million total iPhones in 2025, according to a new report from IDC.
Total 2025 shipments are forecast to grow 6.1 percent year over year due to iPhone 17 demand and increased sales in China, a major market for Apple.
Overall worldwide smartphone shipments across Android and iOS are forecast to...
Wednesday December 3, 2025 10:33 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2 updates to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming two weeks after Apple seeded the third betas. The release candidates represent the final versions of iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found during this final week of testing....
Thursday December 4, 2025 9:30 am PST by Joe Rossignol
In a statement shared with Bloomberg on Wednesday, Apple confirmed that its software design chief Alan Dye will be leaving. Apple said Dye will be succeeded by Stephen Lemay, who has been a software designer at the company since 1999.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that Dye will lead a new creative studio within the company's AR/VR division Reality Labs.
On his blog Daring Fireball,...
Monday December 1, 2025 5:00 am PST by Tim Hardwick
2026 could be a bumper year for Apple's Mac lineup, with the company expected to announce as many as four separate MacBook launches. Rumors suggest Apple will court both ends of the consumer spectrum, with more affordable options for students and feature-rich premium lines for users that seek the highest specifications from a laptop.
Below is a breakdown of what we're expecting over the next ...
The iPhone Air has recorded the steepest early resale value drop of any iPhone model in years, with new data showing that several configurations have lost almost 50% of their value within ten weeks of launch.
According to a ten-week analysis published by SellCell, Apple's latest lineup is showing a pronounced split in resale performance between the iPhone 17 models and the iPhone Air....
Thursday December 4, 2025 5:18 am PST by Tim Hardwick
iPhone 17 Pro models, it turns out, can't take photos in Night mode when Portrait mode is selected in the Camera app – a capability that's been available on Apple's Pro devices since the iPhone 12 Pro in 2020.
If you're an iPhone 17 Pro or iPhone 17 Pro Max owner, try it for yourself: Open the Camera app with Photo selected in the carousel, then cover the rear lenses with your hand to...
Tuesday December 2, 2025 3:30 pm PST by Juli Clover
OpenAI is deprioritizing work on advertising as it focuses on improving the quality of ChatGPT, reports The Information. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman declared a "code red" on Monday, and told employees that the company needs to improve ChatGPT so it doesn't fall behind competitors like Google and Anthropic.
Altman said that OpenAI needs to work on personalization for each user, image generation,...
While this may look like a huge success, it's only short-term. The last "revolutionary" thing Apple created was the iPad, but they failed to update it and continuously keep it fresh. Now, more and more people are switching to alternative tablets.
Now that the iPhone has made a non-revolutionary change by creating a bigger screen and adding unremarkable additions to its iOS (Samsung thought of this over four? years ago). Even Google is surpassing Apple's Siri with Cortana. Really? Google? Does anyone remember how bad it was when it first came out?!
Apple has failed and failed to innovate and now with the iWatch is moving backwards to try and find any niche it can in the market. Apple is a failure and I hope they can get it together fast before all those iPhone users realize this.
This is one of the dumbest comments I have ever read.
First, Cortana is Microsoft not Google. Second, do you really classify a bigger screen as a revolutionary achievement by Samsung?
Apple has failed and failed to innovate and now with the iWatch is moving backwards to try and find any niche it can in the market. Apple is a failure and I hope they can get it together fast before all those iPhone users realize this.
I'm glad you're not managing my tech investments. Or maybe you're just using sarcasm! If so, LOL.
While this may look like a huge success, it's only short-term. The last "revolutionary" thing Apple created was the iPad, but they failed to update it and continuously keep it fresh. Now, more and more people are switching to alternative tablets.
Now that the iPhone has made a non-revolutionary change by creating a bigger screen and adding unremarkable additions to its iOS (Samsung thought of this over four? years ago). Even Google is surpassing Apple's Siri with Cortana. Really? Google? Does anyone remember how bad it was when it first came out?!
Apple has failed and failed to innovate and now with the iWatch is moving backwards to try and find any niche it can in the market. Apple is a failure and I hope they can get it together fast before all those iPhone users realize this.
While this may look like a huge success, it's only short-term. The last "revolutionary" thing Apple created was the iPad, but they failed to update it and continuously keep it fresh. Now, more and more people are switching to alternative tablets.
Now that the iPhone has made a non-revolutionary change by creating a bigger screen and adding unremarkable additions to its iOS (Samsung thought of this over four? years ago). Even Google is surpassing Apple's Siri with Cortana. Really? Google? Does anyone remember how bad it was when it first came out?!
Apple has failed and failed to innovate and now with the iWatch is moving backwards to try and find any niche it can in the market. Apple is a failure and I hope they can get it together fast before all those iPhone users realize this.
I am sure all 800 Million users with switch to Android after reading this.
While this may look like a huge success, it's only short-term. The last "revolutionary" thing Apple created was the iPad, but they failed to update it and continuously keep it fresh. Now, more and more people are switching to alternative tablets.
Now that the iPhone has made a non-revolutionary change by creating a bigger screen and adding unremarkable additions to its iOS (Samsung thought of this over four? years ago). Even Google is surpassing Apple's Siri with Cortana. Really? Google? Does anyone remember how bad it was when it first came out?!
Apple has failed and failed to innovate and now with the iWatch is moving backwards to try and find any niche it can in the market. Apple is a failure and I hope they can get it together fast before all those iPhone users realize this.
Yeah, it's almost like Apple couldn't hold on to greater than 50% of the tablet market all by themselves by only selling the most profitable, higher end models while up against undercutting, race to the bottom, sub-par performing, crap...someone should be fired!!
Samsung thought of what, exactly, 4 years ago? Having a gigantic ass battery on a phone and including a larger screen to cover up the complete lack of power efficiency of the OS? Yes, that's what they "thought of". Also interesting is that Samsung's ads "welcome" Apple to 2012 while trying to ape Apple's 2013 features...and really, they themselves are still stuck in 2012 creating the same Galaxy S series phone over and over again. It's like they're not even trying to change the design, and their sales are slipping...but Apple's the one who's messing up here?
Not sure if you realize the difference between success and failure but when there are now more iPhone users than there were before, it looks like those people buying Android seem to be "falling for it".
