The latest numbers from research firm IDC reveal that the smartphone market continues to be a largely two-horse race between iOS and Android, which accounted for 19.7% and 76.6% market share in the fourth quarter respectively. The mobile operating systems combined to dominate Windows Phone, BlackBerry and all other platforms with 96.3% market share during the three-month period ending December.
iOS increased 2.2 percentage points to 19.7% during the fourth quarter over its 15.1% market share in the year-ago quarter, while Android experienced a marginal year-over-year decline as its market share slipped from 78.2% to 76.6%. Apple shipped a record-breaking 192.7 million iPhones during 2014 on the strength of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, while overall Android device shipments on the year surpassed the 1 billion mark.
Android and iOS continue to dominate the smartphone operating system race, resulting in a smaller battle between Windows Phone, BlackBerry, Firefox OS and less popular platforms for third place. Windows Phone and BlackBerry were the closest runner-ups to iOS and Android, claiming 2.8% and 0.4% market share in the fourth quarter respectively to close out 2014. All other platforms held 0.6% market share on the year.
Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon.
Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week.
iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
Thursday December 11, 2025 11:28 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21.
There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
Friday December 12, 2025 10:56 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Macworld's Filipe Espósito today revealed a handful of features that Apple is allegedly planning for iOS 26.4, iOS 27, and even iOS 28.
The report said the features are referenced within the code for a leaked internal build of iOS 26 that is not meant to be seen by the public. However, it appears that Espósito and/or his sources managed to gain access to it, providing us with a sneak peek...
Friday December 12, 2025 10:10 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released iOS 26.2, the second major update to the iOS 26 operating system that came out in September, iOS 26.2 comes a little over a month after iOS 26.1 launched. iOS 26.2 is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and later, as well as the second-generation iPhone SE.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones over-the-air by going to Settings >...
Wednesday December 10, 2025 2:52 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Google Maps on iOS quietly gained a new feature recently that automatically recognizes where you've parked your vehicle and saves the location for you.
Announced on LinkedIn by Rio Akasaka, Google Maps' senior product manager, the new feature auto-detects your parked location even if you don't use the parking pin function, saves it for up to 48 hours, and then automatically removes it once...
Thursday December 11, 2025 10:31 am PST by Juli Clover
The AirTag 2 will include a handful of new features that will improve tracking capabilities, according to a new report from Macworld. The site says that it was able to access an internal build of iOS 26, which includes references to multiple unreleased products.
Here's what's supposedly coming:
An improved pairing process, though no details were provided. AirTag pairing is already...
Friday December 12, 2025 10:08 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released macOS Tahoe 26.2, the second major update to the macOS Tahoe operating system that came out in September. macOS Tahoe 26.2 comes five weeks after Apple released macOS Tahoe 26.1.
Mac users can download the macOS Tahoe update by using the Software Update section of System Settings.
macOS Tahoe 26.2 includes Edge Light, a feature that illuminates your face with soft...
Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below.
Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Thursday December 11, 2025 4:02 pm PST by Juli Clover
Apple is working on a smart home hub that will rely heavily on the more capable version of Siri that's coming next year. We've heard quite a bit about the hub over the last two years, but a recent iOS 26 code leak provides additional insight into what we can expect and confirms rumored features.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Macworld claims to have access to an ...
Apple's "Crapware" doesn't interrupt my web browsing, or auto-install more crapware when I click the "No" button, or beg for money, or insist that a virus will empty my bank account.
Apple's "crapware" plays music, shows me stock prices and the photos I took, and tells me what the weather is like.
Profitability is sustainability. Google is losing money on Android, and especially if Samsung begins putting Tizen on the Galaxy line as has been repeatedly rumored, Android is in big trouble.
Hopefully your landlord raises your rent or your bank increases your mortgage interest rate so it can maintain sustainability. Ditto for your insurance company, power company, cable company, cell provider. And also your healthcare,and supermarket too. If we're going to brag about and support big profits, let's make it universal.
