In the fourth quarter of 2020, Apple saw its iPhone shipments in Gulf countries increase by 55% compared to the quarter prior, thanks to the launch of the 5G enabled iPhone 12 and last year's iPhone 11 lineup, according to market research by IDC.
In total, the region saw smartphone shipments grow by 2.3% in the last quarter of the year compared to Q3, to a total of 2.26 million units. Specifically, Saudi Arabia represented nearly half of all smartphones shipped in the region for Q4. However, it witnessed an overall decline in shipments compared to the previous quarter. The UAE represented 26.1% of smartphone shipments for the region in the quarter and saw overall growth compared to Q3.
Quarter-on-quarter, Apple saw a significant increase of 55% in iPhone shipments, growth that was primarily enabled by the iPhone 12 and last year's iPhone 11 lineup. Akash Balachandran, IDC's senior research analyst, says that if it were not for shortages amongst Apple's supply chain, iPhone shipments would have been more prominent in the quarter.
Apple still, however, rests behind Samsung as the leading smartphone maker in the region. Samsung holds 42% of the market share for the GCC, 3% less than it did the previous quarter. Apple saw its market share increase by 7% to 23% in the final quarter of the year.
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro have a...
iPadOS 26 allows iPads to function much more like Macs, with a new app windowing system, a swipe-down menu bar at the top of the screen, and more. However, Apple has stopped short of allowing iPads to run macOS, and it has now explained why.
In an interview this week with Swiss tech journalist Rafael Zeier, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi said that iPadOS 26's new Mac-like ...
Alongside WWDC this week, Logitech announced notable new accessories for the iPad and Apple Vision Pro.
The Logitech Muse is a spatially-tracked stylus developed for use with the Apple Vision Pro. Introduced during the WWDC 2025 keynote address, Muse is intended to support the next generation of spatial computing workflows enabled by visionOS 26. The device incorporates six degrees of...
Thursday June 12, 2025 8:58 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup.
If you skipped the iPhone...
Apple today provided developers with a revised version of the first iOS 26 beta for testing purposes. The update is only available for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models, so if you're running iOS 26 on an iPhone 14 or earlier, you won't see the revised beta.
Registered developers can download the new beta software through the Settings app on each device.
The revised beta addresses an...
Thursday June 12, 2025 10:14 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple today added Mac Studio models with M4 Max and M3 Ultra chips to its online certified refurbished store in the United States, Canada, Japan, Singapore, and many European countries, for the first time since they were released in March.
As usual for refurbished Macs, prices are discounted by approximately 15% compared to the equivalent new models on Apple's online store. Note that Apple's ...
Apple today added M4 MacBook Air models to its refurbished store in the United States, making the latest MacBook Air devices available at a discounted price for the first time since they launched earlier this year.
Both 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air models are available, with Apple offering multiple capacities and configurations. The refurbished devices are discounted by approximately 15...
I live in Saudi Arabia, and trust me when I say, the digital transformation over here is remarkable. The country is pushing for digital platforms very aggressively. Their 5G implementation and coverage is moving fast.
