Apple overtook Samsung as the top global smartphone manufacturer in 2023, according to preliminary data from market research firm IDC. If the data is accurate, it is the first time Samsung has lost the top spot to another company in 13 years. In 2013, Nokia held the number one spot, Samsung was second, and Apple didn't even feature in the top five.
IDC bases its analyses on market share of global smartphone shipments across the year. According to the report, Apple took a 20.1% market share, while Samsung took 19.4% of the share.
Apple was also the only company in the top three to achieve positive growth year-on-year, increasing shipments from 226.3 million units to 234.6 million units.
"While we saw some strong growth from low-end Android players like Transsion and Xiaomi in the second half of 2023, stemming from rapid growth in emerging markets, the biggest winner is clearly Apple," said Nabila Popal, research director with IDC's Worldwide Tracker team. "Not only is Apple the only player in the Top 3 to show positive growth annually, but also bags the number 1 spot annually for the first time ever. All this despite facing increased regulatory challenges and renewed competition from Huawei in China, its largest market."
Samsung's drop in rank is interpreted as only partly down to strong sales of Apple's iPhone 14 models and the company's debut of the iPhone 15 series, while diversification in the Android market is also said to be a factor. Other impacting variables are said to include Huawei's resurgence in China, and brands like OnePlus, Honor, Google, and others launching competitive devices in the lower price range of the high-end market.
Overall, the smartphone market declined by 3.2% to 1.17 billion units shipped across the year, driven largely by macroeconomic challenges and elevated inventory early in the year. However, a growth spurt in the latter stages of 2023 suggests the market could see a recovery this year, with foldable devices and increased interest in AI capabilities also said to be gaining traction.
Wednesday January 14, 2026 10:18 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Verizon is experiencing a major outage across the U.S. today, with hundreds of thousands of customers reporting issues with the network on the website Downdetector. There are also complaints across Reddit and other social media platforms.
iPhone users and others with Verizon service are generally unable to make phone calls, send text messages, or use data over 5G or LTE due to the outage....
Tuesday January 13, 2026 6:11 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today introduced a new Apple Creator Studio bundle that offers access to six creative apps, as well as exclusive AI features and content, as part of a single subscription. In the U.S., pricing is set at $12.99 per month or $129 per year.
Here are the six apps included with an Apple Creator Studio subscription:Final Cut Pro on the Mac and iPad
Logic Pro on the Mac and iPad
Pixelmator...
Monday January 12, 2026 1:15 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today seeded the second beta of iOS 26.3, nearly a month after the first beta. So far, the update includes a couple of new features for iPhones.
iOS 15.3 through iOS 18.3 were all released in late January over the years, so it is thereby likely that iOS 26.3 will be released towards the end of this month as well. The update is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer.
Below,...
Monday January 12, 2026 7:38 am PST by Joe Rossignol
In a statement shared with CNBC today, Apple confirmed that Google Gemini will power the next-generation version of Siri that is slated to launch later this year.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
"After careful evaluation, we determined that Google's technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models and we're excited about the innovative...
Friday January 9, 2026 8:17 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.
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...
Tuesday January 13, 2026 11:29 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today released a firmware update for the AirPods Pro 3. The latest firmware has a version number of 8B34, up from the previous version 8B30.
Apple has a support document for AirPods firmware updates, and it indicates that the 8B34 update contains unspecified "bug fixes and other improvements."
No other AirPods models received firmware updates today.
How to install AirPods Pro...
Tuesday January 13, 2026 10:50 am PST by Joe Rossignol
If you are not interested in subscribing to the new Apple Creator Studio bundle introduced today, you will officially start to miss out on some new features.
Apple said some "exciting new intelligent features and premium content" in Pixelmator Pro, Keynote, Numbers, Pages, and Freeform will only be accessible with a Creator Studio subscription. In the U.S., a subscription costs $12.99 per...
Tuesday January 13, 2026 7:52 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple and Google this week announced that Gemini will help power a more personalized Siri, and The Information has provided more details.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
As soon as this spring, the report said the revamped version of Siri will be able to…
Answer more factual/world knowledge questions in a conversational manner
Tell more stories
Provide...
Monday January 12, 2026 11:38 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Elon Musk today expressed concern about Apple and Google partnering on a more personalized version of Siri powered by Google's generative AI platform Gemini.
"This seems like an unreasonable concentration of power for Google, given that [they] also have Android and Chrome," wrote Musk, in a post on X.
Musk serves as CEO of xAI, the company behind Gemini competitor Grok.
It is unlikely...
Thursday January 8, 2026 2:56 am PST 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 at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
It would be nice to see the breakdown according to smartphone models shipped...
considering how many more models Samsung offers, especially in the budget range, it's still a pretty impressive feat that apple was able to outsell them
Overall, the smartphone market declined by 3.2% to 1.17 billion units shipped across the year,
Peak smartphone is already here.
This is why Apple is pushing higher and higher priced iPhones. In economics, companies in a declining market will increase the average selling price to make up for declining or stagnating volume.
So if we see headlines like "iPhone is selling worse this year", it doesn't mean much. It's expected. We need to look at average selling price to see how much money Apple is actually making instead of volume.
Why do *you* need to look at the average selling price? As a consumer that really shouldn't be of any concern to you. If iPhone is selling lower numbers in one year over the last, then it is just selling lower numbers. Unless you're a shareholder, that should be the end of the story for you.
I believe it goes back to the adage "An argument should not only be correct, but it should also be correct for the right reasons".
Many people here like to equate lower smartphone sales with the implication that Apple is no longer innovating, lagging behind or doomed because they are making less money. The reality is that even as smartphone upgrade cycles slow, Apple has been able to mitigate this by way of higher prices, more accessories and more services. The end result is improved profitability, even as they sell fewer units overall.
In short, Apple is moving from selling iPhones to selling to people with iPhones. It's an impressive pivot that completely goes against the popular narrative and it works because Apple has its own ecosystem and its own flourishing App Store, unlike Samsung and other android handset manufacturers.
