new bloomberg A report on IDC data paints a dire outlook for the smartphone market in 2026 due to the current memory chip crisis, but Apple and the iPhone could actually benefit in one important way.
Apple could increase iPhone market share in 2026 due to Android production cuts
Vlad Savov writes: bloomberg:
According to researcher IDC, the global smartphone market will shrink by 12.9% in 2026 due to an unprecedented memory chip shortage, putting it in an “unprecedented crisis.”
The new forecast is a significant downward revision from previous forecasts and provides the latest explanation of the ongoing memory shortage that is impacting every corner of the electronics industry. The demand for advanced memory to power artificial intelligence tasks will deplete global supplies until next year and is currently putting many smartphone manufacturers’ business models in jeopardy.
Savov explains that the memory crisis could lead to major changes in the smartphone market, with low-cost Android models likely to be hit harder than iPhones.
Why is Android more affected? Because “margins for many Android device brands are already thin.”
Basically, many Android manufacturers can’t afford the higher costs of DRAM and NAND in low-end smartphones, so fewer models are expected to be produced overall.
Ultimately, IDC predicts that 1.1 billion smartphones will be shipped worldwide in 2026, down from 1.26 billion in 2025.
However, the report added that “premium devices, like the majority of Apple’s iPhone lineup, will weather this crisis well.” We’ve already seen reports that Apple plans to keep iPhone 18 prices pretty consistent.
So while Apple itself will face many challenges during the memory shortage, Apple is poised to capture a larger share of the overall smartphone market this year as cheaper Android products become unsustainable.
Do you expect Apple to raise iPhone prices this year due to the memory crisis? Let us know in the comments.
best iphone accessories
