Global Smartphone Shipments Rise 2.3% YoY in Q4 2025 Despite Memory Shortages, Boosting Apple LED Market (IDC)

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idc q4 2025 Smartphone MarkeT

Global smartphone shipments recorded modest but meaningful growth in the fourth quarter of 2025, rising 2.3 percent year-over-year despite ongoing supply-side pressures, according to International Data Corporation (IDC). The market showed resilience in the face of a persistent memory chip shortage, logistical constraints, and cautious consumer spending in several regions. For the full year 2025, worldwide smartphone shipments reached 1.26 billion units, signaling a gradual recovery after periods of stagnation.

Premium devices played a major role in driving this growth, as consumers continued to prioritize high-end features and longer replacement cycles. Foldable smartphones gained wider acceptance, contributing to higher average selling prices and renewed interest in flagship models. Additionally, accelerated purchasing activity ahead of expected price increases helped lift shipments toward the end of the year, particularly in developed markets.

Apple and Samsung emerged as the strongest performers during the quarter, recording the highest growth rates among the top five smartphone brands. Apple led the global market for the third consecutive year, shipping 81.3 million units in Q4 2025 and capturing a 24.2 percent market share. The strong performance was fueled by demand for the iPhone 17 series and solid sales momentum in China and other key regions.

Samsung followed closely, shipping 61.2 million units and securing an 18.2 percent share of the global market, supported by a broad portfolio spanning premium and mid-range devices. Chinese manufacturers Xiaomi, Vivo, and Oppo rounded out the top five, maintaining competitive positions through aggressive pricing and strong distribution networks, particularly in emerging markets.

Samsung Bixby on One UI 8.5 May Integrate DeepSeek and Perplexity AI

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Samsung is reportedly preparing a major upgrade for its Bixby Live assistant as part of the upcoming One UI 8.5 update, which is based on Android 16. According to recent leaks, the company has integrated AI technologies from DeepSeek and Perplexity to enhance Bixby’s capabilities, positioning it as a stronger competitor to Google’s Gemini Live.

The new integration was spotted in a beta build of One UI 8.5, suggesting that Samsung is actively testing advanced AI features behind the scenes. With this update, Bixby Live is said to gain more powerful conversational and search abilities, enabling it to deliver richer, more contextual responses to user queries. This move signals Samsung’s intent to modernize Bixby and bring it closer to the latest AI assistant experiences on the market.

One of the notable additions reportedly coming with One UI 8.5 is the ability to export AI-generated responses directly into documents. This feature could make Bixby more useful for productivity-related tasks, allowing users to save, share, or further edit AI-generated content. In addition, users may be able to attach multiple images and videos to their queries, giving Bixby more context to generate accurate and detailed answers.

According to X user Galaxy Techie, who shared screenshots from the beta version, Bixby Live on One UI 8.5 can also respond to queries using Circle to Search. The assistant is further said to support generating a wide range of content, including podcasts, music, audio files, images, videos, and documents. These outputs can reportedly be attached directly to queries, hinting at a more interactive and multimedia-focused AI experience in Samsung’s next software update.

Microsoft Copilot Checkout Enables In-Chat Product Search and Purchases

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Microsoft has unveiled Copilot Checkout, a new AI-driven shopping feature that allows users to search for and buy products directly within the Copilot chat interface. Announced on Thursday, the feature marks Microsoft’s entry into the rapidly growing space of conversational commerce, where artificial intelligence is used to guide users from product discovery to purchase without leaving the chat window.

With this launch, the Redmond-based company joins other major players such as OpenAI, Google, and Perplexity, all of which have been experimenting with AI-powered shopping experiences. Although Microsoft is entering this space later than some of its rivals, it has moved quickly to establish key partnerships with Shopify, PayPal, and Stripe to support seamless transactions. The company had previously introduced shopping-related tools for Copilot within the Edge browser in November.

Microsoft detailed the new Copilot Checkout experience in a blog post, confirming that it is currently available to users in the United States via Copilot’s website. A wider rollout across additional regions and platforms is expected in the near future. The company has also opened applications for merchants interested in joining the program through PayPal or Stripe, enabling them to offer products directly through the chatbot.

For now, Copilot Checkout supports product discovery and purchases from Shopify listings. Microsoft describes the feature as a “conversation to conversion” solution, highlighting its potential impact on sales. According to the company, interactions that involve Copilot lead to 53 percent more purchases within 30 minutes compared to sessions without it, and when users show shopping intent, Copilot-assisted journeys are nearly twice as likely to result in a completed purchase.