Amid a cautious recovery in the consumer electronics market, Apple highlighted the critical role of its iPhone series in driving overall operations in its fiscal first-quarter 2026 earnings report. The company reported record-high iPhone-related revenue this quarter, with year-over-year growth significantly outpacing the overall average and serving as the core driver of holiday-season sales expansion.
With Nvidia's next-generation Rubin Ultra platform approaching launch, the shift to 800G and 1.6T high-speed interconnects and the adoption of silicon photonics (SiPh) are set to open major growth opportunities. AI data centers are becoming the main growth driver in 2025, while 2026 is widely seen as the first year of large-scale commercial rollout for silicon photonics.
The smartphone industry is bearing the brunt of rising memory prices, and the impact is most evident in mid- to low-end models. Transsion, the Chinese smartphone maker regarded as a leading brand in emerging markets, has become one of the first handset vendors to be clearly hit by this wave of memory price increases. On the evening of January 29, 2025, Transsion announced its earnings forecast for full-year 2025, estimating annual revenue of CNY65.568 billion (US$9.4 billion), down about 4.6% year over year. Net profit is estimated at about CNY2.546 billion, plunging 54.11% year over year, nearly half of the previous year. This marks the first significant profit decline since Transsion went public.
According to a recent report from Counterpoint Research, the Apple iPhone 16 finished 2025 as the world's best-selling smartphone, topping global sales ahead of all other models. The iPhone 16's strong performance capped a remarkable year for Apple, which claimed seven out of the top ten best-selling smartphone models worldwide. Only Samsung's devices filled the remaining three positions, underscoring a duopoly at the top of the market that has held steady for several years.
Apple has reported record financial results for its fiscal 2026 first quarter, ending December 27, 2025. The company achieved all-time highs in both total revenue and earnings per share, largely supported by a significant increase in iPhone sales and continued expansion in its Services sector.
Taiwan's monthly smartphone shipments surpassed 500,000 units in October and November 2025, largely driven by strong sales of Apple's iPhone 17 series. However, shipments declined to about 400,000 units in December, with Apple maintaining close to 50% market share despite a slight dip.
Enterprise investments in 5G private networks are expected to significantly increase following amendments to the "Regulations Governing the Establishment and Use of Mobile Broadband Dedicated Telecommunications Networks" under the Ministry of Digital Affairs (MODA), and revisions to the Industrial Innovation Statute that will increase tax credit incentives, according to Yu-hsin Tsou, deputy director general of the Industrial Development Administration (IDA) of the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).
Global technology companies, including Google, are increasingly shifting new product introduction (NPI) stages away from China to reduce geopolitical risks, with recent reports indicating Google has begun relocating NPI for its premium smartphones to Vietnam. Industry insiders note initial progress but emphasize significant structural hurdles in this complex transition.
Apple is set to report fiscal first-quarter 2026 earnings on January 29, with strong sales of the iPhone 17 expected to drive record operating performance and solid smartphone shipments. The iPhone 17 lineup, which offers added features without price increases, has seen particularly strong demand in China and the US.
Samsung Electronics said on January 26, 2025, that it will launch its new Galaxy A07 5G smartphone in Taiwan, aiming to lift shipment momentum in the mass-market segment.
As the global surge in artificial intelligence continues to drive up memory chip prices, pressure is mounting across the electronics supply chain—and display panel makers are increasingly feeling the strain.
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