Samsung reclaimed the top spot as largest smartphone maker in Q1, after Apple had overtaken it Q4 2023, according to International Data Corporation's latest worldwide quarterly mobile phone tracker data, released Monday. IDC said Samsung accounted for 20.8% of smartphones shipped in Q1, compared with Apple's 17.3%. Both companies shipped fewer smartphones than in Q1 2023, while third-place Xiaomi is rebounding from the large declines it saw the past two years, IDC said.

Apple eclipsed Samsung in Q4 2023 for the top spot globally in the smartphone market, Counterpoint blogged Tuesday. It said the global smartphone market grew 7% in 2023, and 8% in Q4 compared with Q4 2022, reaching 323.2 million units. Beyond losing share to Apple in the premium market, Samsung gave up market share in the mid-tier segment to Chinese original equipment manufacturers such as Xiaomi and in the entry-level segment to Transsion brands, Counterpoint said.

Worldwide shipments of used smartphones, including "officially refurbished and used" ones, hit an estimated 309.4 million units in 2023, up 9.5% over 2022, IDC said Monday. IDC forecasts 431.1 million units in 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 8.8% from 2022 to 2027. "Despite the near 10% growth, the secondary market is showing signs of slowdown due to a genuine lack of inventory," said Anthony Scarsella, IDC research manager. "With refresh rates extending in most mature markets, acquiring inventory remains the biggest challenge for resellers,” he said: “Secondary phone retailers are hungry for inventory as the high end of the market continues to be scarce due to customers just holding on to their device.”

The economics of marketers supposedly listening in on private conversations via users' smart devices and then targeting those individuals with ads don't hold up, cybersecurity services firm Kapersky blogged Tuesday. Clients would have to spend too much annually on individual users, it said. In addition, it said constantly analyzing audio streams from millions of users would need massive computing power "and be financial folly." But the economic case might be different for devices that already listen to voice commands, such as smart speakers or smartphones with voice assistants permanently on, it said.

The average U.S. internet household has 17 connected devices, Parks Associates said Thursday, noting smartphone ownership has surpassed TV ownership. Nearly all (90%) households surveyed own a smartphone, with 88% owing a TV. It said among average U.S. internet households, 66% have a smart TV and 89% have a streaming video service. It said the data comes from a survey of 8,000 households.

Expect to see a proliferation of stand-alone 5G core networks, AI chipsets increasingly embedded in personal computers, and cellular standards becoming more regional than global owing to geopolitical rifts between the West and China, ABI Research said Tuesday in a series of tech predictions. Cellular infrastructure vendors are likely facing lean times, as 5G-Advanced isn't likely to create big revenue opportunities and some operators indicate they won't be able to afford a complete hardware refresh for 6G, ABI said. On the upside, it said the COVID-19 slump in wearable technology demand should finally lift this year. But don't count on big enterprise interest in private 5G networks, or for foldable devices to go mainstream, ABI said. It said buy-in for 5G NR-Light is slower than expected, with such consumer products likely showing up more in 2025. It said smart glasses becoming mainstream remains elusive.

This week at CES imaging company Spectricity is presenting color-matching technology that integrates a multispectral camera in a smartphone “enabling ‘true colors’ on smartphone photos,” it said Monday. The technology will let buyers make accurate assessments of the color of online purchases and enable true skin tone, Spectricity said: “The camera can assess colors more accurately than the naked eye, giving a true color representation of everything from paint to skin tone. This spectral camera ends all guesswork: colors on smartphone photos will now be true to reality.”

Sixty-six percent of U.S. internet households own a smart TV, with Samsung's Tizen operating system commanding 35% of the smart TV marketplace, Parks Associates said Monday. It said LG's Web OS, Vizio's SmartCast and the Roku TV OS combined account for the same share as Samsung but are likely to be more competitive in coming years, as are other operating systems, it said.

Comments are due Feb. 2 on a petition asking the FTC to protect consumers’ right to repair products, the agency announced Wednesday. U.S. Public Interest Research Group and iFixit filed a petition for rulemaking in November asking the agency to implement rules making independent repair “easier” and “more widely available.” In addition, they asked the FTC to require makers of parts that routinely wear out ensure there are replacements readily available during a product’s lifespan. An example is batteries. Moreover, consumers should be able to choose repair providers or fix a product themselves, the petition said. Components from “identical devices should be interchangeable without needing manufacturer intervention,” and independent repair shops shouldn’t be forced to share a customer’s personal information with the original manufacturer, they said.