IDC now sees roughly 1.1 billion mobile shipments in 2026, down from 1.26 billion the prior year and erasing years of gradual gains. Smartphone manufacturers are adapting to the elevated component costs by reining in specifications, eliminating unprofitable entry-level models and pushing consumers to buy more premium devices.
(Feb 27): The global smartphone market will contract 12.9% in 2026 because of the unprecedented memory chip shortage, marking “a crisis like no other,” according to researcher IDC.
The new forecast, a dramatic revision down from earlier estimates, gives the latest accounting of the ongoing memory crunch that’s affecting every corner of the electronics industry. The demand for advanced memory to power artificial intelligence tasks has drained global supply until well into next year and now jeopardises the business model of many smartphone makers.
