Devices & Platforms

The dispute between the Indonesian authorities and Apple is rumbling on as the smartphone giant apparently remains barred from selling the iPhone 16 in Indonesia despite a recent investment deal.

Malaysia, already a semiconductor powerhouse, is looking to locally produce GPU chips in the next five to ten years, according to Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli.

Technology solutions provider ZTE has announced a partnership with ISP MiFibra to successfully commercialise ZTE's Smart Cloud Platform (SCP) in Peru.

Telecom and digital services provider du has announced an exclusive partnership with Emirati firm Cyberspace Technologies for Tairra, a business management platform dedicated to optimising operations for teams of varying sizes.

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) stated that 227 million new people connected to the internet for the first time in 2024, bringing the total number of connected people to over 5.5 billion.

South African operator MTN is launching an own-branded 5G smartphone. Called the Icon 5G, the new MTN smartphone will sell for 2,499 rand (about US$138). The smartphone is manufactured by ZTE.

Analyst house Canalys revealed that the African smartphone market grew by 3% year-on-year in Q3 2024 despite macroeconomic challenges. It predicted that smartphone shipments would grow by a “cautious” 1% in 2025.

Apple has reportedly offered to invest an additional US$100 million in Indonesia to convince the government to approve its new iPhone 16 to be sold in the country.

5G connected cars are expected to be an increasingly hot item for India’s smart-device consumers next year as new models include 5G IoT connectivity and onboard GenAI as default technologies, says a new research report.

Data centre company Open Access Data Centres (OADC) has had a busy few days, most notably with the announcement of the imminent launch of Open Access Fabric (OAfabric), which is described as a truly open-access and collaborative digital platform that promises to redefine African interconnection.

Indonesia’s Industry Ministry said on Friday that sales of Apple’s new iPhone 16 in the country remain illegal due to an ongoing certification dispute, but clarified that incoming travellers and air crew who own the devices can still bring them for personal use.

Analyst firm Canalys reported that global smartphone shipments grew 5% year-on-year in Q3 2024, marking the fourth consecutive quarter of growth. 

North Korea is reportedly cracking down on the import of Chinese-made smartwatches that are able connect to mobile networks outside of the country via USIM cards.

Apple will begin selling iPhones manufactured in India and has revealed plans to open four new retail locations in the country.

Smartphone financing company M-KOPA hailed reaching the milestone of providing over five million customers with loans in Africa totalling US$1.5 billion.

Tata Group, a global enterprise headquartered in India, and Analog Devices (ADI), a major player in the semiconductor business, have announced a strategic alliance to explore potential cooperative manufacturing opportunities.

Indonesian digital telecommunications company Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, through its subsidiary, data communication, internet, and IT services group Lintasarta, has partnered with professional services company Accenture in a strategic collaboration to accelerate its sovereign AI cloud platform, aimed at propelling AI-driven digital transformation in Indonesia.

Semiconductor growth in India continues apace, with a number of deals announced in the past few days.

Indian telco Bharti Airtel is reportedly planning to shut down its Wynk Music streaming service in favour of a partnership with Apple Music as part of a broader exclusive content deal involving Apple TV+.

PLDT’s wireless arm Smart Communications says it is banking on affordable 5G devices as a key part of its strategy to drive growth in its 5G business in the Philippines as it plans on stronger rollout of its 4G and 5G networks for the rest of 2024.

The African smartphone market saw smartphone shipments grow by 6% year-on-year to 17.8 million units in Q2 2024, continuing recovery over the past three quarters against macroeconomic volatility.

The Indonesian smartphone market grew 20% year-on-year in Q2 boosted by the vendor promotion during the holiday season.

Smartphone shipments in Southeast Asia grew 14% year-on-year in Q2 this year reaching 23.9 million units, as the region continues to recover from macroeconomic effects.

The Latin American smartphone market recorded a fourth consecutive quarter of growth after being fuelled by affordable devices.

The Indian smartphone market declined by 2% YoY in the second quarter of 2024, but 5G smartphones saw their highest market share growth so far.

The Chinese smartphone market experienced 10% growth in the second quarter with units reaching 70.5 million units, and local vendors occupying the top five spots for the first time.

The Vietnam Internet Network Information Centre (VNNIC) said on Thursday the latest upgrade of its network speed test app 'i-Speed' turns phones into an automated crowdsourcing tool for telcos to measure and optimise network performance.

The Indian smartphone market was flat with a growth rate of only 1% in the second quarter of 2024 due to subdued seasonal demand.

Analyst houses Canalys and IDC reported growth in the global smartphone market fuelled by the hype from gen AI equipped devices.

Smart Africa, an alliance of African countries, international organisations, and global private sector players tasked with advancing Africa’s digital agenda, last week signed a potentially significant agreement with KaiOS Technologies, whose mobile platform is said to make the internet accessible to all.

­­Smartphone shipments in Africa surged 24% in the first quarter of this year due to lowering inflation and new device launches.

Smartphone shipments have for the first time surpassed feature phone stock in Africa,  showcasing the rise in adoption of more advanced handsets across the region.