Global smartphone purchases have collapsed. Worldwide smartphone shipments dropped -22.0% YoY in Q3 2026, to 255.3 million units, their largest quarterly decline on record. Samsung's shipments fell -5.8% YoY, to 57.8 million units, while Apple's declined -4.0% to 57.3 million u

Global smartphone purchases have collapsed. Worldwide smartphone shipments dropped -22.0% YoY in Q3 2026, to 255.3 million units, their largest quarterly decline on record. Samsung's shipments fell -5.8% YoY, to 57.8 million units, while Apple's declined -4.0% to 57.3 million units. At the same time, Xiaomi shipments fell -29.2% YoY to 30.7 million units, Oppo dropped -34.5%, to 25.6 million units, while Vivo fell -31.5%, to 19.1 million units. This comes as memory costs have surged +350% since last year, driven by AI-related demand, putting further pressure on smartphone manufacturers. As a result, soaring component costs are forcing vendors to raise prices and reduce budget-focused offerings, with consumers increasingly keeping their existing devices for longer. Global smartphone sales are contracting amid surging prices.