Hasta La Gadget!

The much rumored iPhone launch deal with China Mobile has finally been signed. We heard a lot of rumors this year that the world’s largest mobile operator is finally going to start carrying some of the world’s most popular smartphones. Even though its rivals, China Unicom and China Telecom, have offered previous iPhone models in the past, China M0bile starts off with the two latest smartphones from Apple, iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c.

One major hurdle in the way of an iPhone launch on China Mobile was the carrier’s TD-LTE service. Just last week China finally granted 4G licenses to commercial carriers, meaning that the carrier can finally start its commercial 4G service. The country’s official news agency has already confirmed that China Mobile’s 4G service is going to be switched on December 18th. According to the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, both iPhones are likely to be launched on the carrier around December 18th as well.  Apple has already received the regulatory approval required to run its iPhones on China Mobile’s TD-LTE network. It received the approval back in August. Analysts expect that a decent penetration into the carrier’s over 750 million strong subscriber base could bring in an additional $9-$10 billion in revenue for Apple every single year.

Apple Signs iPhone Deal With China Mobile original content from Ubergizmo.

A couple of months back Apple finally received the regulatory approval it required to put its new iPhones on China Mobile’s homegrown TD-LTE network. With the big regulatory hurdle out of the way, many figured that it was only a matter of time before the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c were launched on the world’s largest mobile carrier. A purported screenshot of China Mobile’s pre-registration page for the new iPhones have been leaked online, adding weight to the recent confirmation from China’s official news agency that iPhones are going to be launched on China Mobile come December 18th.

It was reported last week by China’s official news agency that on December 18th China Mobile will switch on its commercial 4G services under the He brand, and apart from switching on the network, it will finally officially announce the availability of both new iPhones to its over 700 million subscribers. There’s some uncertainty over the legitimacy of this screenshot. Originally received by the folks over at C Technology, it is possible that the screenshot might be the creation of someone with decent Photoshop skills, as the pre-registration page shown in the screenshot contains the old China Mobile logo, which is definitely odd. The carrier hasn’t said when it will officially start accepting pre-orders for the new iPhones.

Screenshot Of Pre-registration Page For New iPhones On China Mobile Surfaces original content from Ubergizmo.

We have already reported multiple times on Apple’s increasing dominance in Japan. The Land of the Rising Sun is actually Apple’s fastest growing market, with the company’s margins there being 15 percent higher than anywhere else in the world. It is also one of five regions where Apple’s operating profit grew in the last fiscal year. iPhones account for over 37 percent and the iPads over 50 percent of the smartphone and tablet market in Japan, respectively. Japan’s BCN released its weekly sales rankings and nine out of the top ten smartphone sales spots have been taken by the new iPhones, the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c to be precise.

We recently reported that 76 percent of all smartphones sold in Japan this October were accounted for by the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c. The weekly sales rankings reveal that the momentum is still there. Softbank’s 32GB iPhone 5s holds the top spot on the list, followed by NTT DoCoMo’s 32GB model of the same iPhone. Softbank’s 16GB iPhone 5c model comes in at fifth. The tenth spot isn’t taken by any Android manufacturer like Samsung, LG, HTC etc which make some of the most popular Android devices out there. The tenth spot is actually taken by a low end device from Chinese manufacturer ZTE. This goes to show just how popular the new iPhones are in Japan.

New iPhones Continue To Dominate Japan’s Smartphone Market original content from Ubergizmo.

It was recently reported that Japan is now Apple’s fastest growing market. The Land of the Rising Sun is where Apple’s operating profit grew in the last fiscal year, it is also the market from where Apple is getting its biggest profit margins from. Recent statistics from WSJ reveal that Apple commands 37 percent and 50 percent of the smartphone and tablet market in Japan, respectively. Figures released by Kantar World Panel reiterate Apple’s dominance in Japan as 76 percent of all smartphones sold in Japan this October were accounted for by the iPhone 5c and the iPhone 5c.

Apple’s increase in market share with the new iPhones can also be attributed to the fact that NTT DoCoMo, the country’s largest mobile operator, is now carrying both new iPhones. 61 percent of the sales that Apple amassed in October were generated by NTT DoCoMo. During the past fiscal year, Apple’s sales in Japan have climbed almost 30 percent and its margins are 15 percent higher in the country than anywhere else in the world. It goes without saying that Japan is a very lucrative market for Apple right now, and figures like these keep coming in, customers in Japan will surely continue to put a lot of green on Apple’s balance sheets.

iPhones Account For 76% Of All Smartphone Sales In Japan This October original content from Ubergizmo.

There have been a lot of rumors about the iPhone 5c’s performance in various markets around the world. Prior to its release, it was believed that the low cost smartphone would do particularly well in markets such as China and India. However, that didn’t turn out to be true, because the iPhone 5c didn’t turn out to be as low cost as everyone thought it might be. As a result, iPhone 5c sales in those particular markets lagged behind the iPhone 5s, which was an instant hit around the world. Even in India, the iPhone 5s sold out in a couple of days after its launch.

Things seem to have picked up for the “unapologetically plastic” iPhone though. According to local media reports, the iPhone 5c is now outselling Galaxy S4 in the country, this piece of information comes from retailers based in India. This doesn’t come as a surprise though. Apple made a move recently which it should have perhaps made from the get go. It partnered with retailers to launch a smartphone trade-in program through which $200 minimum was being offered to customers who traded their existing smartphones for an iPhone 5c or an iPhone 4S. Retailers claim that iPhone sales have tripled after the trade in program was launched, and that now the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c both are outselling Samsung’s flagship smartphone in India.

iPhone 5c Reportedly Outselling Galaxy S4 In India original content from Ubergizmo.