Reuters reports that recent talks between China Mobile and Apple have been progressing smoothly and that the two sides are positive about reaching an possible agreement, according to the company's chairman Xi Guohua. Mr Xi told Reuters that "both sides sounded keen" during recent talks, which have been ongoing since the start of 2011.
Of the three Chinese carriers, China Mobile is the only one to utilize TD-SCDMA technology, a standard developed by the company and not supported by any current iPhone model. The carrier has also been reluctant to commit to the huge cost of marketing and handset subsidies associated with the iPhone. But new chips from Qualcomm now give Apple an opportunity to support China Mobile's network in its upcoming hardware.
Apple is expected to unveil its redesigned iPhone next month and may also release a cheaper, emerging market smartphone. Crucially, it also now has Qualcomm Inc chips that can operate even on China's obscure networks. At the same time, Beijing is expected to grant 4G licenses by the year-end that favor the biggest of its domestic mobile operators.
Apple has so far ducked a deal with China Mobile as this would have required a redesign inside the iPhone to work on the operator's inferior TD-SCDMA 3G technology. For its part, China Mobile has been reluctant to commit to the huge cost of marketing and subsidizing sales of the expensive iPhone.
Beijing is looking to expand 4G networks within China by the end of the year and the licenses are expected to be based on TD-LTE technology, as supposed to the more widely-used FDD-LTE, both of which the new Qualcomm chips expected to be used in the upcoming iPhone 5C and 5S models support.
The report comes after China Mobile, the world's largest mobile network in terms of subscribers, posted healthy Q2 profits that beat the analyst expectations. Net income rose to CNY 35.2 billion ($5.8 billion) for the second quarter from CNY 34.4 billion ($5.62 billion) a year earlier, which surpassed the CNY 33.9 billion average of four analyst expectations, as reported by Bloomberg.
Although a date has yet to be confirmed by Apple, many sources confirm that new iPhone models will be announced on September 10. Recent leaks have provided strong evidence that Apple is developing a lower-cost smartphone, perhaps dubbed the "5C" for developing markets. And with chip technology now allowing Apple to more easily support China Mobile's network, the opportunity is ripe for the company to make a push on the world's largest carrier.
Thursday November 27, 2025 1:01 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple's online store is going down for a few hours on a rolling country-by-country basis right now, but do not get your hopes up for new products.
Apple takes its online store down for a few hours ahead of Black Friday every year to tease/prepare for its annual gift card offer with the purchase of select products. The store already went down and came back online in Australia and New Zealand, ...
Tuesday November 25, 2025 7:16 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple recently teamed up with Japanese fashion brand ISSEY MIYAKE to create the iPhone Pocket, a limited-edition knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone. However, it is now completely sold out in all countries where it was released.
iPhone Pocket became available to order on Apple's online store starting Friday, November 14, in the United States, France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, ...
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Apple TV, Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
Friday November 28, 2025 7:33 am PST by Joe Rossignol
While all Macs are now powered by Apple's custom-designed chips, a new rumor claims that Apple may rekindle its partnership with Intel, albeit in a new and limited way.
Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today said Intel is expected to begin shipping Apple's lowest-end M-series chip as early as mid-2027.
Kuo said Apple plans to utilize Intel's 18A process, which is the "earliest...
Tuesday November 25, 2025 7:09 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include three standout features that could set it apart from the competition.
The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...
Thursday November 27, 2025 3:14 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's disappointing iPhone Air sales are causing major Chinese mobile vendors to scrap or freeze their own ultra-thin phone projects, according to reports coming out of Asia.
Since the iPhone Air launched in September, there have been reports of poor sales and manufacturing cuts, while Apple's supply chain has scaled back shipments and production.
Apple supplier Foxconn has...
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
Cellular carriers have always offered big savings on the newest iPhone models during the holidays, and Black Friday 2025 sales have kicked off at AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and more. Right now we're tracking notable offers on the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air. For even more savings, keep an eye on older models during the holiday shopping season.
Note: MacRumors is...
Lower cost iPhone will cannibalize sales of more expensive iPhone. Expect sub $4 billion profit per quarter while Samsung surpasses $10 billion per quarter. :cool:
Dream on, newbie :D
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Lower cost iPhone will cannibalize sales of more expensive iPhone. Expect sub $4 billion profit per quarter while Samsung surpasses $10 billion per quarter. :cool:
So Samsung's PR is working the MR boards now, so sad :D
Lower cost iPhone will cannibalize sales of more expensive iPhone. Expect sub $4 billion profit per quarter while Samsung surpasses $10 billion per quarter. :cool:
Nice try, but Samsung's phones are actually quite decent. The back "plastic" that you Applesexuals complain about doesn't really feel cheap and it's finely engineered to withstand stains and scratches. 1 year and it still looks like brand new while my cheap, tin-can aluminum from Apple is full of scratches after 3 months of use.
yup, things tend to look brand new when they aren't used.
Lower cost iPhone will cannibalize sales of more expensive iPhone. Expect sub $4 billion profit per quarter while Samsung surpasses $10 billion per quarter. :cool:
Lower cost iPhone will cannibalise sales of more expensive Samsung phones. Expect $10 billion profit per quarter for Apple, while Samsung profits crumble. :D
What's the difference between these two statements? Yours is based on the assumption that Apple is run by idiots who don't have a clue about running a business. Mine's based on the opposite. Given that Apple has over $100 bn in the bank, mine is more likely to be right.
Samsung sales are fueled by the anti-Apple group, which is growing daily. They'll gladly pay full price on the newest Samsung phone to give Samsung ammunition against Apple. People who buy Apple products don't care about quality and features. They just want a phone with an Apple logo on the back. They would gladly trade in their $600 iphone for a cheap, $200 POS from Apple.
The fact that the iPhone 4 and 4S are outselling the iPhone 5 is proof of this.
Troll! ;-) If people didn't care about quality and wanted POS phone with an Apple logo, why not just get a Galaxy SIII and put an Apple sticker on the back? ... then they'll be supporting Samsung and satisfy their ego at the same time... :)
Your crap won't be heard here on the message board. Go stand outside of the Apple store and shout out to the people that buy Samdung :p
Guys more we reply to such Crap head, more he will dance around thinking himself great. Ignore this LOSER, yes LOSER :) BTW how are you taking Icahn tweet on AAPL lol
Reuters reports that recent talks between China Mobile and Apple have been progressing smoothly and that the two sides are positive about reaching an possible agreement, according to the company's chairman Xi Guohua. Mr Xi told Reuters that "both sides sounded keen" during recent talks, which have been ongoing since the start of 2011.
