AI, Memory Shortages and Tapas: What I’ll Be Watching at MWC 2026
AI’s rise has reshaped the smartphone market in unexpected ways, shifting from a hoped-for demand catalyst to a source of supply constraints due to a global memory shortage.
Smart Home Week in RevIew
The week when:
- Alexa+ Rolls Out to Everyone
- Switchbot Debuts The Internet of Scent
Smart Home Week in RevIew
The week when:
- Xiaomi Makes Its First Matter Smart Lock
- Samsung Takes On Enterprise IoT
TV & Video Week in Review
The week when:
- Apple Sports app adds Golf and expands Soccer and Tennis
- DirecTV and NBCU partner on 2026 Winter Olympics
- Disney and NFL team up for rights to ESPN
Promotions Marketplace
Circana Connected Intelligence’s Promotions Marketplace report is a monthly updated tracker providing insights into a wireless carrier and national distributor's promotional incentive practices. The report provides a detailed list of all promotional activities captured via Circana’s retail and online store visits conducted on a periodical basis. Captured promotions are categorized (i.e., service plan, accessories, device discounts, BOGOs, Gift Cards, etc.) and dated (start date/end date) for easy navigation and analysis purposes.
Service Plans Marketplace
The Circana Connected Intelligence Service Plans Marketplace Report provides a complete view of all mobile broadband service plans offered by the nationwide postpaid and prepaid carriers. This report features each carrier's service plans on smartphones and mobile broadband products in separate tabs, which provides sectional navigation to postpaid and prepaid plans. The data is gathered from multiple sources (online and retail store surveys) during the last week of each month.
Key Highlights from the January 2026 Marketplace Reports:
Mobile Device Marketplace
Circana Connected Intelligence's Device Marketplace report provides a comprehensive view of the US mobile device landscape through the online tracking of mobile phones and other cellular-powered products such as tablets and mobile hotspots. The monthly updated report provides device spec and pricing information on the aforementioned products available through all major postpaid and prepaid service providers' digital channels as well as national distributor outlets (including Best Buy, Walmart, Target online stores) and manufacturer direct online store of Apple.
Smart Home Week in RevIew
The week when:
- New Ring Sensors Utilize Sidewalk
- Belkin Ends Wemo App and Cloud Support
TV & Video Week in Review
The week when:
- Peacock embraces 4K
- TCM’s pact with Looney Tunes Library
- Sundance Now to rebrand
Smartphone Sales: 2025 Review
In 2025, new U.S. smartphone sales reversed the multi year pattern of declines, delivering the strongest annual performance since before the pandemic.