According to a new forecast from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, worldwide smartphone shipments are expected to rebound slightly in 2017 with expected growth of 3.0% over the previous year.

Last year, IDC says, year-over-year growth was 2.5%, marking the lowest growth the industry has ever experienced.

With several major devices entering the market this year, IDC anticipates shipment volumes will grow to 1.52 billion in 2017.

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According to the latest industry data, smartphones are now in 80 percent of U.S. homes.

All told, this impressive stat represents a six percentage point increase year-over-year (YOY).

U.S. consumers now own 27 million more smartphones than they did just last year, according to new research from the Consumer Technology Association (CTA).

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MTBC, a provider of electronic health records, practice management and mHealth solutions, announced this week its release of the newest version of MTBC PHR, its patient portal app for users of smartphones that operate on Apple iOS and Android operating systems.

Hema Patel, M.D., a Houston-based internal medicine physician, said in Monday’s announcement: “My patients use MTBC PHR to access their patient charts, schedule appointments, and more.” She continued, “My patients and staff love the convenience of MTBC’s patient portal app and we’re excited about this week’s release.”

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On Monday, New Ocean Health Solutions — a software design and development company — announced the release of their first offering.

As for the offering in question, it’s a mobile-first, enterprise health and well-being integration and optimization platform designed to connect the disparate parts of the healthcare system.

Customized to meet company needs and designed to power highly personalized Health & Well-being programs, “The Bridge” is accessible through any device, at any time.
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According to freshly published research from Strategy Analytics, global smartphone shipments reached 375 million units in the third quarter of 2016.

And it’s a big Android success story.

The Android operating system captured a record 88 percent global marketshare, squeezing Apple iOS and others, the report summary notes.

Linda Sui, Director at Strategy Analytics, says global smartphone shipments grew 6 percent annually from 354.2 million units in Q3 2015 to 375.4 million in Q3 2016.

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Mobile phone shipments are expected to tumble 1.6 percent this year but will return to growth next year.

That’s according to Gartner, Inc. Researchers at the respected firm say that worldwide combined shipments for devices (PCs, tablets, ultramobiles and mobile phones) are expected to decline 3 percent in 2016.

This will mark the second consecutive year of decline.

The global devices market fell by 0.75 percent in 2015.

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