Indians are increasingly opting for premium smartphones, attributable to the need to keep up with new technology upgradation such as 5G, coupled with a steady rise in purchasing power.
Smartphone makers in India have shipped about 69 million smartphones in the first half of 2024, with a 7.2 per cent yearly growth, according to the International Data Corporation's (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker. In the second quarter of 2024, the smartphone makers shipped 35 million smartphones, with a growth of 3.2 per cent.
Although it is the fourth consecutive quarter of yearly shipment growth, muted consumer demand and rising device costs continue to restrict swift shipment recovery, International Data Corporation (IDC), a global market intelligence and advisory services provider, said on Tuesday.
The average selling price of smartphones grew by 2.8 per cent during April-June; however, they declined by 5.6 per cent from the January-March quarter to USD 248.
"Apart from old inventory clearance in the first half of the quarter, vendors also started to launch new smartphones, especially in the mid-premium/premium segment (mostly China-based vendors) from mid-quarter onwards, for monsoon sales in July and August," said Upasana Joshi, Senior Research Manager, Devices Research, IDC India.
The entry-level smartphones, costing sub-USD 100, witnessed a strong decline of 36 per cent year-on-year to 14 per cent share, down from 22 per cent a year ago.
Shipments of budget smartphones, costing between USD 100 and USD 200, grew by 8 per cent year-on-year, with a marginal increase in share to 44 per cent from 42 per cent. The top three brands were Xiaomi, Realme and Vivo, making up 60 per cent of this segment, the IDC tracker showed.
The share of smartphones costing USD 200 to USD 400 reached 30 per cent, up from 22 per cent and registered the highest growth of 42 per cent year-on-year. OPPO, vivo and Samsung gained a significant share compared to the previous quarter, making up almost 60 per cent of this segment.
The phones costing USD 400 to USD 600 declined by 25 per cent to a 4 per cent share, down from 5 per cent a year ago. According to IDC, vivo was the major gainer, led with a 25 per cent share, followed by OnePlus and OPPO.
The premium segment costing USD 600 to USD 800 held a 2 per cent share and declined by 37 per cent. Key models according to the IDC tracker were the iPhone 13, Galaxy S23FE, iPhone 12 and OnePlus12. Apple's share increased year-on-year to 61 per cent, while Samsung's share increased to 24 per cent.
The super-premium segment, phones costing over USD 800, continued with 22 per cent growth and its share up from 6 per cent to 7 per cent. The iPhone15/15 Plus/14/14 Plus together accounted for 77 per cent of shipments, followed by the Galaxy S24/S24 Ultra with an 11 per cent share, IDC said.
Notably, among the 27 million 5G smartphones that were shipped in the April-June quarter, the share of 5G smartphone shipments increased to 77 per cent, up from 49 per cent in the second quarter of 2023, mostly due to increasing affordability.
Among other findings, IDC said shipments to online channels grew by 8 per cent year-on-year, and its share increased to 50 per cent in April-June 2024 compared to 47 per cent last year. Due to severe heatwave conditions in major parts of India, offline channel shipments declined by 2 per cent during the April-June period.
"The premiumization trend in the smartphone market, led by Apple and Samsung, coupled with rising device costs is motivating China-based brands to expand beyond the mass segment. The entry-premium segment (USD 200 to USD 400) is expected to see healthy growth, while the entry-level (sub-USD 100) will remain challenged at least this year despite efforts around launching affordable 5G smartphones," said Navkendar Singh, Associate Vice President, Devices Research, IDC.
"Also, the marketing around GenAI smartphones will be more pronounced, amid heavy promotional activities around it," added Navkendar Singh.
International Data Corporation (IDC) is a global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,300 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology, IT benchmarking and sourcing, and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. (ANI)
