market research firm Canalys has said that the Indian smartphone market grew 12 percent in 2021, as compared to the previous year. The analyst firm said that after a tough start to the year due to the second wave of COVID-19, the Indian market recovered strongly in the second half. In total, the Indian market achieved a record 162 million shipments throughout the year 2021, resulting in the said 12 percent increase. The report said that the smartphone market made a strong comeback in Q3 2021, which later slowed down again to a 2 percent growth in Q4 2021. Let us take a look at some of the key highlights of the Canalys report on the Indian smartphone market last year.
XIAOMI WAS MARKET LEADER
Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi remained in strong demand in the country. The company led shipments with 9.3 million units and maintained a 21 percent market share in India. Xiaomi was followed by South Korean giant Samsung, which shipped 8.5 million units for a 19 percent market share. realme, another Chinese company took the third spot with 7.6 million shipments, registering a 49 percent year-on-year growth. It was followed by Vivo and Oppo – both shipped 5.6 million and 4.9 million units each, respectively.
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REALME MAKES IT IN TOP 3
It is for the first time that Chinese smartphone maker Realme has made it to the top three selling brands in the country. Realme shipped 7.6 million units, taking a 17 percent market share in Q4 2021. This was a 49 percent year-on-year increase in the company’s shipments from the year prior.
SMARTPHONE DYNAMICS SHIFT EVERY QUARTER
Canalys analyst Sanyam Chaurasiya was quoted in the company’s announcement as saying that the smartphone dynamics shifted every quarter in 2021. The analyst said that “The COVID-19 crisis, volatile demand, and supply chain disruptions plagued the market this year.” He also said that vendors in India adapted to the changing environment by focusing on omnichannel, and diversifying their supply chains and expanding the product mix. “For example, vendors like realme and Samsung diversified chipset configurations to effectively manage supply. realme’s record shipment total was made possible by innovations in planning and stock management which led to good supply of mass-market smartphones such as Narzo 50A and C11,” he said.
LOW-END PHONES GAINED MOMENTUM IN Q4
The Canalys report also hinted at the fact that low-end smartphones like JioPhone Next that aimed to upgrade feature phone users to smartphones made a strong start in Q4 2021. Further, on e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart, Infinix and Tecno leveraged the budget-centric promotional campaigns.
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