Xiaomi leads smartphone market in India in 2021, followed by Samsung: Counterpoint

Smartphone shipments have been growing in India. A new report from Counterpoint has shared that the industry has witnessed 11 percent YoY growth to reach 169 million units in 2021. However, the shipments declined 8 percent YoY in the December quarter due to supply issues.

India’s smartphone market revenue crossed $38 billion in 2021 with 27 percent YoY growth. Xiaomi led the market with a 24 percent shipment share. The brand also reached its highest ever share in the premium segment (>Rs 30,000) with 258 percent YoY growth. Samsung led the Rs 20,000- Rs 45,000 price segment with a 28 percent share. Chinese manufacturer OnePlus registered its highest ever shipments in India in 2021. It also led to the affordable premium segment (Rs 30,000- Rs 45,000).

5G smartphones getting popular

5G smartphones also grew in popularity. The segment grew 555 percent YoY in 2021. Vivo was the leader in this segment with a market share of 19 percent market share. Realme was the fastest growing brand in the smartphone ecosystem in 2021, according to the Counterpoint report. It captured the second position in Q4 2021 for the first time.

Samsung leads overall mobile handset shipments

India’s overall mobile handset market grew 7 percent YoY in 2021. Samsung captured the top position in the handset market in 2021, taking 17 percent share. Feature phone shipments reached 86 million units to show flat growth in 2021. Itel led the feature phone market, taking 24 percent share followed by Lava, Samsung and Jio. Itel has been leading the feature phone market for the last two consecutive years.

Commenting on the market dynamics, Senior Research Analyst Prachir Singh said, “The Indian smartphone market witnessed high consumer demand in 2021, making it the best-performing year. This feat came in a year that witnessed supply constraints due to a multitude of reasons – a second and more virulent COVID-19 wave, global component shortages and price hikes due to these shortages. The high replacement demand fuelled by increasing smartphone affordability in the mid and high-price tiers due to promotions and discounts, as well as better financing options, led to an 11 percent YoY growth in 2021. The demand outstripped the supply in the last two quarters of 2021. During Q4 2021, the smartphone market declined 8 percent YoY. We expect the supply situation to get better going forward and reach normalcy by the end of Q1 2022.”

Commenting on the competitive landscape and pricing, Research Analyst Shilpi Jain said, “India’s smartphone market retail ASP (average selling price) grew 14 percent YoY in 2021 to reach its highest ever at $227. The price hikes in the budget segment due to component price rise, increasing focus of OEMs on the premium segment, and increased demand for mid-range and premium smartphones due to increasing uses and availability of financing options contributed to the increasing ASP. This resulted in the Indian smartphone market revenue crossing $38 billion in 2021, registering a growth of 27 percent YoY.”

On the developing manufacturing ecosystem, she added, “Local manufacturing bounced back, contributing 98 percent shipments in 2021, compared to 90 percent in 2020. The PLI scheme has been a great booster for the Indian mobile manufacturing ecosystem, attracting top players like Apple and Samsung to increase their ‘Make in India’ footprint and make India their export hub. Therefore, handset exports saw 26 percent YoY growth in 2021. Seeing the PLI scheme’s success in the mobile manufacturing ecosystem, the government has launched similar schemes for different product verticals like CIOT and IT hardware.”

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