Smartphone shipments in India grew 7 percent year-over-year in H1 2024: IDC
Smartphone shipments in India grew 7.2 percent year-on-year (YoY) in the first half (H1) of 2024, shipping 69 million units, according to a report by a market research firm. In the second quarter (Q2) of the year, 35 million smartphones were shipped, up 3.2 percent YoY from shipments in Q2 2023. The report added that the second half of Q2 is a crucial indicator of the second half of the year, with festival sales continuing till November. From the middle of Q2 2024, new smartphones were launched, mainly in the mid-premium and premium segments, primarily from China-based brands.
Indian smartphone market Q2 2024 to rise
According to a report by International Data Corporation (IDC) reportShipments of entry-level phones (sub Rs 8,400) declined 36 percent year-on-year, capturing just 14 percent of the market share in Q2 2024, down from 22 percent in Q2 2023. Xiaomi led this segment and was followed by Poco and Realme.
The mass budget segment (from around Rs. 8,400 to Rs. 16,800) grew 8 percent YoY, with the top three brands — Xiaomi, Realme and Vivo — accounting for 60 percent of the segment’s market share.
The entry-premium segment (roughly Rs. 16,800 to Rs. 33,500) saw the highest growth of 42 percent YoY. Oppo, Vivo and Samsung accounted for 60 percent of the market share in this segment.
However, the mid-premium segment (roughly Rs. 33,500 to Rs. 50,400) declined by 25 percent YoY in Q2 2024 from a market share of 5 percent, to 4 percent. In this segment, Vivo led with a market share of 25 percent, followed by OnePlus and Oppo.
Shipments in the premium phone segment (roughly Rs. 50,400 to Rs. 67,100) declined 37 percent YoY in Q2 2024, capturing 2 percent of the market share. The most popular handsets in this segment were the iPhone 13, Samsung Galaxy S23 FE, iPhone 12 and OnePlus 12. However, Apple’s market share in the segment increased 61 percent YoY and Samsung’s share grew from 21 percent in Q2 2023 to 24 percent in Q2 2024.
The super premium segment (over Rs. 67,100) continued to grow in Q2 2024 with a YoY increase of 22 percent in shipments, capturing 7 percent of the market share in Q2 2024 compared to 6 percent in Q2 2023. The report noted that in this segment, the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus together constituted 77 percent of the shipments, giving Apple 83 percent market share. On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24 Ultra constituted 11 percent of the shipments in this segment, contributing to 16 percent market share for Samsung.
According to the report, 5G smartphone shipments grew from 49 percent in Q2 2023 to 77 percent in Q2 2024. Mass budget 5G smartphone shipments grew 2.5x to capture 45 percent of the market share. The most shipped budget 5G smartphones in Q2 2024 include Redmi 13C, Oppo F25 Pro, Realme 12x, Redmi 12, and Realme C65.
India’s smartphone shipments to online channels grew 8 percent year-on-year in H1 2024, the IDC report said. Vivo led the overall smartphone shipment market in the country with a 16.5 percent share, followed by Xiaomi and Samsung at 13.5 percent and 12.9 percent, respectively.
Indian Smartphone Market H2 2024 Outlook
While Q2 2024 marked the fourth consecutive quarter of year-on-year smartphone sales growth, the report said that “subdued consumer demand” and rising average selling prices (ASPs) “continue to hamper a rapid annual recovery.”
The entry-premium segment (around Rs. 16,800 to around Rs. 33,500) is expected to see “healthy growth”, the report said. Meanwhile, the entry-level segment (below around Rs. 8,400) will continue to face challenges this year despite the launch of affordable 5G smartphones. The report finally noted that marketing around generative AI (GenAI) smartphones will increase and promotional activities will rely on this feature in the coming quarters.
