The Indian smartphone market saw a 12% growth in 2021 and set a new record sales record, garnering a total of 162 million shipments during the year. While Xiaomi continued to lead the market in terms of shipments, it was realme that was the true winner, registering an annual growth of 25% even as its competitors had to deal with little to negative growth.

The second wave of the pandemic gave a tough start to the year but it was followed by a strong recovery in the second half (via Canalys). In the fourth quarter of 2021 alone, smartphone OEMs shipped 44.5 million devices, defying supply chain constraints.

canalys indian smartphone market analysis
Image: Canalys

 

“India smartphone market dynamics shifted every quarter in 2021,” said Canalys Analyst Sanyam Chaurasia. “COVID-19 crises, volatile consumer demand and supply chain disruptions plagued the market this year. Vendors adapted to the changing environment by focusing on omnichannel, diversifying their supply chains, and expanding their product mix. For example, vendors like realme and Samsung diversified chipset configurations to effectively manage supply.”

The competition also heated up in the low-end segment due to the emergence of new players like Jio. The JioPhone Next with its highly competitive financing options managed to sell several million units. Companies like Infinix and Tecno also saw success in the segment.

But the overall market continued to be gripped by Xiaomi which managed to sell an impressive 40.5 million units, out of which 9.3 million were sold in Q4 2021 alone. The Chinese tech giant was seconded by Samsung that sold 30.1 million units last year, recording a YoY growth of 5%. vivo stood third on the podium with 25.7 million units in 2021, followed by realme with its 24.2 million figure.

Chaurasia expects 5G to go live following spectrum auctions for it this year. And when that happens, 5G smartphones prices are expected to fall significantly amid fierce vendor rivalry.

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