BackAffordable 4G devices drive smartphone growth
One out of three smartphones shipped to India in the third quarter of 2015 was a 4G phone, according to technology research firm International Data Corp.
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Smartphone buyers in India appear confident about a quick rollout of high-speed fourth-generation (4G) telecom networks, even though 3G services that were launched five years ago continue to remain patchy.
One out of three smartphones shipped to India in the third quarter of 2015 was a 4G phone, according to technology research firm International Data Corp. (IDC). Shipments of smartphones to India rose 21.4% to 28.3 million in the third quarter of 2015 from 23.3 million units in the same period last year, IDC’s Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker said. The number of 4G phones shipped in Q3 saw a three-fold jump from Q2.
“The growth in the smartphone market was helped by rising demand for affordable 4G smartphones," said Karthik J., senior market analyst, client devices, IDC.
Online sales significantly helped smartphone sales.
“E-tailers such as Flipkart, Snapdeal and Amazon continue to drive shipments of the Chinese vendors, who have been aggressively trying to capture the 4G smartphone market in India," added Karthik.
Growth was also driven by phones with larger screens at a low cost (priced below $200). Almost one out of every two smartphones sold had displays bigger than 5 inches, the report found.
“This highlights the shift in consumer preference from a device mostly used for voice calling to an advanced multimedia experience," said Jaipal Singh, market analyst, client devices, IDC.
Samsung, which continued to lead the overall Indian smartphone market with 13.1% sequential growth in shipments in Q3 2015, overtook Lenovo as the top 4G vendor.
Micromax, at second position in the quarter, saw a 6.4% sequential growth owing to the YU phones, which have been performing well and are leading contributors to Micromax’s 4G portfolio. Intex stood at third position with 9.4% growth, while Lenovo Group, which includes Lenovo as well as Motorola phones, grabbed the fourth spot owing to a strong 58.6% quarter-on-quarter growth. Lava slipped to fifth place with a 24.9% sequential drop in shipments.
IDC predicts smartphone shipments to overtake feature phone shipments next year.
“IDC expects the share of smartphones to outstrip the share of feature phone market in CY 2016 for India," the report noted.
According to Kiran Kumar, research manager at IDC, low prices and better value would continue to drive migration in the coming years.
“We expect smartphones to maintain a healthy double-digit growth over the next few years," said Kumar. “4G-enabled devices are expected to be at the forefront, with the entire ecosystem preparing for this shift in the near future."
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