India's Smartphone Market Grew by 7% in 2021, Despite Challenges

India shipped 161 million smartphones in 2021, up by 7 percent YoY (year-over-year), even as supply and pandemic related challenges created disruptions during the year, according to the International Data Corporation ’s (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker.

2021 started strong with tough demand from July to Dec and positive sentiments around vaccinations however a strong second wave was faced with a blow to the growth. Forced supplies resulted in low inventories across channels in the second half of the year, which usually has a high demand during the festive season, as per the report.

“Constrained supplies resulted in low inventories across channels in the second half of the year, which usually has a high demand during the festive season,” IDC stated.

Q1 2022 (January-March) is expected to remain flat YoY amidst a low seasonal demand and a slight impact of the ongoing third wave of the pandemic which will give the brands time to restock their inventories.

As such, growth will be driven by the transition from 4G to 5G, though it is expected to still be restricted to mid-and high-tier price segments.

With 81 million units, the online channel registered 13 percent YoY growth, exceeding the offline channel. This was motivated by strong marketing and initiatives such as multiple sales festivals, attractive financing schemes, cashback & exchange offers, and trade-in programs. While the offline channel contracted in 2021, IDC expects offline shipments to recover some lost ground in 2022.

On another note, MediaTek-based smartphones recorded a 54 percent market share, creating a bigger lead over Qualcomm with more than 85 percent of its smartphones below $200. UNISOC regained some momentum reaching a 7 percent share, up from 2 percent in the previous years.

It is worth mentioning that Xiaomi maintained its leadership position for four consecutive years with 40 million units, though declining by 1.5 percent YoY in 2021. Samsung, at the second slot, registered a YoY decline of 6 percent in 2021, shipping 28 million units. Meanwhile, Vivo was in the third position, with a shipment decline of 6 percent YoY, though it continued to lead with a 28 percent share of offline channel shipments in 2021.