Last year’s iPhone 13 has become the best-selling phone in India as per a Quarter 3 analysis by Counterpoint Research. This is also the first time an iPhone has topped the smartphone shipment in India. Meanwhile, the overall shipments for Q3 have declined.
But, Overall Shipments Declined!
Besides having the iPhone 13 as the bestseller, Apple also topped the premium segment with a 40% share followed by Samsung and OnePlus. For those who don’t know, the iPhone 13 also became a best-selling phone globally back in April.
However, the report reveals that the overall shipments declined by 11% YoY with a total of 54 million units only in the July-September quarter. It is said that the reason for the decrease in numbers is due to the high base last year and lower demand for the entry-tier and budget phones in Q3, 2022. Almost all brands were impacted by the lower-than-expected shipments but the budget segment was the most affected.
The handset market saw a decline of 15% YoY. Even the feature phone segment registered a 24% dip “due to adverse macroeconomic conditions.“
As for who led the market, it was clearly Xiaomi with a share of 21%. Although, the shipments declined by 19%. The report suggests that the budget segment had lower demand while the mid-tier helped the company maintain its first position. Samsung took the second spot (19%) and became the fastest-growing brand in the top five. This was followed by Vivo (14%), Realme (also 14%), and Oppo (10%). With its first phone (1), Nothing was able to have a mid-share and a share in the premium tier.
More insights reveal that 5G smartphones saw a growth of 31% with a total of 32% shipments, showing the eagerness of people to upgrade to a 5G phone after the official rollout. Xiaomi became the top 5G smartphone brand in Q3 2022 in the sub-Rs 20,000 price bracket.
Counterpoint Research’s Senior Research Analyst Prachir Singh believes that we will “witness a demand uptick during the year-end sales.” It remains to be seen what the Q4, 2022 report will tell us. Meanwhile, do share your thoughts on the Q3 findings in the comments below.
