Once the winning formula, online-first is now harder to repeat in India’s smartphone market. As volumes flatten, memory prices rise, and mainline regains dominance, brands like AI+ and Boltt are trying to scale in a market very different from the Xiaomi-Realme era. The real question: can online still build a sustainable smartphone brand, or is it only the first step now?

India shipped 152 million smartphones in CY2025. Volume grew 0.5%. Value grew 8%. The headline said flat. The market said everything is changing. Vivo widened its lead. OnePlus collapsed -38.8%. The offline channel reclaimed 6 points of share in a single year. Premium grew +37%. Mass Budget shrank -8%. CY2026 brings four simultaneous headwinds: DRAM shock, rupee weakness, Middle East logistics pressure, and a consumer who is choosing to save. The market has never been more ex

Decoding The Smartphone Shipment Data: Q3 2023

Here's another perspective to the Q1 smartphones' shipment data. And, the year 2022 doesn't look too bright for the Indian smartphone market

The market share representation by all smartphone brands in India - correct or not?

JioPhone Next definitely not the right model to make India 2G-Free!

This blog is not about brands, market shares or even projections. This blog is about the future of the traditional mainline distributors...

Indian smartphones market gets ready to hit the 200 million mark in 2021! The big question - Will the Chinese occupy only 50% of it?

The survey results to understand what’s possibly in store in 2021 for operators, mobile brands and the channel are out. Have a look!

The smartphone industry bears the brunt of prolonged COVID. Assert or defend, the confusion prevails.

There may be a re-shuffle in the brands' market shares. My views on who'll lose and who'll gain!

IML 20:20 - Indian Mobile League. Mobile makers need to play this one more like a test. Are they ready?

It’s always better to be objective, so let’s first table some data on the Indian Smartphone market. Table 1 * Data as per IDC Table 2 *...

The IDC data for 2019 is out! And… #Xiaomi, as expected, retains its No. 1 position with 28.6% market share followed by #Samsung at...

The Real data for the first two months of Q4 (October and November) is just out. And, there are various articles, discussions and...

As 2019 draws to a close, all eyes will be on what 2020 will offer! To recap, 2019 was a year: 1. With the least growth since 2016. From...

India is the 2nd largest and the highest-growing smartphone market amongst the top 3 markets globally. It is also a market that has the...

To, My Friends, C/o Offline Space India Let us start with the data for Q2 (Source: Counterpoint) on the growth in the two channels –...

September will bring the highest selling quarter for mobile phones, as well as most other products, as per past trends, to an end. We are...

The price specification game may get over sooner than later. It has to! I have been observing the different ways the brands are playing...