Budget Smartphone Market: Despite huge discounts and easy EMIs, the Indian smartphone market is currently going through a sluggish phase. It is seen that according to the latest report of Counterpoint Research, there has been a decline of 10% year on year in smartphone shipments in India in the second quarter of 2026. The special thing is that this is considered to be the biggest decline during the June quarter in the last six years. Regarding this, experts say that the rising prices of smartphones and decreasing purchasing power of consumers are becoming the biggest reasons for this decline. Its impact is clearly visible especially on the budget smartphone segment.
Big decline of 45% in budget smartphone sales
The report states that the production cost of companies has increased due to the sharp rise in the prices of memory chips like DRAM and NAND. This had a direct impact on the prices of phones and on average smartphones became costlier by about 15%. Due to inflation and rising prices, there has been a decline of about 45% in the sales of smartphones priced below Rs 15,000. This is the reason why many companies are working on the strategy of launching 4G smartphones again to keep the costs low.
Demand for expensive phones still strong
While the budget segment is struggling, it has not significantly impacted the demand for premium smartphones priced above Rs 45,000. Easy EMIs, exchange offers and financing schemes have made buying expensive phones easier than ever. This is the reason why the premium segment is still controlling the market.
Which company had the dominance?
It is seen in the report that Vivo has retained its number-1 position with about 18% market share. At the same time, Samsung has been the only company in the top-5 to register a growth of 2% even in the falling market. Along with this, strong demand for Galaxy A Series and S Series played an important role in this. Along with this, on the other hand, OPPO, Xiaomi and Realme had to suffer the loss of price increase in the budget segment. Demand for Apple’s iPhone 17 Series remained strong, but due to lack of supply and inventory, its shipments declined by 3%.
Nothing surprised the most outside the top-5. Due to the popularity of Phone (4a) and sponsorship of RCB in IPL, the company’s sales increased by a massive 105%. Whereas in the premium segment, Google Pixel registered the fastest growth of 68%.
Smartphones may become more expensive in future
Counterpoint Research estimates that the price of memory chips will continue to rise for the time being. In such a situation, India’s smartphone market may see a decline of up to 13% in the whole of 2026. Which simply means that if you are planning to buy a new smartphone, then in the coming months you may have to pay a higher price than before.
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