5G smartphones growing in India despite unavailability of networks

The number of 5G smartphones in India keep growing despite lack of network availability. According to the Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker by the International Data Corporation (IDC), the country saw over three million shipments of 5G smartphones in 2020, out of a total of 150 million units. Analysts said that while the overall market for smartphones saw a modest decline (of 1.7% year-over-year) for the first time since 2009, the 5G smartphone market grew between 2019 and 2020.

“In 2021, IDC expects the smartphone market to grow in high single-digit year-on-year, driven majorly by upgrading consumers in the mid-range segment and affordable 5G offerings (~$250),” said Navkendar Singh, Research Director, Client Devices at IDC. “Also revamped offline channel play is anticipated, to bring back growth in the very important brick and mortar counters for long term sustainability,” he added.

According to the fourth-quarter market report by Cybermedia Research (CMR), Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus led the 5G smartphone segment with 58% market share in 2020, followed by the American tech giant, Apple, which took 20% of the 5G smartphone market share in India.