Indian smartphone market grows 7% in Q2

According to new data from Canalys, Indian smartphone market saw an uptick of 7% although full-year outlook remains subdued. This marks a recovery from a slow Q1, driven by new smartphone launches and improved channel and retail activity.

Apple sales are gaining momentum, driven by iPhone 16 sales, though the iPhone 16e variant underperformed

Total shipments were 39 million units in the second quarter of 2025. Some of the smartphone brands include Vivo which was at the top, with 21% market share.

Vivo shipments went up to 8.1 million, with strong offline campaigns and distribution in Tier 1 & 2 cities. Its V50 series are popular in metros, while Y-series in smaller towns.

Samsung is right behind Vivo, holding 16% market share with shipments of 6.2 million.

Oppo & Xiaomi tied at 13% market share, both shipping 5 million units. Next in line is realme with 9% share, shipping 3.6 million units.

Apple is at no.6, but it has a strong momentum. Over 55% of Apple’s shipments were from the iPhone 16 series

While iPhone 16e is the affordable variant, it underperformed due to single-camera design and lack of fully realized Apple Intelligence features

Notable mid-premium and niche brands are Motorola (#7) which targets smaller cities while Infinix is popular with Gen Z, due to it's gaming and design-first marketing tactics.

Nothing is another mid-tier brand which saw 229% YoY growth, driven by phone 3a Pro and CMF Phone 2 Pro.

Brands are locking in inventory early via channel incentive programs to push for sales in the upcoming festive seasons.

For the second half of 2025, analysts predict greater reliance on channel activity than big launches but expect a slight decline expected overall. This could be due to long-term structural demand challenges.

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