According to the latest research from Omdia, smartphone shipments in India for the second quarter of 2026 fell by 13% year-on-year to 33.9 million units. Continuous rises in memory costs have driven repeated price increases for handsets, eroding the purchasing power of mass-market consumers. Additional factors suppressing market demand include consumers waiting for festive season promotions to upgrade their devices, the depreciation of the Indian Rupee, inflationary pressures, and weak offline retail foot traffic during the summer. Although new model launches remained active in the second quarter, manufacturers maintained a cautious approach to channel restocking due to slowing end-user sales and persistently high channel inventory costs.
Vivo retained its position as the market leader with shipments of 6.3 million units. Despite facing double-digit shipment declines due to price pressures impacting the mass market, Vivo consolidated its leading position by streamlining its entry-level portfolio around core models like the Y11 5G and Y21 5G, and by launching the more affordable V70 FE to lower the entry point for its V series.
Samsung followed closely with shipments of 5.9 million units, demonstrating the strongest market resilience among major manufacturers. The Galaxy A07 and Galaxy A17 served as primary sales drivers, while initiatives like the Galaxy Forever program, trade-ins, buyback offers, and dealer financing effectively supported sales of the Galaxy S26 series and bolstered channel confidence.
OPPO secured third place with shipments of 4.6 million units. While repeated price adjustments for in-market products exerted some pressure on overall shipments, OPPO continued to strengthen its mid-range and flagship lineups by introducing the F33 series, further expanding the Reno 15 series, and refining the Find X9 series portfolio.
Xiaomi-W (01810) ranked fourth with shipments of 4.5 million units, primarily benefiting from the market performance of the Xiaomi 15A and 15C. Meanwhile, 4G products like the Redmi A7 4G and Redmi A7 Pro 4G continued to meet entry-level market demand. Additionally, Xiaomi revived its T series, developed in collaboration with Leica, to further enhance its premium product upgrade path.
Apple (AAPL) took fifth place with shipments of 3.5 million units. Shipments were driven by channels stocking up on iPhone 17 in anticipation of further price increases for iPhones and the expectation that the base iPhone 18 model would not be released this year. Promotional schemes such as installment plans, trade-ins, and cashback offers further boosted sales of premium models.
Sanyam Chaurasia, a Principal Analyst at Omdia, commented, "In Q2 2026, manufacturers further streamlined and repositioned their product portfolios to improve profitability, enhance product differentiation, and increase channel operational efficiency. Brand strategies in the entry-level segment also became more focused, prioritizing the development of core hero models, extending product lifecycles, and staggering new product launches to better align inventory with retail sales cycles. Concurrently, premium lineups were restructured around clearer upgrade paths."
"As end-user prices rise, the value of channel inventory increases, making retailers more inclined to invest capital in brands with more stable retail performance and better financing support. Consequently, in an environment where retailers prioritize brands with lower inventory risk and stronger demand for premium products, Samsung and Apple are better positioned to secure a larger share of channel inventory," Chaurasia added.
Omdia anticipates the Indian smartphone market will experience a double-digit decline for the full year 2026, with consumer demand continuing to be affected by macroeconomic pressures and persistently high device prices. Persistent inflation, a weak Rupee, and rising living costs are expected to further curb consumers' discretionary spending. Meanwhile, below-average rainfall may weaken rural incomes and further impact demand during the crucial festive sales season.
Furthermore, continuously high memory costs are projected to keep driving smartphone prices upward for the remainder of 2026. Omdia believes a broad-based normalization of smartphone prices is unlikely before the first half of 2027 at the earliest.
Chaurasia concluded, "In this market environment, manufacturers should maintain pricing discipline, fully reflecting component cost increases while using channel-led promotions to preserve affordability for consumers, rather than relying solely on deeper discounts. Brands should focus more on enhancing perceived value through installment plans, trade-ins, cashback offers, and value-added service bundles. As device prices continue to rise, consumer demand for financing, trade-in, and bundled offers will increase further. Manufacturers should deepen collaborations with large retail channels and continue to support the general trade through more refined inventory planning and more efficient retail execution."
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