The Q2 2020 was probably one of the worst quarters for smartphone makers in years. As the COVID-19 outbreak started, the Indian government imposed a strict lockdown starting March 25. As a result, smartphone production and sales came to a standstill. April was the worst month with all smartphone brands registering zero sales. According to Counterpoint’s Market Monitor service, India’s smartphone shipments declined 51% YoY to just over 18 million units in Q2 2020. Though, as lockdown restrictions started to ease, pent-up demand pushed the India smartphone user base to half a billion.

There were a few surprises too. Despite negative consumer sentiments towards Chinese brands and supply constraints, Xiaomi continued to lead the Indian smartphone market. Samsung was the second-largest smartphone maker and was able to recover faster, to nearly pre-COVID levels. OnePlus regained the top position in the premium smartphone segment with the new OnePlus 8 launch, whereas Apple remained the leading smartphone brand in the ultra-premium segment.

In the latest episode of ‘The Counterpoint Podcast’, host Peter Richardson is joined by research analyst Shilpi Jain to talk about how the India smartphone market performed in Q2 2020. The discussion touches upon various topics from the supply and demand side, effects of India-China border clash on consumer sentiments, and more.

You can also visit our Data Section (updated quarterly) to view the smartphone market share globally and from the US, China and India.

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