Shipments of affordable 5G smartphones in India surged by over 1,900 per cent year-on-year in 2025, driven by aggressive pricing, wider availability of entry-level 5G chipsets, and the rapid expansion of nationwide 5G network coverage, a report said on Monday.
According to a report by CyberMedia Research (CMR), India’s smartphone market entered a phase of structural transition in 2025, marked by explosive growth in affordable 5G devices alongside sustained demand in the premium segment. The most significant shift occurred in the Rs 6,000-Rs 8,000 price band, which emerged as a key growth driver.
5G smartphones accounted for 88 per cent of total smartphone shipments, up 12 percentage points year-on-year, underscoring how 5G has decisively moved from being a premium feature to a market default.
Apple recorded 25 per cent year-on-year growth in India, increasing its market share to 9 per cent. The base iPhone 16 model accounted for 47 per cent of the iPhone 16 series volumes, highlighting a strong consumer preference for value-led base variants over Pro and Plus models.
“2025 was a year of recalibration rather than contraction for India’s smartphone market. While overall volumes softened marginally, the fundamentals remained strong. The rapid scaling of affordable 5G, resilient premium demand, and the rise of challenger brands point to a market that is evolving structurally, not weakening,” said Menka Kumari, Senior Analyst, Industry Intelligence Group (IIG), CMR.
Large-screen smartphones continued to dominate consumer preferences, with devices featuring 6.7-inch and larger displays accounting for nearly 80 per cent of total shipments, firmly establishing big screens as the industry standard.
The feature phone segment, however, continued its decline. Shipments of 2G feature phones fell 12 per cent year-on-year, while 4G feature phone volumes plunged 48 per cent, the report noted.
On the chipset front, MediaTek led India’s smartphone chipset market with a 45 per cent market share, while Qualcomm dominated the premium smartphone segment with a 34 per cent share.
Looking ahead, Pankaj Jadli, Analyst at CMR’s Industry Intelligence Group, said rising component and memory costs in 2026 are likely to keep pricing under pressure, leading to more cautious purchasing behaviour.
“Consumers have not stepped away from the smartphone market; instead, they are becoming increasingly selective, extending device lifecycles and upgrading only when the value proposition is compelling,” Jadli added.
(IANS)
