20 October,2026 11:58 AM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
Representational Image. File pic.
Market research firm Omdia in a report on Monday said the country's smartphone market is expected to have slipped to a decadal low with a 26 per cent decline in shipments in the third quarter of 2026, according to news agency PTI.
"India's smartphone market shipments are estimated to have declined 26 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to 35.8 million units in 3Q26, marking their lowest third-quarter shipment volume since 2016, despite the start of the festive season," the report said.
It attributed the decline to factors such as higher smartphone prices and cautious consumer spending, which reduced the replacement demand. This prompted vendors to adopt conservative inventory strategies.
The report said the softer online-focused shipments added to the pressure. Besides, the shift in the festive season calendar with Diwali pushed to November, added to the contraction during the September quarter, as a significant portion of offline festive inventory build-up was transferred from September into October.
South Korean giant Samsung claimed the top position despite a marginal dip in shipments. Global tech major Apple was among the top five players in the market during the quarter, even though its shipments declined 20 per cent over last year. Chinese firms such as Vivo, Oppo and Xiaomi witnessed a decline in shipments.
"Samsung regained the top spot for the first time since the first quarter of 2024, shipping 6.7 million units, supported by the Galaxy A07, A17 and A27. The Galaxy S26 series, new Z foldables and S26 FE broadened its higher-value portfolio, while bank cashback, exchange benefits and longer-tenure financing supported upgrades across price tiers," it said.
Samsung had a 19 per cent market share despite a year-on-year dip of around 1 per cent in shipments to 6.7 million units during the reported quarter.
Chinese firm Vivo is estimated to have recorded the steepest fall in shipments of 34 per cent on year to 6.4 million units from 9.7 million units. The company slipped to second spot with 18 per cent market share in the smartphone segment.
Xiaomi's shipments during the third quarter ended September are estimated at 4.7 million units, a fall of 28 per cent from 6.5 million units in the corresponding quarter in the previous year.
Oppo, too, is expected to have seen its shipments decline by 24 per cent to 4.9 million units during the reported quarter from 6.5 million units a year ago.
Apple featured in the top five smartphone players with shipments totalling 3.9 million units, driven by channel inventory buildup ahead of expected price increases and steady demand for the base iPhone 17 and iPhone 16 models amid the absence of a new base iPhone 18.
The late-quarter launch of the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max helped Apple gain momentum, supported by bank cashback, exchange bonuses and flexible no-cost EMI schemes, according to PTI.
Omdia Principal Analyst Sanyam Chaurasia noted that September has traditionally been an important month for building inventory ahead of major online sales events. However, shipment growth was weaker this year during the month, with fewer exclusive product launches, limited availability of affordable devices and smaller promotional price gaps diminished the online channel's usual advantage during the festive season.
"This has disproportionately affected Chinese OEMs, whose combined market share fell to approximately 68 per cent in 3Q26 from 75 per cent in 3Q25. In contrast, Samsung and Apple strengthened their positions through premium portfolios, strong consumer demand, established channel partnerships and structured upgrade programs," Chaurasia said.
(With inputs from PTI)
