Xiaomi No. 1 in 4G handsets in India, Lava overtakes Micromax in overall market

Chinese brand Xiaomi has emerged as the no. 1 seller of 4G smartphones in India, while Microsoft (Nokia) and Lava are ahead of Micromax in the overall market, according to CyberMedia Mobile Handset Market report, Jan 2015.

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According to CyberMedia Research’s numbers, Xiaomi had a 30.8% share in the 4G market in India, followed by Apple with a 23.8% share.

Xiaomi had only one 4G-enabled handset in the country in January – the RedMi Note, while Apple had several.

Samsung, which led in overall smartphone shipments, was at third place in 4G shipments with a 12.1% market share. At No. 4 was HTC, while at the fifth place was Micromax, which also had just one model with 4G – the Yu Yureka.

In terms of overall market (including smart and ‘dumb’ phones), Samsung held on to its lead with a 17.3% market share, while at number 2 was the low-cost player, Lava, with 11.9% of the market.

Lava was followed by Microsoft (formerly called Nokia), which had a 10.3% share, and Micromax (9.7%), and Intex (8.5%).

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However, more important than the overall mobile market is the smartphone market. Here, it was Samsung that led again, and that too with a stronger margin.

The Korean company had a 28.8% share in the Indian smartphone market, and was followed by Micromax, which had a 12.1% share.

It looks like Microsoft’s Windows Mobile platform, Lumia, is yet to take off in a major way, with just a 4.6% share of the Indian market. Microsoft was No.5 in smartphone shipments, behind Intex and Lava, which occupied the No. 3 and No. 4 slots.

Smartphones accounted for 34% of the total market, while ‘feature phones’ accounted for 66%.