Indian smartphone manufacturers have been facing stiff competition from smartphone giants that have made a strong base in India. Even some time back, Indian manufacturers were not doing poorly with their phones under 15000. It seemed that they had read the market well, with the budget being a big issue with Indians. Manufacturers like Intex, Lava, iBall, and Karbonn were churning out phones that were feature-rich and affordable. However, with the entry of Chinese players like Xiaomi, Vivo, and Oppo, and with Samsung upping the ante, we have witnessed domestic brands being left far behind.
Considering all that, the Indian manufacturers cannot blame everything on the market. Here are a few ways in which they can get back into the thick of things, and compete with the other international brands.
Innovation has been the Achilles heel for Indian smartphone manufacturers. While they churned out phones under 15,000 INR with ease, they could not improve their features steadily. If we look back, the Karbonn A1 managed to match prices with the Oppo Neo. However, the latter was steadily winning the game with a better camera (5MP against 3.2MP) and a better battery (1100 mAh against 1900 mAh). The Indian mobile brands were just not doing the right R&D to get ahead in the competition. Furthermore, they did not invest in better software, which is an area they could have exploited. With better planning and intent, Indian brands could have fared better, offering impressive models to the consumers.
The Indian manufacturers still do not have a brand presence in the market. People swear by the longevity of Nokia phones and the stylishness of Samsung mobiles. What is the Indian equivalent of these brands? When one comes to think of it, there is none. If one makes a random survey, customers would hardly have anything positive to say about the Indian mobiles or brands. Actually, the Indian manufacturers could start rethinking just here. Brands can create effective rhetoric faster than a thoughtful product.
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Profit-making became an issue with the Indian manufacturers faster than they had thought. Their phones under 15,000 INR sure caught the eyeballs, but so did the subpar components in the phone. As previously mentioned, the software is the domain that the Indian mobiles are not strong in. Their buggy software comes cheap but opens myriad doors of vulnerability in the phones. It is not just about data theft; even 4 GB RAM on an Indian phone cannot help with the heating issues. This incident happens precisely because of the ragtag assembly of bad software that uses the processor perversely.
This point reads kind of basic, but it is here that the Indian smartphone manufacturers have badly faltered. Foreign brands have been providing customers with quality phones that do not betray them in need. How would someone feel if the phone battery dies at a crucial point in time? That is precisely where the Indian phones have let down their customers. The foreign companies have scored right here by advertising a reliable device with good storage capacity and RAM.
The government, through its Make in India campaign, had provided great incentives for Indian-based production units. The scheme was aimed at creating more jobs while incentivizing the companies for their contribution. Ironically, the foreign companies were quick to react wisely to this, but it escaped their Indian counterparts. While companies like Oppo and Vivo went Indian, the Indian companies kept relying on cheap imports from China. Their vision failed them, as their foreign competitors made millions from the government schemes.
The world market is connected, and anything can destabilize prices, causing anxiety among Indian manufacturers. Since they are ever-dependent on imports for producing cost-effective phones, they have no choice but to raise prices during hard times. This strategy alienates them further from the Indian consumer, who is already facing a financial crisis. If the Indian smartphone manufacturers can produce their own models at home, they will be immune to an extent to fluctuating markets. If they can stick with standardized pricing throughout, they will build a steady consumer base.
The 4G siege took the Indian market by storm. It made its debut at least a couple of years too early and jolted the Indian manufacturers who were producing 2G phones. By the time they could think of an effective solution and make better phones, foreign companies like Oppo, OnePlus, and Xiaomi had already flooded the market with irresistible products. The Indian companies must rectify this lack of foresight before the 5G technology becomes available.
These were the reasons why the Indian smartphone market lagged behind in the past but can avoid making similar mistakes in the future. If you are looking to buy the best smartphones currently available, you can do so by using the Bajaj Finserv EMI Network Card. The EMI Network Card allows you to purchase big-ticket items, and pay for them later in monthly installments.
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