91mobiles.com, India’s no. 1 gadget discovery site, has today revealed the insights from its Smartphone Buyer Preferences Survey 2019. The study asked over 15,000 users what matters most to them while deciding a new phone, how often they upgrade, how they research for smartphones and whether they prefer buying online or offline.
With 78% of the respondents planning to buy a new smartphone in 2019, the study analyses what people want from their next phone. And how this differs by demographic factors like gender, location, and age.
Here are some key findings from the survey:
Which smartphone brands are popular among users currently
- The current ownership patterns reflect the market standings of brands, with Xiaomi leading the game (25%) and Samsung coming in second (19%).
- New brand Realme's share (5%) is higher than established players like ASUS (4%) and Nokia (3%).
- Xiaomi and Realme smartphones are more popular among younger people, while Samsung, OnePlus, and ASUS are favored by older folks.
- Brands like OPPO, Xiaomi and Samsung are more popular among women, while OnePlus, ASUS and Nokia are more preferred by men.
How often users change their smartphones
- Almost 40% of respondents said they upgrade their smartphones within one year
- In general, people in the North & East upgrade their smartphones more frequently than users in other regions.
- Men upgrade their smartphones more frequently than women (~40% men upgrade within a year, vs 30% women)
- Younger people (below 35) upgrade their phones more frequently than those above 35
How users decide which phone to buy next
- 56% of all respondents will look for a phone in the Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000 segment, when they buy next
- 44% of all respondents said they would prefer to buy a phone online, while 40% would prefer offline, and 16% are unsure
- However, if their phone of choice costs Rs 1,000 more offline, 60% of people will prefer buying online, while only 23% will buy offline
- Almost 80% of respondents use online channels (gadget sites, eCommerce sites, YouTube) to research their smartphone purchase, regardless of whether they plan to buy online or offline
Which aspects matter most to users while deciding a new phone
- Performance/speed, camera, and battery are the three most important criteria respondents consider while buying a new phone, with performance being twice as important as the other two
- Younger people (below 35) give more weightage to performance and camera capabilities, while those above 35 consider battery and display more important
- Men prioritize performance & display, while women put more emphasis on camera, battery and design of the phone
How people decide which phone has better performance & better camera
- 43% consider processor brand as the most important factor for evaluating the performance of their next smartphone, followed by RAM capacity (27%).
- Younger people pay more attention to processor brand and benchmark scores, as compared to older users who focus more on RAM capacity and processor clock speeds.
- 34% said they look at the resolution as the deciding factor while evaluating camera capabilities, followed by AI capabilities (31%) and aperture (18%).
- Women care more about selfie capabilities than men (16% of women cited that as the primary factor for judging camera quality, vs 8% of men)
“As the leading smartphone discovery site in India, 91mobiles constantly aims to better understand consumer expectations from their smartphones. In a market as diverse as India, this is not always an easy task. The Smartphone Buyer Preferences Survey 2019 aims to get a glimpse into what people are looking for in their phones in 2019, and how they make their buying decisions. We hope these insights will help smartphone brands and retailers better understand and cater to their consumers” said Nitin Mathur, Co-founder of 91mobiles.com.