If Nokia is reviving nostalgia, domestic player Micromax is banking on nationalism to get back to its old glory. Micromax has just ventured in the premium category of Android smartphone with the launch of Dual 5 handset. The price tag of Rs 24,999 makes the Dual 5 one of the most expensive Micromax smartphones and competes with the likes of Moto Z Play, Honor 8, OnePlus 3T and other Galaxy phones from Samsung.
Very few brands have been able to take control of the Rs 25,000 and above price segment. When Micromax co-founder Rahul Sharma was asked how the company intends to compete and beat Chinese rivals in the premium segment, he said, “Be Indian, buy Indian,” as quoted in a report by The Hindu Business Line.
IDC expects 2017 to be a test of survival for many vendors and Micromax seems to be gearing up to take on the challenge. “In the smartphone market, the share of China-based vendors touched a whopping 46 percent in CY Q42016, as their shipments doubled over the same period last year, while the share of homegrown vendors further slipped to 19 percent,” said IDC India in its latest market report.
Micromax witnessed a decline of over 20 percent in its annual growth last year. Assuring that Micromax will be back on track, Sharma said in the report that the company deliberately decide to “step back” during the period of demonetisation.
“The feature phone segment is likely to contribute the majority of mobile phone shipments in 2017; the migration to smartphones is expected to further slow down due to the introduction of low-cost 4G feature phones and its continued relevance to its sizeable target consumer. However, replacement demand would drive most of the smartphone shipments in 2017,” said Navkendar Singh, Senior Research Manager, Client Devices, IDC India.
The new Dual 5 handset generated mixed feedback from the tech media and it would be interesting to see how consumers react to the pricing of the new Dual 5. It will be available on Flipkart starting April 10.
