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The smartphone market in India grew 48 percent in 2012, showing the rapid changes in the Indian mobile market. Where 11 million smartphones were sold in 2011, some 16.3 million units were sold in 2012. That said smartphones still account for only seven percent of the devices used in the Indian mobile market.

This smartphone market is expected to grow as much as 70 percent in 2013, IDC says.

That growth is part of a shift of smartphone sales from developed markets to emerging markets.

China likely became the leading country-level market for smartphone shipments in 2012, moving ahead of the United States.

By 2016, India and Brazil also will have entered the ranks of the top-five country markets for smartphone shipments. India will be the third largest smartphone market by 2017.

"Due to their sheer size, strong demand, and healthy replacement rates, emerging markets are quickly becoming the engines of the worldwide smart phone market," IDC has said. But those emerging markets will require low-cost devices, in the sub-US$50 range, IDC (News - Alert) estimates.

In total, developing markets will contribute 70 percent to 80 percent of the growth in 2013. The BRIIC  (Brazil, Russia, India, Indonesia and China markets) will drive much of the volume growth in the global market in 2013 and beyond.  

The low-cost smartphone segment can be defined as models with a selling price of less than $150, according to NPD DisplaySearch.

Low-cost smartphone shipments are forecast to double every year from 2010 to 2016, increasing from 4.5 to 311 million, according to NPD.

“Most mobile phone subscribers around the world can’t afford to spend more than US$200 for a smartphone, on top of their service plans,” said Shawn Lee, NPD research director.

About 60 percent of the total demand is from the Asia Pacific region.

According to IDC, the overall mobile phone market in India grew 16 percent, year over year, in 2012.