Android is dominating the smartphone market in India, revealed Strategy Analytics, with a record 97 per cent market share in Q2.

Total smartphone shipments grew a “healthy” 19 per cent annually to reach 30.7 million units in the three months, with Android accounting for 29.8 million devices in total.

For the Google platform, this represents 28 per cent growth from 23.2 million, with its market share growing 7 points from 90 per cent to 97 per cent.

Rival Apple only contributes 2.4 per cent of shipments, down from 4.5 per cent, with iPhone shipments totalling 0.8 million in the quarter, a 35 per cent drop from Q2 2015.

Neil Mawston, executive director at Strategy Analytics, said Android in India “looks unbeatable right now”, with its success put down to its “deep portfolio of hardware partners, extensive distribution channels and a wide range of low-cost apps like Gmail”.

Apple, meanwhile will need to reduce iPhone pricing to cheaper levels, enlarge its retail presence and attract more operator subsidies “if it wants to regrow significantly in the future”, added Woody Oh, director at Strategy Analytics.

India is the third largest smartphone market in the world, after the China and US, and is growing quickly due to low penetration rates and an expanding middle class with more disposable income.

Intense competition among vendors, retailers and operators also contributes to the healthy growth.