India’s True Wireless Stereo (TWS) market recorded a 68 per cent YoY growth during the second quarter of 2021, according to the latest research from Counterpoint’s IoT Service.

New launches primarily drove this growth in the affordable price segment along with improved features.

Senior Research Analyst Anshika Jain said, “We have seen a phenomenal change in India’s TWS market with the entry of new players and frequent new launches. More than 40 brands have entered this market since 2020."

"In the next quarter, we will see the entry of more brands (like Nothing Ear, Dizo and Micromax) across price tiers to grab a larger share of this untapped market. Some of the new entrants in Q2 2021 were Lava, Aiwa and TCL. Low-cost offerings have provided the necessary boost to this segment. The share of the ₹1,000-₹2,000 price band grew to 60 per cent of the overall shipments in Q2 2021 compared to 25 per cent in the same quarter last year," added Jain.

According to Jain, growth in the market witnessed some resistance during the second wave of the Covid-29 pandemic in April due to restrictions, including on e-commerce giants in some parts of the country.

"However, the other two months of the quarter met the pent-up demand and helped maintain the growth momentum," Jain said.

Top brands

In Q2 2021, boAt topped the charts for the fourth quarter in a row with a 37 per cent share of the total TWS shipments.

The brand grew on the back of aggressive marketing, celebrity endorsements and ‘value for money’ offerings such as the Airdopes 701, Airdopes 281 Pro and Airdopes 481V2, as per the report.

Flipkart’s Big Saving Days sale in Q2 was another driver for its growth.

OnePlus came in second with a 12 per cent market share, followed by Realme at 10 per cent.

Brands like OnePlus and Realme leveraged their existing smartphone user base to grow their presence in the TWS market.

Noise moved one step up to take the fourth spot with an 8 per cent market share in Q2 2021, registering a 117 per cent YoY growth.

"It offered a good number of new alternatives to the customers and slightly shifted its product portfolio towards the lower price band of₹1,000-₹2,000," as per the report.