- While AI is now table-stakes; performance and speed, followed by battery life and camera quality also influence purchase decisions strongly
- 42% of smartphone respondents to the survey are considering ₹25,000 to ₹50,000 price range for their next phone, and nearly half plan to upgrade within three months
- Reviews and ratings outweigh price and deals at the point of decision, signaling a confident, research-led buyer
- The Best in Tech Survey is Amazon.in’s proprietary initiative towards understanding what customers want from their tech; insights set the agenda for the Best in Tech Awards which returns in September 2026
BANGALORE, INDIA | 18th AUGUST 2026 | Today, Amazon.in has revealed the findings of the inaugural Best in Tech Survey, a customer study aimed at understanding what buyers want from their technology. Conducted in July 2026 on Amazon.in, the survey drew more than 40,000 responses across all major consumer electronics categories. The findings feed directly into the category framework for the Best in Tech Awards, which return for its second edition in September 2026.
AI features now shape purchase decision for 82% of smartphone buyers, with contextual, everyday assistance valued the most. While AI has become a baseline expectation, performance, battery and camera have emerged as the most influential purchase drivers.
“How customers buy a smartphone today has changed. While AI has moved from a talking point to an expectation, customers are just as clear about the fundamentals that still matter, like performance, battery, camera. They are also willing to pay more for the device that gets it right. We have built the Best in Tech Survey because a lot of what is reported about the Indian customer is inferred. We wanted to go and ask, at scale. The bar that customers have set has never been higher, and that is the standard the Best in Tech Awards exists to recognize” said Zeba Khan, Director, Consumer Electronics, Amazon India.
Buyers want AI that helps, not the hype
The single most-wanted capability is contextual assistance (25%) – AI that understands what a user is doing and offers a useful action in the moment, such as searching for something on the screen or suggesting a reply, without waiting to be asked. This is followed by generative photo editing (18%) and visual search (17%). Adaptive battery management (11%) was the next most important feature, underlining how central battery life is to a user’s smartphone experience.
Buyers still want a phone that lasts a day
The features that influence a purchase are still the fundamentals buyers have always valued: performance and speed (87%), battery life (79%) and camera quality (77%). Battery life stands out as both the most-wanted quality and the most common shortfall. It is the aspect buyers most often name when asked what their current phone must fix (22%), ahead of camera (17%) and performance (12%).
Buyers are ready to upgrade. Reviews matter more than deals
One in three smartphone buyers is considering ₹50,000 or more for their next phone, including 15% in the ₹50,000 to ₹75,000 range and 17% looking above ₹75,000. The largest single segment remains ₹25,000 to ₹50,000 at 42%, with the ₹25,000 to ₹35,000 and ₹35,000 to ₹50,000 bands level at 21% each. The ₹15,000 to ₹25,000 band accounts for 19%, while just 7% are shopping under ₹15,000. Buyers are also taking a considered approach to upgrading. More than half (54%) keep their phones for two years or longer, while 48% plan to upgrade in the next three months. When making that decision, reviews and ratings matter more than discounts: 47% cite them as an important consideration, against 35% for price and deals. The interest in the premium segment extends beyond the metros. Among respondents considering phones above ₹75,000, metros account for 18%, Tier-2 for 17% and Tier-3 for 15%.
The Best in Tech Survey was conducted across categories within consumer technology, including smartphones, laptops and tablets, home entertainment and appliances, and wearables and audio. This is the first in a series of findings that will be released in the coming days, providing the framework for the second edition of the Best in Tech Awards, which return in September 2026.
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