Artificial intelligence (AI) features are influencing purchase decisions for 82% of smartphone buyers, with contextual assistance emerging as the most sought-after capability, according to Amazon India’s inaugural Best in Tech Survey.
The survey, conducted in July 2026 on Amazon.in, received more than 40,000 responses across major consumer electronics categories. Its findings will form the basis of the category framework for the second edition of the Best in Tech Awards, scheduled for September 2026.
Buyers want useful AI, not just AI features
Contextual assistance was the most wanted AI feature, with 25% of respondents choosing it. It helps users by understanding what they are doing and offering useful suggestions, such as searching for something on the screen or suggesting a reply.
Generative photo editing was the second-most preferred feature at 18%, followed by visual search at 17%. Adaptive battery management was chosen by 11% of respondents, showing that battery life remains important to smartphone users.
Performance, battery and camera remain key
Despite the growing use of AI, buyers still give more importance to basic smartphone features. Performance and speed were cited by 87% of respondents, followed by battery life at 79% and camera quality at 77%.
Battery life was also the biggest problem users wanted their current smartphones to fix. About 22% of respondents cited battery life, followed by camera quality at 17% and performance at 12%.
One in three buyers wanted phones above ₹50,000.
The survey also showed growing interest in premium smartphones, with one in three buyers planning to spend ₹50,000 or more on their next phone.
About 15% of respondents are considering phones priced between ₹50,000 and ₹75,000, while 17% are looking at phones above ₹75,000. The ₹25,000-50,000 segment remained the most popular, with 42% of respondents looking for phones in that range.
Within this segment, 21% each were considering phones priced between ₹25,000 and ₹35,000 and ₹35,000 and ₹50,000. Another 19% were looking at phones priced between ₹15,000 and ₹25,000, while only 7% were considering phones below ₹15,000.
The survey also found that buyers are taking more time before upgrading their smartphones. More than half (54%) keep their phones for two years or longer, while 48% plan to upgrade within the next three months.
Interest in premium smartphones is also growing outside metros. Among respondents considering phones priced above ₹75,000, 18% were from metros, 17% from Tier-2 cities and 15% from Tier-3 cities.
