Indians Are Indeed ‘Upwardly Mobile’; Spend Around 1.5 Hours On Their Phones Every Day, Says Neilsen Report  

Neilsen, a global information, data and measurement company, has in its latest report, stated that an average Indian smartphone user spends approximately 90 minutes online every day. It also said that users in the premium segment tended to spend a greater amount of their time online, around 130 minutes per day. That's 44 per cent more than the average time in the Entry and Mid-segments, as reported by Financial Express.

The survey divided users into three segments, depending on the price of smartphones used to get online: entry level (priced below Rs 5,000), middle-level handsets (priced between Rs 5,000-15,000), premium handsets (priced between Rs 15,000-25,000). The survey did not take into account the super-expensive category.

The survey also noted that Indians now consume over 1GB of data per day, up from an average 4GB a month not long ago. “The advent of high-speed internet, less-expensive mobile handsets and a correction in call data charges have encouraged the speedy adoption of smartphones in India," said Abhijit Matkar, Director-Technology IPG - Nielsen India.

Also, not so surprisingly, 50 per cent of the total time spent on a smartphone are on chat, video-streaming, browsers, social networking and image apps. However, contrary to popular opinion, average smartphone prices have registered a steady increase despite the availability of economically-priced models.

Neilsen also notes that higher proportion of women use premium handsets than men. This could be due to those women who are digitally literate enough to use a smartphone, tending to come from affluent backgrounds. On the other hand, an increasing number of men in blue-collar jobs (cab drivers), are forced to use smartphones, but would opt for more affordable options.