New Year’s Visit to the Grassroots: AI Phones Enter County Towns, Consumers "Uninterested"

In early 2026, IDC released data that highlighted a striking trend in the Chinese mobile phone market: AI phone shipments are expected to reach 147 million units, with market share surpassing 53% for the first time. This means that for every two new phones sold, one is labeled as an “AI” phone.

However, when Blue Whale Tech reporters delved into the mobile phone markets in several counties in Hunan, they found that this seemingly industry-wide AI boom is experiencing a genuine “cooling-off” at the consumer end.

On the mobile phone sale street in the county, the presence of AI was at its peak. Almost all mainstream brands had prominent signs next to their displays—“AI Phones,” “Smart Assistants,” “AI Image Enhancement.” This top-down technological revolution seems to have completed its final promotion at the frontlines of the counters.

Yet, the actual transaction scenes tell a different story.

In a mobile phone specialty store, a middle-aged customer was consulting about upgrading his device. When asked about the new features by the staff, his response was straightforward and typical: “I don’t care about AI or not, I just want a phone that doesn’t lag and takes good photos.” This was the most common feedback Blue Whale Tech heard during visits to multiple county markets.

A recent online survey also confirmed this trend, showing that about 26% of participants hope that artificial intelligence features will fade or even disappear in the coming year. Many users admitted that although brands have been emphasizing AI applications in recent years, the actual experience often remains superficial—more of a marketing concept than practical use, with a gap between publicity and utility.

If consumer indifference is an instinctive choice, then the county-level salespeople’s avoidance of discussing AI is a deliberate strategy based on sales efficiency.

At a certain brand’s phone counter, Blue Whale Tech reporters tentatively asked: “What’s special about the AI features of this phone?” The salesperson paused briefly and quickly changed the subject: “What you’re talking about as AI is actually just a good chip. Our phone’s chip is flagship-level, with large RAM starting at 12GB, ensuring it won’t lag for three to five years.”

Why do salespeople avoid talking about AI? A veteran salesperson privately explained: “Explaining ‘edge large models’ or ‘AI elimination’ to customers takes a minute and can confuse them. But telling customers ‘this has 200 million pixels’ or ‘12+256GB large storage’ only takes three seconds, and they understand right away—plus, they think it’s worth it.”

In county markets, the core of sales logic is efficiency. A channel distributor further explained to Blue Whale Tech: “When consumers walk into the store, they usually stay less than ten minutes. Salespeople need to build trust, dispel doubts, and close the deal in the shortest time possible. Talking about AI is too roundabout.”

This leads to a core paradox: in a context where consumers don’t care and salespeople are reluctant to discuss it, where does the over 50% market share of AI phones come from?

The answer may lie in the “muscle power” of manufacturers’ channel distribution. Mr. Liang, a channel distributor in a county, told Blue Whale Tech: “For many county consumers, what they buy as ‘AI phones’ is essentially a form of ‘passive AI integration’—they pay for AI hardware (since new phones generally come with NPU), but it’s very likely that until the phone is discarded, the AI switch has never truly been turned on.”

(Article source: Blue Whale News)