Last December 1, IDC China released the “Quarterly Tracking Report on the Wearable Device Market in China.” This quarterly report provides essential insight into the market performance of these devices.
Per this new report, the global wearable device market grew by 35.1% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2020. Additionally, total shipments managed to reach 125 million units. According to the IDC, this growth is all because of these reasons:
- Seasonal factors.
- The release of new and anticipated products arousing the interest of people.
- Consumers are spending more on electronic products because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Market performance of wearable device TOP 5 players
To better understand the smartwatch market, it’s also crucial to look at its top players.
- Apple – Per the report, Apple led the market with a share of 33.3%. Additionally, the company’s quarterly shipments reached 41.4 million units. This represents a 38.6% increase in their year-on-year growth.
- Xiaomi – Xiaomi follows behind Apple shipment. During the same quarter, Xiaomi has a market share of 13.6%. Their shipments also managed to reach 17 million units. The report also stated that 12.8 million of these sold units are basic bracelet products. Per the report, these high numbers are because of a couple of reasons. And that is Xiaomi’s low price and international expansion strategy. Together, this is enough for the company to reach 26.4% of growth.
3. Huawei – Chinese company Huawei follows in third place. Last quarter, the company was able to move and ship 13.7 million units. This is impressive considering the US sanctions placed on the company means that their wearable devices are concentrated in China. However, Huawei wearables also don’t rely on Google services. Additionally, most of the smartwatch components also do not come from US suppliers. This means that despite sanctions, Huawei smartwatches remain profitable. In fact, the sanctions impact the smartwatches less than that of Huawei’s smartphones. As such, they should still experience growth in many markets around the world.
4. Samsung – Surprisingly, South Korea-based Samsung only comes fourth in the ranking. Per the report, Samsung’s strategy is proving to be very effective. The strategy is to enter the headset market with many brands. During the quarter, the company managed to ship 8.4 million audible devices. Their smartwatch shipments are also impressive, shipping 2.6 million units.
Specifically, Samsung shipped smart headphones that have voice assistants. This also includes headphones with enhanced audio and fitness tracking. Samsung’s policy to include their phones with watches and earphones also proved successful.
5. Fitbit and BoAt – For fifth place, Fitbit is on a tie with BoAt. Both were able to account for 2.6% percent of the market for wearable devices. As such, both were able to ship over 3 million units.
It’s worth noting that Fitbit released well-received devices during the end of the quarter. This contributed to the company’s sales. Additionally, the company has also lowered the prices of its older models. Per the report, this helped boost sales and contributed to their top 5 rankings.
6. BoAt, on the other hand, only focuses on the Indian market. Additionally, its main business also focuses on audible equipment. After the Indian blockade, the company then partnered with the local cricket team. Because of this, the company was able to enjoy strong marketing. This resulted in a 316.9% regional sales growth. That said, the company still lacks its competition’s global layout and supply chain. And while the company’s growth is not unusual, its ambitions also aren’t all that great.
Market performance of TOP 5 wrist-worn device players
Additionally, the IDC also included the top 5 wrist-worn device players in the market. But, IDC used separate statistics for this category, which are as follows:
- Smartwatches – devices equipped with Google’s WearOS, Apple Watch
- Basic watches – examples include the Fossil Hybrid and Huawei Watch GT
- Smart bracelets – examples include Xiaomi’s Mi brand
When it comes to these devices, the overall numbers are quite outstanding. Per the report made by IDC, the total shipment of these devices worldwide managed to reach a whopping 54.8 million units. This number is equal to a 24.0% percent year-on-year growth.
And the top manufacturers that make up these numbers are:
In this category, Xiaomi dominated the market by owning a 24.5% share. This is equal to 13.5 million units, which include both Xiaomi watches and bracelets. Following closely behind is Apple and its market share of 21.6%. In terms of shipment, the company managed to reach 11.8 million units. This includes all its watches, both old and new. In the third place is Huawei, which has a quarterly shipment of 10.7 million units. The company reportedly shipped out 10.7 million units, which is not that far off from Apple.
Take note that while Apple doesn’t lead this category, it doesn’t mean it’s losing its position. In fact, a closer look tells us otherwise. This is because while the gap between these companies is not large, there’s a distinct difference. Whereas Xiaomi and Huawei shipped a large number of smart bracelets, Apple didn’t. Instead, the only shipments accounted for are their Apple Watches. Compared to smart bracelets, shipping 11.8 million units of Apple watches is a great number. Thus, Apple’s place in the smartwatch industry remains unshakable.
Additionally, another market research organization also made a global shipment report. Much like IDC, the report details the smartwatch market for the first half of 2020. According to the organization Counterpoint, Apple still dominates the market. This is all thanks to its shipment volume and revenue. But not only that, since Apple currently owns 51.4% of the market share. This solidifies Apple’s place in the industry, where it’s more than likely to stay moving forward.
Besides these three companies, Fitbit and Samsung follow behind. The companies are ranked fourth and fifth, with a market share of 5.9% and 5.1%, respectively. This means that the companies were able to ship 3.3 million and 2.8 million units, respectively.
The wearable device growth trend
Lastly, the report from IDC also included a graph of the wearable device trend for last year’s Q3. This graph reportedly shows devices like wristbands and watches. It also includes audible devices like smart headphones with voice assistants, health and fitness tracking, and even voice assistants.
Watches and earphones are rising in popularity. Moreover, experts believe they will only continue to grow. But, bracelets are on a much more stable path, although it has almost stagnated. That said, opportunity and growth for watches and earphones are expected sometime during 2019Q4 and 2020Q3.
Conclusion
The IDC report revealed some interesting and useful insights about this market. Per the report, there are many factors that played a hand in its growth. That growth than resulted in expansion and more opportunities. Combined, these two should result in a bigger install base.
The report also revealed how top players performed in the market. In contrast, the numbers revealed what type of wearable devices are selling well. Apple, of course, leads the race. And Chinese companies Huawei and Xioami follow not far from behind.
