Smartwatch market grows 13%, logs double digit growth for the 5th quarter: Report

The demand for wearables is on a rise including smartwatches, wrist bands etc. even at the face of inflation.

The global smartwatch market in Q1 2022, logged 13% growth compared to the same period last year, according to a Counterpoint Research.

The report notes that despite concerns over economic slowdown and inflation the smartwatch shipments saw a spike registering a continued double-digit growth for the fifth consecutive quarter.

The overall wearable market is witnessing a decent growth. India shipped 13.9 million wearable devices including watches, wristbands, and ear-wears in the first quarter of 2022, up 20.1% year-on-year (YoY), reported International Data Corporation (IDC) on May 16. Watches were the fastest growing category with a 173% YoY growth. IDC attributes the growth to “new launches, discounts across channels, and aggressive marketing by brands."

According to Counterpoint, Apple remains the segment leader clocking a massive margin. “Apple accounted for more than a third of the total shipments last year, and it is further increasing its influence with a market share of 36% in the first quarter of this year,” said Sujeong Lim, Associate Director, Counterpoint Research.

Samsung grabs the second slot in smartwatches with a 46 per cent YoY increase in shipments. The company saw high growth in the Asia Pacific region, according to Counterpoint. The Galaxy 4 series did best in the APAC region.

Huawei remained flat in terms of shipments. Due to the weak position in the international market caused by GMS restrictions, the proportion of the Chinese market in the brand’s total shipments is gradually increasing.

Chinese brand, Xiaomi recorded its first top four position with 69% YoY growth and is breaking its shipment record every quarter as it rapidly penetrates globally. A large proportion of its sales come from the low-end segment under $100.

Popular fitness tracker Swiss brand Garmin ranked fifth in terms of shipments, but came in third in terms of revenues. It occupies the majority portion in the premium segment over $500.

Amarican brand Amazfit maintained its market share by occupying sixth place banking on the GTR 3 and GTS 3 series that launched in the fourth quarter of 2021. In the meantime, it has been working to expand outside of China and has had some success increasing its presence in Europe.

Popular fitness tracker Fitbit could not make into the top 5 position as it was unable to churn out any new models last year. According to Counterpoint, after the merger with Google, Fitbit seems to be going through an internal reorganisation.

Also, as a result the transition to Wear OS was delayed, giving way to slackened sales as compared to the same period last year.