The popularity of smartwatches is somehow in waves. At first they are very popular, then no one needs them, and after a while there are queues for them again. I have never been able to explain such fluctuations in demand. There is a slight seasonality in this matter, but it is not so important and does not so much affect the overall demand for watches. Most likely, this is not related to other phenomena and just fluctuates regularly. Now a well-known analytical agency has issued us a new report, which clearly shows which manufacturers of smartwatches are in chocolate, and which … well, you get the idea. This study is interesting because it provides insight into this specific market from a perspective that few people have thought about.
Smartwatches are convenient, but which one is more convenient than the rest?
Smartwatch market research
The agency I'm talking about is called Counterpoint Research, and it is they who have published a new report on the top smartwatch manufacturers by revenue. At first I didn’t want to write about it, but then I discussed the news with several people and realized that they didn’t even know about the state of affairs in the smartwatch market, recalling those brands that are always heard. Among them were Apple, Xiaomi, Huawei, Samsung, FitBit, Amazfit and others, but everything turned out differently. Nobody guessed the top three.
Probably, few will be surprised that at the top of the mountain of smart watch manufacturers is Apple with her Apple Watch. The company deservedly occupies a leading position, both in the number of watches sold and in how much it earned from them in the first half of 2020. Over the year, its position only strengthened and now instead of 43.2%, it occupies 51.4% of sales.
Apple Watches are outselling other smartwatches.
Sales of smartwatches are certainly lower this year than they could have been due to supply chain and point-of-sale difficulties. At the same time, users have become less interested in this gadget, in contrast to smartphones. Where smartphones showed a drop, smartwatches, on the contrary, were bought much more often than before. After the first quarter, experts explained this by the desire of people to take better care of their health. As a result, many manufacturers increased their sales, but if it were not for the difficulties with production and delivery, the growth would have been even greater.
Best smartwatches
In the first quarter of last year, Samsung was confidently among the top three, selling 9.3% (second place) of smartwatches in the world, but now its position has noticeably shaken and it stopped at 7.2%, occupying only fourth place. But who removed her from the second position really surprised many.
The second place in terms of revenue in the first half of 2020 is occupied by Garmin, which rose in percentage of sales over the year from 8.9% to 9.4%. The growth is not so impressive, but it is, although many do not think about watches of this brand at all.
Smart watch sales summary chart.
Most of all the growth was recorded in Huawei. Last year it sold only 5.5% of smartwatches, and this year it was already 8.3%. Most likely, this growth is largely due to the great popularity of the brand in the home market in China. Immediately after the situation with the coronavirus in this country was taken under control, people began to frantically spend money and buy equipment. That is why for two quarters in a row, contrary to all forecasts Huawei, it has been at the top of the ranking of smartphone manufacturers.
So, if you rank the smartwatch by market share in Q2 2020, you get the following result:
- Apple – 51.4%
- Garmin – 9.4%
- Huawei – 8.3%
- Samsung -7.2%
- Xiaomi – 5.1%
- Amazfit – 2.4%
- FitBit – 2.4%
- Fossil – 2.1%
- Others – 11.8%
It turns out that all other manufacturers combined did not make it to Apple, and if we leave out the category “others”, then companies not from the top three in total earn a little more than the second and third places in total.
Based on the above data, we can conclude that it was Huawei and Apple that made a big leap forward and almost only together brought an increase in revenue growth from the smart watch market, which has recently amounted to 20% compared to the same period last year. It is also interesting how the top five best-selling watches look in the first half of this year.
Best Selling Smart Watches
- Apple Watch Series 5
- Apple Watch Series 3 (apparently due to price)
- Huawei Watch GT2
- Samsung Galaxy Watch 2
- Imoo Z3 4G
Strange, isn't it? In Apple everything is logical – two models in the first two positions. K Huawei no questions either. Samsung is also a stretch, but everything is clear. The question is, where is Garmin in this circuit. It turns out that they are taken not because of any particular successful model, but in general because people like them.
The new smartwatch should once again lead Samsung to the forefront of the industry.
Most likely, in the next report, Samsung will again return to the top three, as it released a new, albeit quite expensive, watch earlier this month. If they sell well, the rating will change again. And in the fall, they should show the new Apple Watch 6, which may turn out to be even cooler than Apple Watch Series 5, and give the company even greater growth.
I wonder what it would be like if Apple Watch could be used with any phone, not just iPhone. So far, it turns out that users Android hardly buy smartwatches, if Apple with their approximately one fifth of the market share and “exclusive” watches have occupied more than half of the smartwatches market.