Wearables See Major Jump as New Form Factors Emerge
Wearables are seeing a huge surge in growth. The total number of
smart wearable devices shipped in the first quarter of 2021 grew by
more than 34% over the same quarter in 2020.
That brought the worldwide total of wearables shipments to 104.6
million in the first three months of the year, up from 77.8 million
last year. This marks the first time shipments have topped 100
million in the first quarter, according to market research firm IDC.
Growth was driven in large part by a plethora of relatively minor
players in the wearables market, though the top manufacturers —
Apple and Samsung — saw significant growth as well.
Growth is also being fueled by the emergence of new form factors —
aside from just the usual watches and bands.
Said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC Mobile Device Trackers:
"Wearable patches, rings, and even audio glasses are starting to
differentiate themselves from the typical watches, bands, and
headphones by offering tech that is hidden yet functional. Audio
glasses from the likes of Bose, Amazon, Razer, and others are also
going a step further by allowing consumers to be more comfortable
with being always connected and are working towards consumer
acceptance of AR glasses further down the line."
Four of the top 5 brands saw at least double-digit growth in the
quarter. (
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Apple shipped 30.1 million units, up 19.8% year
over year;
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Samsung shipped 11.8 million units, up 35.7%;
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Xiaomi actually declined by 1.8% versus last
year, shipping 10.2 million units;
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Huawei shipped 8.6 million units, up 31.1%; and
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BoAt shipped 3 million units, up 326.8%.
Interestingly, the “other” manufacturers
accounted for 39.1% of the total market and increased unit shipments
by a whopping 55% over last year, for a total of 40.9 million units.
Further information can be found on IDC’s
Quarterly Wearables Tracker.