Apple Continues to Lead Wearables Market, Shipping 29.4 Million Units in Q2 2020

[MacRumors]

Apple maintained its lead in the global wearables market in the second quarter of 2020, according to research conducted by IDC.

The market for wearable devices grew 14.1% overall during the second quarter of 2020, thanks to strong demand for "hearables," such as AirPods, and continued interest in health tracking metrics amid the global health crisis. The top vendors such as Apple, Huawei, and Xiaomi gained market share, while other vendors struggled to attract new customers. Fitbit notably declined by 29.2 percent.

Apple shipped 5.9 million more wearables in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same time last year; an increase of 25.3 percent. The company's market share of wearables grew from 31.1 percent to 34.2 percent. Huawei followed at a distant second place, shipping 18.5 million units less than Apple.

Hearables showed considerably stronger demand than smartwatches and fitness trackers, growing by 32.6 percent, and accounting for 60 percent of all wearables during the quarter. Apple led the sector again here, shipping 23.7 million AirPods and Beats devices in total, followed by Samsung and Xiaomi.

Apple is expected to launch new AirPods and Apple Watch Series 6 models in the immediate future. The upcoming products will likely help Apple maintain its dominant lead in the wearables market.

Article Link: Apple Continues to Lead Wearables Market, Shipping 29.4 Million Units in Q2 2020

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Apple: We are waiting for the new Apple Watch.

Ready to Pre-Order.

 

[Ds6778]

There is literally no competition for the Watch, Apple could not release a new watch for 3-4 years and it would still be number one. I tried the Galaxy Watch and it was terrible, inaccurate health data, shoddy hear rate monitor, almost no dev support since its Tizen, Bixby is laughable even for simple tasks, build quality is meh (chunky plastic), and the performance is passable but not near as fluid as WatchOS.

 

[Ds6778]

Apple: We are waiting for the new Apple Watch.

Ready to Pre-Order.

Silver stainless steel for me!

 

[alexhardaker]

Silver stainless steel for me!

I was looking at the current options available & I can’t decide what to go for (assuming the options are the same for series 6). There’s too many options

 

[WiseAJ]

Oh look a market where Apple actually is a monopoly leader. Can we start an antitrust lawsuit because they don't work with Androids?

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Silver stainless steel for me!

Mid-Night blue with Titanium casing for me

 

[Grohowiak]

Environmental disaster but whatever lol.

 

[newyorksole]

Oh look a market where Apple actually is a monopoly leader. Can we start an antitrust lawsuit because they don't work with Androids?

Right? Lmao like give me a break. All the lawsuit articles are exhausting.

Very excited for the new Apple Watch. Think I started upgrading annually when the Series 4 came out. Think I’ll do the same this year.

 

[m4mario]

Where are the "Apple Watch will doom" predictors now?

 

[now i see it]

Since AirPods are "wearables" then that means the wired ear pods that come with every iPhone (for now) are wearables too.
I wonder if they're including those crummy wired ear buds in the "Wearables" category. For every iPhone sold — a wired EarPod goes along for the ride

 

[PickUrPoison]

1) Apple just crushing it here. Almost 3 times the market share of second or third place (Huawei and Xiaomi) and a bigger market share than “other”...

2) 2.5 million units Fitbit? Yikes. And how many of those are the cheap wristband? Fitbit’s on deathwatch. Will they make it through 2020? 2021?

Is anyone surprised? With the Apple Watch knockoffs Versa 2 priced at $199 and Versa 3 at $299, why not just get the real thing instead?

I’m really not that familiar with their products but the market seems to have spoken. I wonder if Google goes through with the purchase. If so they’ll probably drive the final nail into fitbit’s coffin within a couple years with their typical product (mis)management.

 

[G5isAlive]

Silver stainless steel for me!

never understood the stainless steel crowd... but I tend to upgrade every year because the tech is still in that rapid rate of improvement phase. Never broke one of the cheaper sports models. is stainless steel that much better to wear? sincere question.

 

[G5isAlive]

Since AirPods are "wearables" then that means the wired ear pods that come with every iPhone (for now) are wearables too.
I wonder if they're including those crummy wired ear buds in the "Wearables" category. For every iPhone sold — a wired EarPod goes along for the ride

Well if they were including them (but me thinks not), then it would apply evenly across the field yes. Every android comes with crummy wired ear sets too yes? Hence why I doubt they are included.

 

[BornAgainMac]

never understood the stainless steel crowd... but I tend to upgrade every year because the tech is still in that rapid rate of improvement phase. Never broke one of the cheaper sports models. is stainless steel that much better to wear? sincere question.

I tried it with the first Apple Watch and I didn't see any difference other than a little heavier. Apple kinda markets it as a luxury item and use different materials vs better specs to attract the high end consumer market.

 

[Ds6778]

never understood the stainless steel crowd... but I tend to upgrade every year because the tech is still in that rapid rate of improvement phase. Never broke one of the cheaper sports models. is stainless steel that much better to wear? sincere question.

I like it because it looks better than aluminum. I pair mine with the Milanese loop and get compliments on it all the time. Also, the sapphire crystal is an added bonus. I never get a single scratch on my watch screen. From a purely functional standpoint, there isn't really a difference.

 

[Paultmaine]

I’ve got the 3rd edition, getting the new one on my xmas list ?? no competition ?

 

[alexhardaker]

I made the mistake of purchasing a Milanese loop because I’m now looking at getting the bigger screen size ☹️

 

[G5isAlive]

I like it because it looks better than aluminum. I pair mine with the Milanese loop and get compliments on it all the time. Also, the sapphire crystal is an added bonus. I never get a single scratch on my watch screen. From a purely functional standpoint, there isn't really a difference.

Thanks for the reply. I used to wear the Milanese loop but it always made my wrist sweat. I now sport a natural wood band from Epic and get a lot more comments, it looks cooler to me, and its oddly more comfortable.

I have heard the sapphire crystals were better, but over 6 years of wearing an Apple Watch I never got a scratch on the regular glass.. and I have banged into doors etc pretty hard. Phones used to be a problem for me getting scratched but I would have them in my pocket next to keys. Maybe I have just gotten lucky with the watch faces, or maybe its because I tend not to have sharp scratchy things near my wrist

 

[Apple_Robert]

One ring (I mean watch) to rule them all.

 

[drcre8tive]

Pixar should come out with an animated series called "The Wearables", featuring bumblingly cute little superheroes that you wear on your wrists... or maybe not.

 

[baruchsienna]

I really want the watchface as illustrated at the top of this article: where the colour cycles during the day and changes on the hour.

 

[tongxinshe]

There is literally no competition for the Watch, Apple could not release a new watch for 3-4 years and it would still be number one. I tried the Galaxy Watch and it was terrible, inaccurate health data, shoddy hear rate monitor, almost no dev support since its Tizen, Bixby is laughable even for simple tasks, build quality is meh (chunky plastic), and the performance is passable but not near as fluid as WatchOS.

That’s why it is surpassed by XiaoMi and Huawei. The latter two could be true threat to Apple’s current market position soon.

 

[CarlJ]

I was looking at the current options available & I can’t decide what to go for (assuming the options are the same for series 6). There’s too many options

Start with aluminum. Black or silver, whichever you like. If you’re gong to buy fancier bands, Apple is kinder to the silver-looking watches (e.g. most leather bands have silver hardware), but if you’re sticking with sport bands, lots of colors look nice with both light and dark watches.

If you’re buying your first, go aluminum, as the investment is a lot lower and you’re getting the same mechanism inside. If you don’t like it, less of a setback. If you like it immensely and want the next model next year, then you spent less on this years model. I bought the series 0 in black aluminum when it first came out, and wore it right up to the day my black series 5 arrived. Very happy with both (but the new one is so much faster, and the always on display changes everything)

 

[alexhardaker]

Start with aluminum. Black or silver, whichever you like. If you’re gong to buy fancier bands, Apple is kinder to the silver-looking watches (e.g. most leather bands have silver hardware), but if you’re sticking with sport bands, lots of colors look nice with both light and dark watches.

If you’re buying your first, go aluminum, as the investment is a lot lower and you’re getting the same mechanism inside. If you don’t like it, less of a setback. If you like it immensely and want the next model next year, then you spent less on this years model. I bought the series 0 in black aluminum when it first came out, and wore it right up to the day my black series 5 arrived. Very happy with both (but the new one is so much faster, and the always on display changes everything)

I currently have an aluminium (I’m in the UK) 38mm series 3. I’m doubting getting aluminium this time, as it scratches easily. I was also looking at getting the bigger watch, but I bought a Milanese loop to go with this one last year & it won’t fit (I got the watch at Christmas as a surprise - I was one of those that thought AWs were pointless). My current watch screen has a crack on the side of the screen, so you can see a bit of the internals, which is also why I’m looking at the more expensive sapphire crystal ones. It’s too much hassle getting this one repaired & selling it, though. The Milanese loop has scratches on the metal clip too ☹