Apple Maintains Supremacy in Wearables Market With 21.2 Million Units Shipped in Q1 2020

[MacRumors]

Apple maintained its consummate lead in the global wearable products market in the first quarter of this year, based on research conducted by IDC.

According to the report, Apple's lot grew by 13.3 million units, or 59.9 percent year on year, handing it a 23.7 percent share of the market.

Despite difficulties in the supply chain for Apple Watch, the company saw strong results thanks to its Beats and AirPods range (the report treats "hearables" as a subset of wearables).

IDC put the strong demand for AirPods and Beats down to the ongoing health crisis and the increasing number of people working from home who are in need of headphones.

"Consumers were clamouring for these sophisticated earpieces not only for the abilty to playback audio but also to help them increase productivity, as many of them were forced to work from home and sought ways to reduce surrounding noise while staying connected to their smartphones and smart assistants."

Xaiomi came second in place after Apple, with 10.1 million units shipped in the first quater of this year, amounting to 14 percent market share.

Samsung, Huawei, and Fitbit were the other major companies to make up the rest of the wearables market in the report. Global shipments of wearable devices grew 29.7 percent in Q1 2020 compared to Q1 2019, totalling 72.6 million units.

Production of Apple's rumored over-ear wireless headphones is already said to be underway, and Apple's virtual Worldwide Developers Conference in June could be a good opportunity to introduce them.

Apple is also expected to debut Powerbeats Pro in four new Colors soon, so there would appear to be plenty of reasons for Apple to be confident of maintaining its dominance in the wearables market going forward.

Article Link: Apple Maintains Supremacy in Wearables Market With 21.2 Million Units Shipped in Q1 2020

 

[Moi Ici]

When I first read the heading, I thought “Apple are making face masks (PPE) AND they‘re first already”?

That‘s where my head is...sadly

 

[The Game 161]

Not surprised apple are really killing it in this market.

 

[otternonsense]

Not surprised either. The Watch is in a league of its own, and the AirPods Pro struck gold as the best all-rounded pair available at the moment.

 

[djcerla]

Remember when buying Beats and releasing the Apple Watch were huge mistakes according to armchair CEOs?

And when AirPods were an embarrassing flop according to The Verge’s Nilay Patel?

It all began back in 2001 when Apple should have released a new server, not an overpriced music toy.

 

[Red Oak]

Revenue market share likely 50%+

Profit market share likely 75%+

Apple on a roll here

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

Incredible success story. I know we shouldn't be surprised, but a lot of people wrote Apple off even before the Watch was released, and Series 0 didn't help matters either.

But, they persisted and it's clearly paid off.

 

[totom_]

Remember when buying Beats and releasing the Apple Watch were huge mistakes according to armchair CEOs?

And when AirPods were an embarrassing flop according to The Verge’s Nilay Patel?

It all began back in 2001 when Apple should have released a new server, not an overpriced music toy.

I still think that buying beats is a huge mistake. Not for Apple, but for the buyer instead 🙃

 

[gnasher729]

Do they count Watch and AirPod in one category as wearable? Because that would be really ridiculous. Totally different and unrelated products.

 

[otternonsense]

Remember when buying Beats and releasing the Apple Watch were huge mistakes according to armchair CEOs?

And when AirPods were an embarrassing flop according to The Verge’s Nilay Patel?

It all began back in 2001 when Apple should have released a new server, not an overpriced music toy.

Taking criticism out of context is an armchair CEO comment too.

The first generation of Watch was a puzzling mess, and the first AirPods had people torn whether they're brilliant and svelte or gimmicky, perishable and unsightly.

As for Beats.. it's still a wonky teenage overpriced brand and a brand like Bowers & Wilkins may have made more sense for Apple. At least Steve's Apple, that is.
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Incredible success story. I know we shouldn't be surprised, but a lot of people wrote Apple off even before the Watch was released, and Series 0 didn't help matters either.

But, they persisted and it's clearly paid off.

They had to persist. It's the only new product category they've ever introduced since Steve's passing.

 

[DNichter]

Very impressive to see. I am curious to what comes next in this category. Either way, I am sure Apple will lead.

 

[I7guy]

Taking criticism out of context is an armchair CEO comment too.

True, but some criticisms against Apple making sweeping "suggestions" to change some business or business practice, I believe came with good intentions with a narrow point of view.

The first generation of Watch was a puzzling mess, and the first AirPods had people torn whether they're brilliant and svelte or gimmicky, perishable and unsightly.

As for Beats.. it's still a wonky teenage overpriced brand and a brand like Bowers & Wilkins may have made more sense for Apple. At least Steve's Apple, that is.

The first gen of many products are like that. PC Dos 1, Windows 1, iphone 1. Heck, iphone 1 didn't even have a cut and paste function.

As for Airpods, some believe they are still unsightly, and that may be, but still a success.

They had to persist. It's the only new product category they've ever introduced since Steve's passing.

What product category is that? Wearables? That's quite a broad stroke. Tim has introduced quite a few new products though.

 

[satchmo]

Taking criticism out of context is an armchair CEO comment too.

The first generation of Watch was a puzzling mess, and the first AirPods had people torn whether they're brilliant and svelte or gimmicky, perishable and unsightly.

As for Beats.. it's still a wonky teenage overpriced brand and a brand like Bowers & Wilkins may have made more sense for Apple. At least Steve's Apple, that is.
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They had to persist. It's the only new product category they've ever introduced since Steve's passing.

Exactly, Tim needed to hit a home run. He has, but it took him a good number of years to do so.
That $10K gold edition was just nuts. While it could still be fashionable, that wasn't enough and health and fitness is when it finally kicked into high gear.

 

[Kabeyun]

Do they count Watch and AirPod in one category as wearable? Because that would be really ridiculous. Totally different and unrelated products.

But you, like, wear them both. So maybe not so ridiculous. And if they release Apple Glass, that would be wearable too. Kudos to Apple for basically creating the wearables market (which, imo, began with the original wired earbuds for iPod, headphones which were, for the first time, publicly conspicuous, brilliant white, pretty cool, and promptly copied).

 

[incoherent_1]

Do they count Watch and AirPod in one category as wearable? Because that would be really ridiculous. Totally different and unrelated products.

I 100% agree with your sentiment that they are completely different product types, but although I can’t point to anything specific I feel like the “wearables” category label was created by Wall Street “analysts” and Apple is now following a standard categorization (albeit a silly one).

Would be interested to know if other forum members can shed some light on the question.

 

[Baymowe335]

But Samsung had better y/y growth so they are doing better than Apple, right Macrumors? 😂

Seriously though, Apple Wearables are in total domination mode.
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Do they count Watch and AirPod in one category as wearable? Because that would be really ridiculous. Totally different and unrelated products.

Yes, you wear them in your ears.
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Exactly, Tim needed to hit a home run. He has, but it took him a good number of years to do so.
That $10K gold edition was just nuts. While it could still be fashionable, that wasn't enough and health and fitness is when it finally kicked into high gear.

You do understand why Apple does stuff like a $10K watch and $700 wheels right? Hint, it’s not to generate revenue.

 

[Kabeyun]

I 100% agree with your sentiment that they are completely different product types, but although I can’t point to anything specific I feel like the “wearables” category label was created by Wall Street “analysts” and Apple is now following a standard categorization (albeit a silly one).

Would be interested to know if other forum members can shed some light on the question.

I do not believe this was created by Wall Street. It was created by Apple to, in my opinion, limit the detail of their specific product revenue reporting. The category is actually “wearables, home, and accessories” and its revenue is reported as a single number. The more products they can plausibly bundle into one category, the more individual product sales variances are buffered against one another.

 

[incoherent_1]

I do not believe this was created by Wall Street. It was created by Apple to, in my opinion, limit the detail of their specific product revenue reporting. The category is actually “wearables, home, and accessories” and its revenue is reported as a single number. The more products they can plausibly bundle into one category, the more individual product sales variances are buffered against one another.

If they wanted to hide sales numbers, then why report anything? They could just do what they do with iPhone and report profits only.

 

[otternonsense]

True, but some criticisms against Apple making sweeping "suggestions" to change some business or business practice, I believe came with good intentions with a narrow point of view.

Agree

The first gen of many products are like that. PC Dos 1, Windows 1, iphone 1. Heck, iphone 1 didn't even have a cut and paste function.

As for Airpods, some believe they are still unsightly, and that may be, but still a success.

Habit certainly kicked in, and I think the trimmed stem of the AirPods Pro was an improvement.

What product category is that? Wearables? That's quite a broad stroke. Tim has introduced quite a few new products though.

The smartwatch. It's technically 'wearable' but it's got potential that exceeds that of an activity tracking wristband, it's more of a mini iPhone on your wrist. They also made such a huge deal out of it in the first years, dedicating entire keynote sections to new watchbands etc. I'm not sure about other new product category intros, the rest are mainly iterations and improvements on an existing mould or product family. Then, there are the cloud/media consumption services but that's a different animal.

 

[BornAgainMac]

If only Apple would make an Apple Face Mask that integrations with iCloud and has a longer lasting battery and Siri support.

 

[jakeuten]

No surprise here. My Series 5 and AirPods Pro compliment my iPhone perfectly. Wouldn't want anything else in the market to pair with it.

 

[BvizioN]

Surprised anyone? Nope?
That’s what I thought.

 

[Kabeyun]

If they wanted to hide sales numbers, then why report anything? They could just do what they do with iPhone and report profits only.

When deciding whether or not to believe something, always test the converse question for plausibility. Why wouldn’t they disclose separate revenue numbers for every individual product? Do they not know them? Don’t bother to track them? Don’t think they’re internally important? None of these ideas comes close to passing the sniff test. Naturally they know them, and much more. They know how many of each model, size, color, and capacity of every iPhone they’ve ever sold. They don’t include those numbers in stockholder calls either. I think they’re trying to strike a balance between revenue guidance and hiding individual product data.

 

[szw-mapple fan]

Exactly, Tim needed to hit a home run. He has, but it took him a good number of years to do so.
That $10K gold edition was just nuts. While it could still be fashionable, that wasn't enough and health and fitness is when it finally kicked into high gear.

The 10k watches were there to get people talking, like the Mac Pro wheels. I think most of the gold watches were given out to celebrities for free.

 

[Shanghaichica]

Not surprised at all. Everywhere you go it’s Apple watches and AirPods.