Ongoing Demand Fuels a Strong Growth Trajectory for Wearable Devices in Q1 2019 with Wrist-Worn and Ear-Worn Leading the Market, According to IDC

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–lt;a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/IDCTracker?src=hash” target=”_blank”gt;#IDCTrackerlt;/agt;–Global shipments of wearable devices reached 49.6 million units during
the first quarter of 2019 (1Q19), up 55.2% from the previous year
according to data from the International Data Corporation (IDC)
Worldwide
Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker. While wrist-worn wearables
accounted for the majority of the market with 63.2% share, ear-worn
devices experienced the fastest growth (135.1% year over year) and
accounted for 34.6% of all wearables shipped.

“The elimination of headphone jacks and the increased usage of smart
assistants both inside and outside the home have been driving factors in
the growth of ear-worn wearables,” said Jitesh
Ubrani research manager for IDC Mobile
Device Trackers. “Looking ahead, this will become an increasingly
important category as major platform and device makers use ear-worn
devices as an on-ramp to entice consumers into an ecosystem of wearable
devices that complement the smartphone but also offer the ability to
leave the phone behind when necessary.”

“Shipments of wristwear – including watches and wristbands – grew 31.6%
year over year, and continue to dominate the wearables landscape,” said Ramon
T. Llamas, research director for Wearables.
“While the functionalities and capabilities have grown and changed, the
one common thread is the relentless focus on health and fitness. This
has resonated strongly with users and health insurance companies alike,
and new health and fitness insights attract a larger audience.”

Company Highlights

Apple maintained the leading position as the company offers three
product lines; Apple Watch, AirPods, and select Beats headphones. The
Apple Watch in particular has proven to be highly successful at
capturing unit share, but more importantly dollar share as the average
selling price (ASP) of these watches has increased from $426 in 1Q18 to
$455 in the latest quarter. Apple also seems to be employing a similar
strategy in its wireless headphone lineup as the latest AirPods are now
available with wireless charging and an increased ASP.

Xiaomi ranked second largely due to the popularity of its Mi
Band, which accounted for roughly five million shipments. While the
company remains focused on the Chinese market, recent investments in
Europe and the Middle East have been paying off as the company has
managed to gain share in those regions.

Huawei ended the quarter with market-beating growth of 282.2%.
The company’s success in the wearables market has been directly tied to
its success in smartphones as the two products are often bundled
together. However, with the recent uncertainty surrounding the company’s
future in smartphones, the outlook for the wearables side of the
business will also remain in flux.

Samsung, like Apple, also offers multiple product lines including
the Gear/Galaxy watches and bands, the Galaxy Buds, and select JBL
headphones. The launch of Samsung’s Galaxy S10 lineup helped the company
propel its wearables business through the use of bundling. Outside of
that, the JBL lineup of headphones also performed well thanks to the
wide variety of options at a low cost.

Fitbit rounded out the top 5 and maintained its positive growth
trajectory. The recent launch of the Versa Lite as well as the Inspire
series has helped the company reach new users as well as encouraged
upgrades, although this has come at the expense of a lower ASP. However,
the company remains highly focused on the healthcare/enterprise segment
and has continued to make strides in that market, surpassing many of its
competitors.

In addition to the table above, a graphic illustrating worldwide market
share for the top 5 wearables companies over the previous five quarters
is available by viewing this
press release on IDC.com.

About IDC Trackers
IDC
Tracker products provide accurate and timely market size, vendor
share, and forecasts for hundreds of technology markets from more than
100 countries around the globe. Using proprietary tools and research
processes, IDC’s Trackers are updated on a semiannual, quarterly, and
monthly basis. Tracker results are delivered to clients in user-friendly
excel deliverables and on-line query tools.

For more information about IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone
Tracker, please contact Kathy Nagamine at 650-350-6423 or knagamine@idc.com.

About IDC
International Data Corporation (IDC) is the
premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and
events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer
technology markets. With more than 1,100 analysts worldwide, IDC offers
global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry
opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC’s analysis and
insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment
community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their
key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is a wholly-owned
subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG),
the world’s leading media, data and marketing services company. To learn
more about IDC, please visit www.idc.com.
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Contacts

Ramon Llamas
rllamas@idc.com
508-935-4736

Jitesh Ubrani
jubrani@idc.com
416-873-0315

Michael Shirer
press@idc.com
508-935-4200