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Apple Watch tops smartwatch market

Staff Writer
By Staff Writer, ITWeb
Johannesburg, 03 Feb 2017
Apple shipped a record 5.2 million smartwatches worldwide in Q4 2016.
Apple shipped a record 5.2 million smartwatches worldwide in Q4 2016.

The Apple Watch is still the most dominant smartwatch on the market, making up 63% of global market share in the fourth quarter of 2016.

This is according to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, which found global smartwatch shipments grew 1% annually to hit a record 8.2 million units in the quarter.

Samsung maintained second position during the quarter but makes up just less than 10% of global market share, down from 16% a year ago.

"The fourth quarter marked a return to growth for the smartwatch industry after two consecutive quarters of declining volumes," according to Neil Mawston, executive director at Strategy Analytics.

"Smartwatch growth is recovering slightly due to new product launches from giant Apple and stronger seasonal demand in major developed markets like the US and UK. Global smartwatch shipments grew 1% annually from 20.8 million in full-year 2015, to a record 21.1 million in 2016."

Director Cliff Raskind says Strategy Analytics estimates Apple shipped a record 5.2 million smartwatches worldwide in Q4 2016, rising a steady 2% annually from 5.1 million units in Q4 2015.

"Demand for Apple's new Watch Series 2 as a holiday-season gift in Western markets was surprisingly strong and it enabled Apple to clear a large backlog of smartwatch inventory during the quarter," says Raskind.

"We estimate Samsung shipped 0.8 million smartwatches worldwide in Q4 2016, dipping 38% annually from 1.3 million units in Q4 2015. Samsung introduced its new flagship Gear S3 model relatively late in the quarter and this impacted negatively its overall smartwatch performance.

"Combined, Apple and Samsung today account for an impressive three in four of all smartwatches shipped globally and they are a long way ahead of trailing rivals such as Garmin, Fitbit and Huawei," adds Steven Waltzer, industry analyst at Strategy Analytics.

Raskind says the smartwatch industry is showing tentative signs of recovery this year, but it is not fully out of the woods just yet and there remain several barriers to growth that must be addressed.

"Smartwatch vendors like Samsung need to launch more exciting or cheaper models, Apple must engage closer with mobile operators to stock or subsidise its popular watch portfolio, while component makers need to develop more accurate sensors for health and fitness tracking that consumers will trust and use more," he says.

Strategy Analytics is a global, independent research and consulting firm.

Global smartwatch vendor shipments (millions of units)

Q4 '15

2015

Q4 '16

2016

Apple

5.1

13.6

5.2

11.6

Samsung

1.3

2.7

0.8

2.4

Others

1.7

4.5

2.2

7.1

Total

8.1

20.8

8.2

21.1

Global smartwatch vendor market share %

Q4 '15

2015

Q4 '16

2016

Apple

63.0%

65.4%

63.4%

55.0%

Samsung

16.0%

13.0%

9.8%

11.4%

Others

21.0%

21.6%

26.8%

33.6%

Total

100.0%

100.0%

100.0%

100.0%

Total growth: year-over-year (%)

315.6%

352.2%

1.2%

1.4%

Table source: Strategy Analytics

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