Highlights:
- India becomes the fastest growing smartwatch market in the world
- Earlier, North America and China were the top markets for smartwatches
- Overall smartwatch market rose by 27% compared to 2020 last year showing a full recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic
India has now become the world’s fastest growing market for smartwatch sellers in the second quarter of 2021. Going by the report of market research firm Counterpoint Research, though the country accounted for only 2% of the total market, its share increased to 6% Year-on-Year.
Anshika Jain, senior analyst at Counterpoint said, “The proliferation of sub-$100 affordable, feature-rich smartwatches from Chinese brands such as Xiaomi, realme and OPPO, and Indian brands such as boAt and Noise has been one of the key growth drivers”.
Earlier the top 2 markets for smartwatches were North America and China.
The overall smartwatch market grew by 27% compared to 2020, showing a full recovery from the slowdown induced by the pandemic of COVID-19. It is worth noting that almost every consumer electronics firm was hit by global lockdowns during the second quarter in 2020, so analysts had expected a rise this year anyway.
Also Read: Xiaomi Is Now Second Largest Smartphone Maker, Samsung Retains The Top Spot
Another senior analyst at Counterpoint, Sujeong Lim, said, “Looking at the success of Apple Watch, more OEMs have entered the smartwatch market with a relatively less advanced OS but comparable fitness and health-related features, and stylish designs at affordable prices targeting hundreds of millions of potential users globally”.
Unlike the smartphone market, the smartwatch space in India has been led by homegrown brands which include Noise and boAt. Going by the International Data Corporation’s (IDC’s) monthly wearables tracker, the two brands accounted for 28.6% and 26.9% of the Indian market, respectively, during the second quarter.
The earwear market, which consists of wireless and the true wireless headphones, was also led by boAt.
Market Analyst, client devices at IDC, Anisha Dumbre said, “Affordability has been the key for Indian brands, and these brands have been immensely successful in gaining a significant portion of the watch market with competitive pricing, aggressive marketing, and faster adoption of new features”.
The sub-$100 smartwatch segment grew by a “massive 547%” worldwide, according to Lim.
