appmarsh: Shipments of Wearables Surged 94.6% in 3Q19 [Report]

Monday, 9 December 2019

Shipments of Wearables Surged 94.6% in 3Q19 [Report]

Worldwide wearables shipments surged 94.6% in the third quarter of 2019, according to the latest IDC report. Most of the growth is being attributed to the hearables market which accounted for almost half of wearables.

"Hearables have become the new go-to product for the wearables market," pointed out Ramon T. Llamas, research director for IDC's Wearables Team. "This began with multiple vendors removing the headphone jack from their smartphones, driving the move toward wireless headphones. It continued with hearables incorporating additional features that either augment or expand the audio experience. Next, hearables have taken on multiple form factors – ranging from truly wireless to over-the-ear headphones – appealing to a broad base of earwear user preferences. Finally, prices have come down significantly, with some reaching below $20."

"The rise of smart assistants in the home and on the phone has led to an increased demand for wearables that have the ability to connect with these assistants," said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC Mobile Device Trackers. "With multiple form factors and the inclusion of smart assistants, the wearables market is well on its way to becoming a mass market device category rather than one that primarily caters to health and fitness."