Xiaomi Tops Q3 Global Wearable Shipments

According to International Data Corporation’s (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker, global shipments for wearable devices reached 32 million units in the third quarter of 2018, a rise of 21.7 percent from the same period last year.

Among the brands listed, Xiaomi topped the list with a 21.5 percent market share thanks to the success of its Mi Band 3 not only in China, but also in overseas markets such as India. Its domestic sales only accounted for 61 percent, a sharp decline from the typical 80 percent, as its presence in other markets such as India, Europe, and the Middle East & Africa continues to grow.

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Apple, which launched its Series 4 Watch towards the end of the third quarter, came in second with 13.1 percent in the global wearable segment. It was followed by Fitbit, with the release of a few new products including the Versa, Charge 3, and the Ace. Huawei and Samsung came close in shipment volumes and was ranked fourth and fifth on the list.

Geographically, the growing demand in Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) markets has boosted the sales, which accounted for more than half of all of the global shipments, growing 21.4 percent from previous years. The United States, the second largest market, by contrast witnessed a year-on-year decline of 0.4 percent.

“Many of the new basic wearables include features like notifications or simple app integrations that bleed into the smartwatch territory. This has helped satiate consumer demand for more capable devices while also maintaining average selling prices in a market that faces plenty of downward pressure from low-cost vendors and declining smartwatch prices,” said Jitesh Ubrani, a senior research analyst for IDC Mobile Device Trackers.