Budget smartwatch revolution causes shipment surge in India
Crazy smartwatch growth – but not from brands you'd expect
It’s easy to get blinded by the battle for smartwatch dominance in Western markets – but an interesting report by IDC has shown the real effect of the proliferation of affordable smartwatches.
Demand in India has surged, with a staggering 151.3% year-on-year growth in smartwatch shipments.
We’ve seen the affordable end of the market get crowded in the past couple of years – with the likes of Amazfit, Redmi, Realme, Honor, and Huawei all launching devices at price points from just $50 - $200.
But the real winners in India are brands you might not have heard of.
The big winner has been BoAt, which dominates the Indian market. It has a huge range of smartwatches, that all retain for RS3,000 or less – which is around just $30.
It leads Noise (another unfamiliar name to the Western wearables market), which also provides a huge range of smartwatches between RS7,000 and RS2,000.
Then come some household names, with OnePlus gaining ground (83% up) in the last year – and Samsung also holds a small (2.6%) but significant market share.
IDC classifies these leaders as basic smartwatches, and it appears there’s a huge appetite for these in developing markets.
But there has been a side effect.
The market for fitness trackers in India has been wiped out, with a 73.2% reduction year-on-year.
With basic smartwatches offering most of the same features as fitness bands, it’s not surprising.
But it remains to be seen whether more affordable advanced smartwatches can gain a foothold in developing markets.
