According to a report by Strategy Analytics (a global, independent research and consulting firm) Apple has surpassed Fitbit to become the world’s top wearable vendor.
Strategy Analytics‘ latest research shows that global wearables shipment reached 22 million units during the first quarter of 2017. Apple captured 16 percent market share while Xiaomi followed closely with 15 percent market share.
The report indicates that wearable sales have increased by 21 percent, up from 18.2 percent in Q1 2016. The report indicates that stronger demand for new smartwatch models in North America, Western Europe and Asia drove the uptick.
Apple shipped 3.5 million wearables worldwide during the said period, rising 59 percent annually from 2.2 million units in Q1 2016. According to the report, “the new Apple Watch Series 2 is selling relatively well in the US, UK and elsewhere, due to enhanced styling, intensive marketing and a good retail presence.”
Xiaomi on the other hand shipped 3.4 million wearables in Q1 2017. Despite this impressive numbers, the report indicates that demand for its popular Mi Band fitness range was broadly flat across its core markets of Asia.
Fitbit shipped 2.9 million wearables worldwide during the same period, which was a 36 percent drop annually from 4.5 million in Q1 2016. “Fitbit has lost its wearables leadership to Apple, due to slowing demand for its fitness bands and a late entry to the emerging smartwatch market” indicates the report. “Fitbit’s shipments, revenue, pricing and profit are all shrinking at the moment and the company has a major fight on its hands to recover this year.”
The full report, Global Wearables Vendor Market Share by Region: Q1 2017, is published by the Strategy Analytics Wearable Device Ecosystems (WDE) service.
