Counterpoint Research released a report indicating that global smartwatch market shipments grew 12% year-over-year in 2022. The Global Smartwatch Model Tracker indicates that this was due to the strong growth seen in the first three quarters of the year.
However, shipments were down 2% year-on-year in Q4 2022 amid inflationary pressures and sluggish growth from India. This was the market’s first negative growth in eight quarters since the pandemic hit the world in 2020.
The most striking feature of the year was the price polarization in demand. Shipments in the mid-price range have declined, while shipments from segments above $400 and less than or equal to $100 increased by 129% and 34%, respectively, compared to the previous year.
In 2022, Apple’s shipments increased 17% year-over-year as the Apple Watch Series 8, Ultra and SE 2022 saw strong sales. In addition, annual shipments increased by 50 million for the first time, accounting for around 60% of global market revenue of smartwatches and further increasing the difference with the second Samsung.
Samsung’s annual shipments increased by about 12%, accounting for about 10% of global smartwatch shipments. However, revenue only increased by 0.5%, which appears to be largely due to a slight drop in ASP compared to the previous year, although sales of the newly launched Galaxy Watch 5 series this year have been positive.
Huawei’s market share was down 1% year-on-year due to the loss of traction from the Chinese smartwatch market to India in 2022. However, the brand’s revenue increased by 20% thanks to its relative focus on HLOS smartwatches, which invest in high-quality operating systems.
Noise and Fire Boltt, the Indian brands that supported the rapid growth of their home market, showed excellent growth in the global market. The two brands surpassed 5% of the global market share, ranking fourth and fifth respectively. Fitbit and Xiaomi’s rankings, meanwhile, have dropped to 10th and 11th in 2022 from 7th and 8th the year before.
In terms of regions, North America rebounded as the largest smartwatch market in Q4 2022. The region saw a significant increase in shipments driven by Apple’s strong Q4 performance. However, North America’s share declined slightly as India emerged as another core region in 2022.
India’s market more than doubled compared to 2021. It grew steadily till Q3 2022 but dropped by 36% QoQ in Q4. In the fourth quarter of 2022, shipments from China rebounded for the first time in the year as the Covid Zero policy was eased and Apple received a great response to its more diverse lineup compared to the previous series.
