Global wearable device shipments grew 85.2 percent in the second quarter of 2019, according to the International Data Corporation’s (IDC) ‘Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker.’
This tracker includes ‘Hearables,’ which the IDC classifies as a product that operates wirelessly, provide stereo sound, provide language translation, modify audio, track health/fitness and enable smart assistance.
Reportedly, hearables are the fastest-growing categories, with a bump of 46.9 percent in this during this quarter.
Apple led the market capturing 50.2 percent share during this quarter. Apple’s new AirPods and Beats lineup helped the company grow 218.2 percent in this area compared to this time last year. Following Apple is Samsung thanks to its JBL brand and the Samsung Galaxy Buds.
In the third, fourth and fifth places are Xiaomi, Bose and ReSound, the parent company of Jabra.
“The growing popularity of the hearables segment is forcing existing brands to reconsider past designs when launching new products, as evident in Samsung’s popular Galaxy Buds, while also attracting new brands to market,” said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC Mobile Device Trackers, in the report.
“And though it’s still early days, the market is showing signs of emerging subsegments such as hearables dedicated to sports from the likes of Jabra, premium hearables from companies such as Bose, and ones dedicated to hearing loss such as those from Nuheara.”
Source: IDC