In its "Competitive Landscape: Smartwatches and Smart Wristbands, Worldwide, 2014", Gartner, a leading research and advisory firm, said that the smartwatch is well on track to dominant the wristworn devices segment. With nine out of ten smartphone vendors having entered the market, the smartwatch segment is expected to grow on the back of improved design, enhance user experience and reduced prices.
Gartner said that the recent entry of Apple via its Apple Watch has sparked more excitement within the segment, where early entrants such as Sony and Samsung have been making steady progress in familiarizing the market with the smartwatch concept via their Sony Smartwatch and Samsung Gear models. Smartwatches, which provide some of the key features users are used to on their smartphones, for example voice commands, messaging and notification, camera and calling facility, are expected to start becoming an essential everyday device as features are enriched and more importantly, as prices start going down. Gartner said that by 2015, android-based smartwatches will average USD30 as Chinese OEMs and ODMs start penetrating local and global markets.
In its report, Gartner captured some of the challenges facing the smartwatch segment, the most critical being the drain caused by the smartwatch on the smartphone battery when they connect to each other. In addition, the smartwatch's battery itself needs recharging, and this adds to the number of devices that need to be recharged in every household, said Gartner.
Gartner's full report is available here.
"The Sony Smartwatch products and the Samsung Gear were early products that received much attention in the press but less enthusiasm from consumers due to their unclear value proposition and flawed design. In 2014 we are seeing a few more positive developments in terms of design and user experience (UX) and we therefore expect consumers to show more interest in these products in the second half of the year."
"We are currently seeing two opposing trends in the market with regards to form factor evolution. On the one hand there are vendors offering smart wrist-wearables in a familiar watch-like form factor. On the other hand in the past six to nine months, we have seen vendors launching products that resemble the early fitness wristbands, but come with displays that add significant functionality, including message and call alerts. These cross-over products are generally marketed as fitness devices, but with the strong slant toward the communication aspect."
- Annette Zimmermann, research director at Gartner.
"Products and offerings among Chinese vendors are similar to those of other vendors with a variety of form factors, operating systems, connectivity and sensor options. International expansion will start to accelerate in 2015 and in this context we expect several Chinese vendors to build on Android Wear in parallel to create more appeal. Certainly, they are faced with the same hurdles regarding design as all international vendors, but we also expect them to leverage one thing that has been to their constant advantage in the smartphone and tablet market: the cost advantage of the Chinese supply chain ecosystem. Chinese vendors might well be able to bring Android Wear based smartwatches to very affordable price points around $30 with decent designs and sensors — driving mass market adoption."
- Angela McIntyre, research director at Gartner
