Apple now has 100 million Apple Watch users to collect biometric data from

Apple has continued to lead the wearables market in 2021 with the Apple Watch, according to new data from Counterpoint Research. That’s even with a year-on-year shrinkage of their market share, down just over two percent from this time last year.

Overall, the market for wearables grew 27-percent over the last year, driven primarily by a 547-percent increase in sub-$100 smartwatches. The low-cost smartwatch market has exploded in India, with Chinese brands like OPPO, Xiaomi, and realme, and Indian brands like boAt and Noise all benefiting.

The analysts attribute this to the pandemic making people more “health-conscious” so they want to track their heart rate and SpO2 levels.

Closer to home, North America is still the largest market for smartwatches worldwide. Apple’s premium Apple Watch is king here, with over half of its 100 million users situated here. That’s almost 30-percent of iPhone users in North America who own an Apple Watch as well.

Senior Analyst Sujeong Lim says that the growth of the marketplace is still attributed to the Apple Watch, as more OEMs enter the market by copying the features that made Apple’s offering so attractive but at much lower price points. Those include stylish designs and fitness and health-related features.

We’ll have to see what trends the larger smartwatch market will embrace after the release of the Apple Watch Series 7 this fall. That’s rumored to be squared-off, like the current iPhones and iPad Pro models, and also to finally be able to use the Find My network.

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Joe Rice-Jones

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