Wearables experiencing a ‘challenging period’ as sales drop

Wearables experienced a sales drop for the second quarter of 2022, according to new data from market research company IDC.

Fresh information from the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker suggests that wearables had a sales drop of 6.9% year on year to just 107.4 million devices in Q2 of 2022. As the related IDC news release notes, this marks “another challenging period” for wearables.

If there was ever anything so dramatic as a wearables bubble, there’s evidence of at least a partial deflation going on. The IDC cites the usual reasons for any depressed market these days – inflation and recession fears – but also mentions a reaction to “the hyper growth that the wearables market has experienced in the last two years”.

In other words, the wearables market is experiencing a predictable slump after many found themselves with large chunks of disposable income to burn during lockdown.

Four of the top five wearables brands have apparently experienced year on year declines during the period. As the report notes, it’s unfortunate for the likes of Apple and Google, who are both in the midst of launching new premium wearables to the market.

Another factor will be sorely familiar to most people from outside the US in the strength of the dollar. While Apple announced that the Apple Watch Series 8 price was remaining the same at its recent launch event, that only applied to its home market. Here in the UK, for example, it costs £50 more than the Apple Watch Series 7.

It’s not all doom and gloom for the wearables market, however. The report predicts that growth will return in 2023 thanks to “new buyers in emerging markets and replacements in mature markets.”