India’s smartwatch market saw a record growth of over 274 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in 2021 shipments, as demand for sub-$100 smartwatches grew more, according to the latest research from Counterpoint’s Internet of things (IoT) Service.

Further, with quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) growth of over 8 per cent in the fourth quarter 2021 and became the market’s biggest ever quarter, the Counterpoint Research’s recently published ‘Global Smartwatch Model Tracker’, said.

Around 80 brands are present in India’s smartwatch market and over ten brands entered the market in 2021, the report said, adding that 78 per cent of the shipment came from online channels, where Flipkart and Amazon contribute 48 per cent and 43 per cent, respectively.

Feature-packed products

“The smartwatch market is showing tremendous growth, which is attributed to increased health awareness, affordable prices, growth of new entrants, discount schemes and numerous launches of feature-packed products throughout the year. More than 86 per cent of the total shipments were driven by the under-₹5,000 price band, compared to 59 per cent in the previous year,” Anshika Jain, Senior Research Analyst, Counterpoint Technology Market Research (India) said.

Many of the features which were earlier present in the ₹3,000 – 5,000 price band smartwatches are now found in the ₹2,000–3,000 segment, like SPO2, blood pressure monitoring, voice assistance and larger display. Even features of premium smartwatches like ECG and Bluetooth calling, can be seen in smartwatches priced under ₹5,000, she said.

Fastest-growing brand

Noise was the fastest-growing brand among the global top nine brands and it was leading the growth of the Indian smartwatch market. It was was India’s number-one brand in 2021 and 2020.

“Noise is the number one Indian smartwatch brand and leads the growth of the local market. It captured the top position in 2021 due to its diverse product portfolio targeting the budget and mid segments, as well as strong partnerships with e-commerce players, financial institutions and celebrities,” Jain said.

Noise also focused on community building and slightly shifted its price base towards the lower side to make its smartwatches accessible to a larger group, a strategy that proved to be effective. All this resulted in Noise ranking third in terms of shipments after Apple and Samsung in the APAC region except China in 2021, she added.

One of the driving forces behind the global smartwatch market growth in 2021 was due to the expansion of the Indian market, the report said, adding that this market accounted for only three per cent of the global share in 2020. However, it grew four times in 2021 to raise its global market share close to 10 per cent.

After Noise, other brands to follow the rankings include boAT, Fire Bolt (another local company), Realme, Amazfit, Samsung and Apple, the report added.

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