According to a new analysis by International Data Corporation, domestic companies—including Noise—led the shipping share as the Indian wearables industry experienced 65.8% growth on an annual basis (YoY) in the first half of 2022 (1H22) (IDC). According to the market research company, 38 million units of wearables, including wristbands (or fitness bands), smartwatches, and earwear, were shipped to the Indian market in the first half of this year (January to June) (TWS earphones). Shipments of TWS earbuds were led by Boat, and those of smartwatches by Noise.
Out of the 38 million units, 23.9 million wearable devices were shipped in the second quarter of 2022 (April–June), expanding by 113% YoY, according to IDC's India Monthly Wearable Device Tracker. In addition to affordability, which was a key growth driver, fresh launches, discounts, and marketing helped to support shipments in the Indian market. In 2Q22, there was a 7.2 percent YoY fall in the overall average selling price (ASP).
"Brands continue to compete by bringing down price points, which allowed for a wholesome increase in 1H22. In addition to being affordable, capabilities like Bluetooth calling, larger screen sizes, and AMOLED displays that were previously only accessible at mid- to high-price points are now being offered at lower price points. Both first-time users and upgraders are being drawn in by this, according to Upasana Joshi, Research Manager, Client Devices, IDC India.
With shipments exceeding 6.4 million units and achieving a growth of 298.4% YoY in 2Q22, IDC reports that Watch-based wearables are still the fastest-growing category. With a market share of 95.2%, basic watches led in 2Q22, growing by 306.4% yearly. Weaker demand caused the growth of wristbands to drop by 63.0 percent YoY. With TWS earbuds now making up half of the ear wear shipments, "Hearables accounted for 72.6 percent of the overall wearables category."
Boat led with a 34.3 percent market share in 2Q22 thanks to its emphasis on ear wear device expansion, according to corporate highlights. With a market share of 11.5 percent, Noise took second place, and in the second quarter of 2012, with a share of 28.5 percent, it reclaimed the top spot in the wearables market for watches. By concentrating significantly on the ear wear area, OnePlus came in third in the total wearable category. Fire-Boltt and Realme occupied the fourth and fifth positions, respectively.
It is a happy time for us once more as we maintain our leadership in the watch-based wearables category and rise to the position of No. 1 smartwatch player in the market with a 28.5 percent share. We are thrilled to have remained loyal to our grasp of the pulse of the country. It is evidence of the consumers' trust in the brand. Amit Khatri, Noise's co-founder, stated in a statement that the company would "continue to strengthen our leadership in the sector and continuing contributing to the burgeoning ecosystem."
According to Navkendar Singh, Associate Vice President, Devices Research, IDC India, South Asia & ANZ, the aspirational customers in smaller cities and towns helped drive wearables demand outside of urban centres. Consumers are "ready to try and invest on these devices as they hunt for new designs and a greater feature set in a device complementing their smartphone," Singh continued. In 2022, IDC predicts record shipments of over 90 million.
