It's been nearly 1.5 years since Apple announced their own Smartwatch, the Apple Watch. While sales have been good at the start, it has been discouraging in the past year and nothing with a downward forecast all the way till 2017. Recently, Fitbit, an activity tracker acquired the most funded smartwatch maker on Kickstarter, Pebble to lay off the team and shut the product down!
So not all acquisitions end with a happy ending.
So not all acquisitions end with a happy ending.
This sounds grim, but in my personal opinion, the future smartwatches have been grim since day because, if you take a top down approach on the behaviour of people wearing watches:
1. Smartwatches, would only be worn, by geeks and tech enthusiasts, mainly driven by Apple users. Apple smartphone market share 12.5% in the world.(https://www.statista.com/statistics/271496/global-market-share-held-by-smartphone-vendors-since-4th-quarter-2009/)
2. Out of 10 of my friends, only 2 wear a conventional watch such as a G-shock.
3. Those who wear a luxury watch, won't replace a Rolex with a plastic watch.
4. A watch is a symbol and accessory for a successful man, or a man who appreciates a good timepiece. I overheard a joke once, 'don't propose to me with a diamond ring, propose with a timepiece instead.'
This is because a timepiece appreciates in value over time, while a smartwatch depreciates because it's a gadget.
4. A watch is a symbol and accessory for a successful man, or a man who appreciates a good timepiece. I overheard a joke once, 'don't propose to me with a diamond ring, propose with a timepiece instead.'
This is because a timepiece appreciates in value over time, while a smartwatch depreciates because it's a gadget.
Now, if you take a top down approach, filter from 1 down to 4, the market size of smartwatches isn't big.
A smartwatch can do many things such as monitor your heartbeat, your footsteps, let's see a preview message/caller, receive notifications with your app and many more. While it does many things, its main functions are to receive notifications, check the time and monitor your heartbeat and footsteps. Smartwatch app downloads haven't been fantastic, even AppAnnie doesn't have any tracking for Apple watch Apps.
You might say that there has been no killer application on the smartwatch to drive users, I think it's because a watch, needs to stay as a watch to tell the time.
Smartwatch manufacturers were hoping it becomes the next big thing, I highly doubt it but there might be a future in activity trackers.
Smartwatch manufacturers were hoping it becomes the next big thing, I highly doubt it but there might be a future in activity trackers.
So, is there a future for smartwatches, maybe if the battery life is improved dramatically (up to 3 or 4 months at least). Still, I just look at my Mi Band 2 for the time.
