​Apple leads in smartwatch shipments, as Huawei shows its popularity

Smartwatches are continuing to grow even amid the on-going pandemic, and it’s Apple, Huawei and Samsung that are the key winners.

In the study by Counterpoint Research, Apple still maintains a smartwatch lead, nixing the charge from brands such as Huawei and Amazfit by extending its market share 2% to 28%.

The launch of the sub $300 Apple Watch SE has generated a new surge of interest in the Apple Watch. And with the Series 3 still at $199, it has now got something for most budgets.

Huawei is now the second biggest global shipper of smartwatches, and upped its market share, and upped its market share 33% year-on-year to 15%.

Samsung also upped its share to 10%. That’s up 2% on 2019. It might have been hoping for more traction with its new Galaxy Watch 3, but it commands a top price point.

The rest of the market is largely unchanged, with Fitbit (6%), Garmin (5%) both non-movers. Amazfit only managed a 1% increase, which is a surprise given the amount of smartwatches released by the company in 2020.

Fossil still figures in the running, but its share dips from 4% to 2% of global shipments.

Clearly, Huawei is becoming a force in China – with the Huawei Watch GT 2e and GT 2 Pro both providing great features and battery life all at a great price. And its 15% market share tallies with a report from Canalys back in June.

But it still shows that Apple is staying ahead of the competition, managing to head off the budget brigade with a range of offerings.

How that changes in 2021, with the likes of Xiaomi releasing smartwatches into the West, and Amazfit partnering with Zepp, remains to be seen.