In the global race for wearable devices in 2023, the adoption of wearable devices is rapidly increasing. While Apple, Xiaomi, Samsung, and Huawei are competing for the top spot, there is one Indian brand that has emerged as a strong contender. According to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker Q3 2023 report, boAt has secured the second place among the largest wearable device manufacturers in terms of volume. The report states that the shipments of wearable devices worldwide have seen a 2.6 percent increase during the third quarter of 2023, reaching a record high of 148.4 million units.
In Q3 2023, Apple’s shipments of 29.9 million units gave it a market share of 29.9 percent. Coming in second, Imagine Marketing captured 9.6 percent of the market with 14.3 million shipments. It is worth noting that Imagine Marketing India is the parent company of boAt, the audio and wearable brand. Interestingly, boAt was ranked as the fifth largest wearables brand globally in the second quarter of the previous year.
Brian Ma, an IDC technology industry analyst, highlighted boAt’s achievement in a tweet, stating that “India’s boAt (Imagine Marketing) reached #2 in global wearables in 3Q23. Note that this is an aggregate of all wearables, including earwear/TWS, where boAt is focused.”
Jitesh Ubarani, the research manager of mobility and consumer device trackers at IDC, stated that the rise of smaller and more stylish designs has been the main driving force behind the popularity of wearables. In a press release, Ubarani mentioned that new brands like Oura, Noise, Bot, Circular, and others are expected to introduce innovative form factors in the upcoming quarters, along with existing brands exploring new approaches to health tracking. These developments are also creating pressure for other companies to follow suit.
In terms of market rankings, Xiaomi secured the third position with 11.6 million shipments and a market share of 7.8 percent. Samsung followed in fourth place with 10.7 million shipments and a market share of 7.2 percent, while Huawei closed in fifth place with 8.5 million shipments and a market share of 5.7 percent.
The International Data Corporation (IDC), which stands for International Data Corporation, reported that the total volume of wearable device shipments exceeded expectations in the third quarter of both 2021 (142.1 million) and 2022 (144.6 million). According to IDC, this growth can be attributed to the significant increase in the number of smaller brands and emerging categories.
boAt, founded in 2014 by Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta, has gained immense popularity among Indian consumers in recent years. While the brand is primarily recognized for its earphones and audio products, it has also expanded its product range to include smartwatches and speakers.