The worldwide wearables market continued its upward trajectory in Q4 of 2017, showing growth for both the quarter and the full year, according to IDC, which noted that total shipment volumes reached new records.
Total volumes for the quarter reached 37.9 million units, up 7.7 percent from the 35.2 million units shipped in the prior-year quarter. For the full year, total wearable device shipments reached 115.4 million units, up 10.3 percent from 2016.
While the category did advance, 2017 saw hardly the same results as 2016. “The 10.3 percent year-over-year growth in 2017 is a marked decline from the 27.3 percent growth we saw in 2016,” said Ramon T. Llamas, IDC research director.
See: IDC Remains Bullish On Wearables
However, Llamas, caveated, “the slowdown is not due to a lack of interest — far from it. Instead, we saw numerous vendors, relying on older models, exit the market altogether. At the same time, the remaining vendors — including multiple start-ups — have not only replaced them, but with devices, features and services that have helped make wearables more integral in people’s lives. Going forward, the next generation of wearables will make the ones we saw as recently as 2016 look quaint.”
With that in mind, we’ve collected the newest fitness-focused trackers and wearables that will receive their time in the sun before they’re relegated to the back of the drawer.
