The International Data Corporation (IDC) on Monday said the wearable device market shrank for the second straight quarter as Indians bought fewer smartwatches, earphones and other gadgets.
Notably, for the first time since the second quarter of 2019, the average selling price (ASP) of wearables increased, rising 1.3 percent to $21.3 (around Rs 1,800) in Q3 2024.
The IDC data said the smartwatch shipments plummeted 44.8% YoY to 9.3 million units. Brands focused on clearing older stock through upfront discounts, particularly on e-commerce platforms.
As per the data, the ASP for smartwatches edged up by 1.4%, from $25.8 to $26.2. Despite a 39.9% drop in advanced smartwatch shipments, their share increased slightly from 2.4% to 2.6%.
The earwear segment fell by 7.5% YoY to 28.5 million units while the other earwear products, including wired and over-ear devices, declined 22% to 7.6 million units.
Among the top five brands, Boult and Realme were the only ones to record growth, with increases of 32.5 percent and 56.5 percent, respectively.
Noise (Nexxbase) maintained its lead in the smartwatch segment, while boAt (Imagine Marketing) focused on clearing inventory during the festive sales.
In the TWS market, Boult and Realme saw strong growth of 55% and 94.6%. Smartphone brand Nothing made significant strides, growing by 308.2% YoY in the overall wearables market.
The offline channel for earwear shipments grew by 9.4% YoY, increasing its share from 29.1% to 34.4% during the quarter, while online shipments fell by 14.4%.
In the smartwatch segment, online channels grew for a third consecutive quarter, reaching a 63.8% share in Q3.