Q3 Wearable Shipments: Fitbit (22%), Apple (19%), And Xiaomi (17%) Lead Pack

According to a new report from IDC, market share in wearable device shipments for Q3 2015 remained largely unchanged with the top four (Fitbit, Apple, Xiaomi, and Garmin) holding on to their leadership positions.  Total shipment volume for the quarter came to 21.2 million units, up 197.6% from the 7.1 million units shipped in Q3 2014.  The table below breaks down the details of the shipments and ranks the leaders by market share.

The data provides a number of insights into the corporate wellness market so we thought we would talk about some of them below.

Fitbit Continues Their Dominance

“Fitbit relied on its popular Fitbit Charge and Fitbit Surge models to maintain its leadership in the worldwide wearables market, and also saw continued growth within the Asia/Pacific and Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) markets.  Equally noteworthy has been its fast-growing corporate wellness strategy during the quarter, which added North American retailer Target and its order of 335,000 fitness trackers for its employees.  Target joins Bank of America, Time Warner, and more than 70 other Fortune 500 companies to deploy Fitbit devices to its employees.”

Apple Watch Sport Model Drives Sales

“Apple posted a slight increase from the previous quarter, mostly the result of additional markets and channels coming on line.  End-user attention has been going toward its entry-level and least expensive Sport line, to which Apple responded by introducing gold and rose gold models.  In addition, Apple released watchOS 2, bringing native third-party applications to the device.”

Xiaomi: The Dark Horse Of The Wearables Market

This may come as a surprise unless you live in China, where 97% of Xiaomi’s wearable gadgets, like the Mi Band, are shipped, but the company has actually ranked in the top three since the beginning of this year.  Adding to Xiaomi’s selection is its Mi Band Pulse, which added real-time heart rate monitoring and was released on Singles Day (November 11) in China.  If Xiaomi can successfully market its solution in western markets, its low price point may threaten Fitbit’s leadership position in the corporate wellness market.

No Company Made Up More Than 25% of Q3 2015 Market Share

Despite their huge success, none of the top producers made up more than 25% of Q3 2015 market share, which makes it challenging for a corporate wellness program to rely on the adoption of a single device to promote consumerism within their company.  Wearables are becoming more popular, but employees are using different devices to track their health.  Even if an employer is able to purchase devices, employees will want to use their own.  Try convincing an Apple Watch user to give his or her device up for a Fitbit Flex that their company bought them.

This challenge is why Wellable encourages the implementation of a bring your own device (BYOD) strategy for wellness.  A BYOD strategy for wellness allows employers to embrace all forms of wellness technologies, including devices and apps that are not Fitbit, Apple Watch, or Xiaomi.  It will enable consumer choice and result in lower costs for your program.  Download our free white paper for more information on BYOD for wellness.