What you need to know
- Canalys data says Apple Watch has sizable lead in wearables market in North America.
- Apple Watch sits at 37.9% market share compared to Fitbit's 24.1%.
- Canalys attributes Apple Watch popularity to features and price.
The Apple Watch has quickly become the most popular wearable in North America, and new data from Canalys underlines just how popular the smart watch is.
According to data provided by the research firm, the Apple Watch was the top wearable in North America as of Q2 2019—and it isn't close. Apple's wearable currently has 37.9% market share, whereas Fitbit, Apple's closet rival, has 24.1%. Samsung sits at 10.6%.
The wearable market as a whole continues to grow as devices offer more features at affordable prices.
Canalys Research Analyst Vincent Thielke said Apple's focus on health has propelled the Apple Watch into a commanding lead.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to challenge Apple, which has been laying robust groundwork for cellular-connected devices. Apple is poised to reinforce its leading position by including aggregated health data, which can reveal new trends and insights, both for consumers and the broader healthcare ecosystem.
Wearables has become an increasingly important part of Apple over the past few years. During its Q3 2019 earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that when combining its services, wearables, home, and accessories divisions, they approach the size of a Fortune 50 company.
The data from Canalys further reinforces the fact that when it comes to wearables, the Apple Watch is clearly the device to beat.
