Wearables To Wish For
A number of innovative new wearable products that launched in 2020 has helped to reignite interest in the wearables category, according to research firm IDC. Demand surged for wearables during the third quarter of the year, with shipments jumping 35.1 percent from the same period a year earlier, the firm reported. The two biggest contributors to wearables sales included smartwatches and hearables. (IDC defines hearables as earworn devices that include more functionality than just audio, such as access to a smart assistant.) Along with the debut of new wearables products, other factors driving the wearables boom included the shift of consumer spending to electronics as spending has waned on travel and dining out, IDC said. “The double-digit growth not only indicates strong demand, but also suggests that many people got a wearable device for the first time in both emerging and developed markets,” said Ramon T. Llamas, research director for Mobile Devices and AR/VR at IDC.
That means “a larger installed base of wearable device users going forward and a larger opportunity for device replacements in the years to come. And, as some wearers own multiple devices – like earwear and wristwear – the wearables market will enjoy sustained demand,” Llamas said.
What follows are our picks for the 10 hottest new wearable devices of 2020.
Get more of CRN’s 2020 tech year in review.
