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After its launch in 2015, the Apple Watch quickly accelerated to become the market leader in wristwear shipments. According to Strategy Analytics, Apple shipped 30.7 million Apple Watches in 2019, compared to the 21.1 million units exported globally by the entire Swiss watch industry. This represented a 46% volume advantage for Apple in that year alone. The Apple Watch’s rise corresponded with growing consumer demand for integrated health tracking, mobile connectivity, and ecosystem compatibility, particularly among younger, tech-oriented demographics.
Apple’s success was built on a combination of careful strategy and product versatility. Rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all approach, the company released multiple variants to appeal to different audiences: the affordable Apple Watch SE for casual users, the standard Series models for mainstream consumers, and the rugged Apple Watch Ultra targeting athletes and adventurers. This multi-tiered product philosophy mirrored Apple’s iPhone strategy and worked just as effectively.
Integration into the wider Apple ecosystem further cemented the Watch's role in daily life. Seamless pairing with the iPhone, AirPods, and Mac made it feel indispensable to those already immersed in Apple’s world. Features like Apple Pay, Siri voice commands, and hands-free notifications gave it an edge that no traditional timepiece could match. For some users, the Apple Watch even began replacing their iPhone during certain activities, from workouts to grocery shopping.
However, despite Apple’s long-standing dominance in the smartwatch sector, signs of market maturity and competitive pressure have become increasingly visible. According to data from Counterpoint Research, Apple’s global market share declined from approximately 25% in 2023 to 22.5% in 2024, making it the only brand among the top five smartwatch vendors to lose share year-over-year. Shipments fell sharply from 43 million units in 2022 to 34 million in 2024, representing a 19% decline in deliveries over that period. Nonetheless, Apple retained the leading position in the global market, followed by Huawei (13%), Samsung (9%), Xiaomi (8%), and Imoo (6%), the latter of which has seen strong growth primarily in Asian markets. This shift reflects increasing competition from lower-cost and feature-diverse alternatives, particularly in emerging economies.
The slowdown cannot be pinned solely on competition. Over the past few product cycles, critics and consumers alike have noted a lack of groundbreaking hardware innovations. New models typically offer modest speed boosts, slightly better sensors, and minor tweaks in design, all appreciated but rarely game changing. Battery life, a sore spot since the beginning, remains capped at roughly 18 hours, forcing daily recharges. In a world increasingly dominated by longevity and sustainability, this is a noticeable weakness.
Even though Apple has maintained a loyal user base, with surveys showing that over 90% of Apple Watch owners plan to stick with Apple for their next smartwatch, the broader industry trend is harder to ignore. The watch’s early years were marked by explosive growth and cultural momentum. Today, it feels more like a mature, reliable appliance: trusted, refined, but no longer thrilling.
Still, one cannot overlook the Apple Watch’s enduring utility. For millions of users, it has become an invisible part of daily life, waking them up, reminding them to move, alerting them to calls, helping them pay, and guiding them home. Its value is most keenly felt not in flashy keynote moments, but in quiet routines and emergencies.
Financially, however, the Apple Watch continues to be a pillar within the company’s broader wearables strategy. The “Wearables, Home and Accessories” category, which includes the watch, AirPods, and HomePod, generated approximately $40 billion in revenue in 2024, accounting for roughly 10% of Apple’s total income. Independent analysts estimate that the watch contributes around $11–13 billion of that figure, making it not just a strategic accessory but a key part of Apple’s recurring revenue model, especially when bundled with Apple Fitness+ and HealthKit integrations.
Looking ahead, Apple appears to be prioritising software evolution over hardware reinvention. The announcement of Apple Intelligence, its generative AI initiative, suggests a watch that will offer not just passive data collection but real-time interpretation and adaptive functionality. Early use cases under development include stress-level detection via heart-rate variability, mood tracking using voice tone analysis, and contextual suggestion systems for scheduling and fitness.
At the industry level, this aligns with a broader trend toward invisible computing, wearable technologies that blend seamlessly into everyday life. Concepts such as modular wristbands, textile-integrated sensors, and biometric patches are in development by multiple Original Equipment Manufacturers and startups. Apple, known for shaping rather than following hardware trends, may eventually pivot the watch into a broader platform, one that prioritises ambient, frictionless interaction over visible screen time.