While the media frenzy over smart watches appears to be fading, the fact remains that these are popular devices. One source estimates that Apple has sold more than 5 million Apple Watches so far. And it appears that the demand will continue to grow.
Parks Associates has released results of a study showing growing adoption of smart watches in the U.S. They estimate that 4 percent of U.S. households with broadband Internet service had at least one smart watch at the start of 2014. By the end of 2015, that number had nearly doubled to 7 percent. The company forecasts that 10 percent plan to buy a smart watch by the middle of 2016. According to Harry Wang, Director of Health and Mobile Product Research at Parks, “the smart watch has significant connected health applications.” This could be part of the explanation why households with children are more likely to get a smart watch. By the end of 2015, the market penetration for this group stood at 11 percent, with 16 percent planning to buy by mid-2016.
Smart watches still have a long way to go to prove the accuracy of the health data that they collect, but as their capabilities improve, interest in this segment is likely to continue to grow. The wrist watch remains a familiar and convenient form factor, and if it can provide useful information to guide health-related choices, it could become a common accessory.
