With each passing financial quarter, Apple continues to be projected at the top of smartwatch sales. But, according to a new report from Counterpoint Research, it may not be for the reasons you would expect.
The firm indicates that the Apple Watch Series 1 was the most shipped device in Q2 2018, with both the Fitbit Versa and Amazfit Bip performing better than Apple’s flagship watch – the Apple Watch Series 3 – in the period running from 1 April – 30 June.
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The report also notes that Apple held the lion’s share of the overall market in Q2, accounting for 41% of total sales, though the firm hasn’t revealed any specific figures regarding just how many units of the different models were shipped.
Interestingly, this jives somewhat with a previous report we’ve seen from Canalys, who suggested the Series 3 had proved popular and helped Apple to ship 3.5 million units during the Q2 – with 60% of those in Asia being the LTE variant. Again, there’s no numbers from Counterpoint, but it does highlight in the report that nine out of ten devices sold in the quarter were, in fact, the Series 1.
As we always point out with quarterly sales reports, it’s best to take any findings with a pinch of salt. There’s simply no way to know for sure, since Apple itself doesn’t give away its official sales numbers (lumping the Apple Watch figures in with its Beats headphones and AirPods), but all the hints from CEO Tim Cook do suggest that the Series 3 has sold sold extremely well.
And even if the Apple Watch Series 1 was truly the driving force behind Apple’s most recent quarterly success (and there’s a legitimate chance this is accurate, considering its cheaper price), expect things to change over the latter half of 2018. The company is set to reveal the Apple Watch Series 4 on 12 September, and we don’t yet know if the Series 1 will be retained, or indeed the Series 3.
