Is the smart bracelet just a transitional product?

Estimated global shipments of wearable electronic fitness devices from 2013 to 2016 (million units)

Tencent Technology News (Liang Chen) On October 20, a Gartner data showed that people prefer smart watches to smart bracelets. Gartner predicts that in 2015, the shipment volume of watches will exceed that of bracelets for the first time, and this trend will continue after 2016.

The entire wearable device market received widespread attention after the Jawbone Up smart bracelet was launched in 2011. In the following years, with the promotion of technology by international mainstream manufacturers such as Qualcomm , Apple , Google , Samsung, Microsoft and Intel , and the participation of sportswear companies such as Nike, wearable device products are becoming increasingly mature, and segmentation in terms of price and function has emerged.

For example, smartwatches with a retail price of $149 or more often have activity tracking capabilities and are equipped with accelerometers and gyroscopes, just like smart wristbands with similar form factors. This makes the difference between the two types of products very limited. Although smartwatches are generally considered to be able to tell time and have a user interface for communication, some smart wristbands also have the ability to display and send text messages.

Gartner analyst Angela McIntyre said, "The trend of overlapping functions between smart bracelets and smart watches is likely to continue."

From the perspective of the overall development of smart hardware for fitness, in addition to smart bracelets and watches, Gartner divides other devices into five categories: other fitness monitors, chest strap heart rate monitors, and smart clothing. Since fitness wearable devices are used to track health conditions and are closely related to fitness activities, in the future, consumers can integrate the data of most wearable devices into a single account, use cognitive computing technology to analyze the data, and provide users with various useful insights.

Through the forecast of shipments in the next two years, Gartner believes that smart clothing products that are gradually leaving the testing stage have the greatest growth potential in the future. Currently, there are smart shirts launched on the market for professional athletes and coaches. In the next two years, their shipments will increase by about 259%.

However, due to the duplication of functions between smart watches and other products, the entire smart hardware market for fitness will experience a low point in 2015, but will rebound in 2016. The reason for the latter is that its diverse and universal designs, styles and the use of lower-cost displays will further help boost manufacturers' confidence in entering the market.

Regarding sales channels, Gartner predicts that 25% of products will be sold through non-retail channels between 2018 and 2020. Gyms, sporting goods suppliers, insurance providers, weight loss clinics or employers will become the main sales channels for such equipment. There may even be price subsidies or completely free products sold in combination with other products.

Thanks to technology, fitness monitors can be integrated into employee badges or identity bracelets that control access, while B2C companies can connect the use of wearable devices through rewards or gamification to maintain customer loyalty to their brand.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.