"Global kids’ smartwatch shipments grew 8% year-on-year (YoY) in 2019, according to the latest research from Counterpoint’s IoT service.

Commenting on the competitive landscape in the market, Counterpoint Research Analyst, Satyajit Sinha, noted, China continues to dominate the global market for kids’ smartwatches accounting for more than three out of every five devices sold. It’s also Chinese brands such as Imoo and Huawei that lead in terms of vendor market share. These Chinese brands have further expanded to Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia. As a result of which the Asia Pacific region excluding China and India is the second-largest, with 11% of the global shipments.

Mr Sinha added further, Operators also consider this segment attractive; there are significant net additions by operators like China Mobile, Vodafone, Verizon, AIS Thailand and Maxis in Malaysia. All have added kids’ smartwatches to their portfolios to boost new connections and additional revenue streams.

Commenting on kids’ smartwatch application, Counterpoint Senior Analyst, Ethan Qi, added, Smartphones remain the best way to communicate. However, providing an expensive smartphone to a child is risky. The kids’ smartwatches are not only a communication device but also report a child’s location together with a history of movements. 71% of kids’ smartwatches shipped in 2019 were cellular. Hence, apart from calling, features like an SOS button for emergency communication, geofencing with SMS alerts on entry/exit, and the ability to hear what is happening next to the child, are possible. Among the cellular kids’ watches, 65% were 4G based, which opens the potential for video calling, educational interactive and other games.

Mr Qi further added, Privacy and security are major challenges for the kids’ watch market. A few countries in Europe have been scrutinizing kids’ smartwatches with tracking features (GPS) due to security concerns. This is especially the case in the new GDPR environment. So, robust security and user experience will be key to success for this segment.

The comprehensive and in-depth report on Global Smartwatch by Model Quarterly Tracker Q1 2018- Q4 2019 is a part of our IoT service. This report is available for download here.

Background:

Counterpoint Technology Market Research is a global research firm specializing in Technology products in the TMT industry. It services major technology firms and financial firms with a mix of monthly reports, customized projects and detailed analysis of the mobile and technology markets. Its key analysts are experts in the industry with an average tenure of 13 years in the high-tech industry.