Apple's grip on wearables market to loosen

Apple will be top dog this year, but not for long

Apple is on track to dominate the wearables market this year, but its stranglehold will loosen over the coming years, according to IDC.

Overall, worldwide wearable device shipments will reach 76.1 million by the end of this year, up 163.6 per cent on 2014. By 2019, global shipments will skyrocket to 173.4 million, representing a compound annual growth rate of 22.9 per cent between 2015 and 2019.

WatchOS – Apple's wearable OS – will dominate the market this year, accounting for 58.3 per cent by the end of 2015 after shipping 13.9 million units. In 2015, Android will trail Apple, shipping just 4.1 million units and grabbing 17.4 per cent market share.

But by 2019, Android will take a hefty bite out of Apple's share. By then, Apple will have just 47.4 per cent of the market, compared with Android's 38.4 per cent after the pair ship 40.3 million units and 32.6 million units respectively.

IDC explained why Apple will take an early lead in the market.

"WatchOS, in its first year on the market, will quickly establish itself as the overall leader in the smartwristwear market and maintain its position throughout our forecast," said the analyst.

"[We] expect second and third generations of the Apple Watch will drive shipment volumes later in the forecast, particularly among those customers who take a wait-and-see approach. It will, however, see its market share erode as other platforms – particularly Android Wear – gain greater salience in the market."