Smartwatch sales drop in Q1 2023, shuffling of leads

In the year At the beginning of 2022, there were three major players in the global smartwatch market: Apple, Samsung, and Huawei. Apple was the clear leader, holding a strong 32% of the market with its Apple Watch line. Thanks to its line of Galaxy Watches, Samsung was trying its best to come second with a 10% share.

Clearly, with HUAWEI’s position in the consumer market eroding, there is bound to be a shift. However, smartwatch sales have taken a significant dive year-over-year, according to Counterpoint Research. This not only pushed Huawei into the “others” category, but also saw Samsung and Apple lose market share to a new-ish player: the Fire-Bolt.

Check out the charts below to see how things look when comparing Q1 2023 to Q1 2022:

Smartwatch sales: Who is Fire-Bolt?

If you don’t live in India, you might not have heard of Firebolt. It is the largest smartwatch brand in India, according to Counterpoint, and the fastest growing smartwatch brand globally. It offers a variety of smartwatches (mostly Apple Watch-like) at very affordable prices. It also offers a unique points system that allows you to earn “coins” that can be used for other products and experiences.

It is a true testament to how well Fire-Bolt understands the market that it managed to break out of the “others” category to overtake the mighty Samsung within a year. In fact, Counterpoint says Fire-Bolt is growing at an impressive 57 percent.

If Fire-Bolt is growing so fast, why did Samsung and Apple lose market share? Thanks to the global recession, smartwatch sales are down for the two, at least according to Counterpoint. Apple’s significant loss of 6 percent of its market share is a major blow to the rankings. Hopefully, this year’s new Apple Watch will bring the heat. Samsung’s new Galaxy Watch 6 – and the rumored return of the “classic” variant – will hopefully change its prospects as well.