Apple became the world’s leading vendor of wearable bands in Q2 2015, according to Canalys estimates. With 4.2 million shipments, it easily overtook Fitbit, Xiaomi and all the smartwatch vendors, despite the Apple Watch’s significantly higher pricing.
Apple has done an excellent job designing its WatchKit SDK, which it delivered quickly and comprehensively. Native WatchKit extensions provide a capable developer platform without sacrificing battery life. But early sales were hindered due to two factors: Apple missed the Q4 2014 holiday season and supply constraints stalled shipments for the first couple months after launch.
“The Apple Watch is the most sophisticated smartwatch to date, and it has proved popular with Apple fans worldwide. But Apple and other vendors still face important challenges to make the smartwatch a breakout hit. Improvements in performance, battery life and sensor integration are needed to make future models more attractive, but it is the quality of third-party apps that will determine whether the Apple Watch will be a long-term success,” said Chris Jones, VP and Principal Analyst at Canalys, in a statement.
Source: Canalys
MacDailyNews Take: YKBAWID.
The Apple Watch is going to flop… The Apple Watch is Jonathan Ive’s Newton… Apple may have built out the watch to satisfy the urges of a designer who has become more obsessed with Bentleys and Rolexes than making attractive, functional technology that will actually make life better for the 99%… The Newton, Apple’s original, failed tablet, didn’t sell because tablet technology wasn’t polished, and we didn’t have the wireless networking infrastructure to make its experience particularly meaningful. Sound familiar? — Mark Wilson, March 2, 2015
SEE ALSO:
Apple Watch satisfaction is unprecedented at 97%; beats original iPhone and iPad – July 20, 2015
Apple Watch is Apple’s most successful product debut ever – June 1, 2015
Apple Watch, the world’s first real smart watch, will be a massive hit – September 9, 2014
What’s a Mark Wilson?
8 million WATCH
52 million iPhone
“Apple Ships” in the headline should read Apple Sold. We’re not talking Gaagle, samdung or amazcrap.
For those getting all twisted about definitions:
Apple continues to say they are unable to keep up with demand, even now. They’re making as many as they are able. As to whether there’s a glut of one variety or not does not appear to be a factor.
Therefore, we have ample reason at the moment to expect that:
SHIPPED = SOLD TO CUSTOMERS
If there were questions of stock gathering dust on either warehouse or shop shelves, we’d think otherwise. But there aren’t. If such questions come up as reasonable in the future, then we’ll worry. For now, as silverhawk1 wisely states, as usual: We’re not dealing with a deceitful ordinary contemporary fake-competitor company like Goggle, SlamStung or AmazingCrap.
I’m sorry😱😩 My bad. Please forgive my enthusiasm and optimistic expectations.😖
So, Who’s surprised? The AW is a beautiful product who’s functionality continues to blow me away every day by giving me more, and more, and more of my life back. Even mom is surprised that I now call her much more frequently than pre-AW, my wife continues to verify a monthly savings of $30 because I no longer get charged by AT&T for exceeding data charges, I am never late for meetings, and well prepared, my kids are starting to recognize me again… yes, I love what the AW has done for me.
Probably too late for your assessment as a satisfied owner. Apple has already let the perception that AppleWatch is a flop run rampant across the internet without any damage control whatsoever. It’s going to be difficult to change that perception until they can possibly sell tens of millions of those devices.
I think Apple needs to learn how to speak up and get the truth out considering how many blogging attacks are made on the company on a weekly basis. Imagine if Boeing had this problem of people constantly blogging that their aircraft were unsafe to fly on. If Apple has a publicity department I think they should fight back against bogus reports meant to ruin a company’s image.
There aren’t too many companies who would let themselves get kicked in the balls over a new product without doing something to straighten out the issue. Tim Cook is too much of a gentleman and far too many factions take advantage of that.
You are so full of crap. Will you quit posting after results if you’re wrong? At least find a different name.
If they’re making them as fast as they can sell them then who cares what the overall meam on the Internet is
The word will spread just like the Apple iPhone initially did and it will be a juggernaut just like the iPhone is today
Oh yeah! I forgot to mention that I am actually sticking to a regimen of dieting and exercise…. just a little now, you know baby steps, but it is a baby step in the right direction…. all because of the AW.
8 million WATCH
52 million iPhones
I’m sorry😱😩 My bad. Please forgive my enthusiastic expectations.😖
while all of us are anticipating, and hoping, that the apple watch will be a success,
i am wondering if there is a bit of hypocrisy going on here.
“top vendor” ? you mean “top shipper” ?
for how many years has mdn been pointing out the meaninglessness of “units shipped” as a measure of success versus “units sold” – well, at least in regard to android and samsung products,
yet here we have them presenting an article that relies on the customarily unreliable cum irrelevant “units shipped” metric as an indicator of the success of the watch.
a little internal consistency might be appropriate
The article says TOP VENDOR, a vendor is a seller, it doesn’t say top SHIPPER!
ummmm,
AppleWatch are products directly “SHIPPED” to customers not to retail who then stocks and sells the product. So every unit shipped from Apple was actually purchased by a consumer.
Get your facts straight.
We need an MDN dictionary page:
YKBAID: you know because Apple is doomed
YKBAWID: you know because Apple Watch is doomed.
4.2 million is wild! For a brand new product in a questionable product space, that’s got to be considered a totally unqualified success. That’s far more than I thought they moved. Couple that with the reports of near 100% satisfaction and you can’t deny they’re off to a good start.
They are actually in the middle of an incredibly good run that I see continuing for some time, Ultimately forever.
In this sense I can’t help but dream about the next “good start” (and the next, and the next, ad-infinitum).
Well it was about time…..