“One challenge in measuring the success of the Apple Watch thus far is that Apple hasn’t been providing sales figures, something it made clear it wouldn’t be doing even before the Watch launched,” Mark Rogowsky writes for Forbes. “Tim Cook made it clear that the information was too valuable at this stage to share; it would help competitors understand just how much success Apple was having and he’d rather keep his cards close for the time being. All Cook would offer in the most recently quarterly earnings call was this: ‘Sales of Apple Watch were also up sequentially and were ahead of our expectations.'”
“Thanks to folks like Neil Cybart at Above Avalon, Ben Bajarin at Techpinions and market research firm IDC, we can put together a pretty credible estimate of Apple Watch sales in the two quarters ending in September the product has been on sale,” Rogowsky writes. “The most recent quarter can’t be below 3 million without some incredibly tortured math but it also can’t really be 5 million either.”
“Charles Arthur, the erstwhile technology editor of The Guardian, made an attempt to estimate sales of Android Wear — Google’s equivalent to the Apple Watch sold by a number of vendors — and concluded that despite a head start of more than a year, the total sold to date is below 2 million,” Rogowsky writes. “Marc Newson, who came to work at Apple a year ago, having spent some time designing those traditional watches himself believes that Apple Watch indeed is the next big thing. He recently told the Australian Financial Review (link thanks to The Loop): ‘Look at the iPhone: It was a game-changing thing. And I believe that this product — for many, many reasons people are not aware of because they haven’t thought ahead or they just don’t know — will become a similarly game-changing thing. In five years time I have absolutely no doubt this will be right up there.'”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The millions who already wear Apple Watches get it. Those who don’t may regard such statements as hyperbole, but, yes, Newson is correct: Apple Watch is a game-changer similar to the iPhone.
Rivals claim Apple Watch having ‘no material impact’ – November 4, 2015
Apple has already sold more than $1.7 billion worth of Apple Watches – October 29, 2015
Strategy Analytics: Apple Watch sells 4.5 million units in Q315, takes 74% global smartwatch market share – October 28, 2015
Why Apple Watch sales are primed to explode – September 19, 2015
Apple Watch users are abandoning traditional watches – September 15, 2015
Over 1 million Apple Watches already sold in China – September 3, 2015
Apple Watch already dominates smart-wearables market, says IDC – August 28, 2015
IDC estimates Apple sold 3.6 million Apple Watch units in Q2 – August 27, 2015
Best Buy CEO: Apple Watch demand is ‘so strong’ that we’re expanding sales to all 1,050 stores – August 25, 2015
Swiss watch exports decline most since 2009 – August 20, 2015
I own two $6,000 Swiss watches, but I wear my Apple Watch most of the time – August 14, 2015
Apple Watch will make up 40% of premium wristwatch sales by 2020 – report – August 14, 2015
Apple Watch takes 88% of total smartwatch revenue – August 14, 2015
Apple Watch dominates smartwatches with 75% market share – July 28, 2015
Juniper Research: Apple is world’s #1 smartwatch maker – July 23, 2015
Canalys: Apple ships 4.2 million Apple Watches in Q2 to become world’s top wearables vendor – July 21, 2015
Apple Watch satisfaction is unprecedented at 97%; beats original iPhone and iPad – July 20, 2015
Swiss watch exports hit worst slump in five years as Apple Watch debuts – June 19, 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
Newson is absolutely right.
I don’t wear my Apple Watch. Not because I don’t like it, but because for me, the killer application isn’t there yet.
*yet*
There is not a shred of doubt in my mind that the Apple Watch will one day soon be an essential portal into the digital world. You won’t be able to function as an engaged modern person without one. As he says, look ahead 5 years and see where it’s going.
A computer watch with 1 day battery life. It never had a chance.
I bet more than a few of the Apple Watches sold are collecting dust.
I wear my Watch daily and use it throughout the day, I have never run out of battery and there’s usually enough to get through 2 days, but I have a stand so charge it over night.
The killer App(s) Activity Monitor and Pay. I use my Watch to pay for virtually everything. Faster than using my iPhone or Contactless card.
Watch Rules 🙂
As it did last year, Best Buy is making a mockery of Black Friday convention by starting the festival of capitalism a day early. The store will be offering “doorbuster” deals on Thanksgiving Day itself, opening its doors at 5PM on Thursday for people willing to line up for tickets two hours ahead of time. Those that do forgo turkey and family for consumer electronics will have access to some of the best deals, including a Samsung 4K TV for $800, Amazon’s Fire tablet for $35, and $200 off the price of both MacBooks and iMacs. Best Buy’s also offering up to $100 off the Apple Watch.
I will buy two Apple watches for Christmas.
Agreed. The watch is an outstanding platform with base apps already included. I like the way Apple has used the app on the phone to manage the watch as well. More apps have made their way to the watch but I’m still looking for the “killer” app. The fitness apps are fantastic and timely as more and more people are diagnosed with Type II diabetes. Indeed, assuming something comes about to give a wearer access to his or her ever changing glucose levels, the suite of fitness and health apps may combine to be that killer. Historically, blood analysis has been required for glucose measurement so it would be game-changing for the lives of many if Apple came up with a way to avoid strips, lancets and monitor costs while putting a device with so many other functions on the wearers wrist. The Apple Watch is the primary device that I’m watching for Apple’s future growth.
It would be nice if Apple matches $100 off on Apple website, so I could order it online.
Apple Watch 2 will be the game-changer. It will also introduce a round option. It will also be the Version 1 that Steve would have released. This new “rush to market” Apple is so disappointing.
I dontthink Apple watch was a ‘rush to market’
There just comes a point when you need to ‘fix’ on a build standard and deliver something out the door. User experience ( which for Apple will be in millions) will then let you focus on what works and what needs modification or further development.
I also would not be suprised if Apple TV was not a rush to market but a case of non-agreement for something better from the TV industry and a decision by Apple to release a cut down version of the OS – which might explain some of the disconnects in Version 1.
Sorry. There will be no round version in the foreseeable future. It would fragment developers who would now have to design for 2 greatly different screen ratios. If you think the Apple Watch is ‘disappointing’ then you haven’t really played with one for any appreciable length of time.
Steve had some crap released too. MobileMe, Mac Cube, and the hockey puck mouse to name a few. The first iPhone left some stuff out too: 3G and camera flash. The Apple Watch is a game changer. Really use one for two months and you will understand. Try out some apps. Of course some will suck, some will be good and some will blow your mind. The new OS has been a great improvement.
The rush to market was Samsung and the Android OEMs (Samsung’s top models don’t use Android). They ignored half the market (women), only made them work with their most expensive phone, put useless cameras on them, and did not look at industries that could use them. The narrow and round ones look cute but they waste a lot of space that could be used for information and photos. They did not spend the time to create a chip that has everything on it. Not to mention no Pay, of course if they did only a fool would use it. (Stand behind me with off the shelf hardware and steal all my info when I use it, just like my Android phone.)
Other watch makers are trying to fool the public into thinking they don’t really do much so they won’t be so far behind. Like Samsung did when they put a finger print scanner that LG already proved did not work on their phone. They wanted Android users to think it was not that big of a deal and a keep them away from a real secure phone n
Just got mine this week….loving it. A triumph of design IMHO.
What is the iPhone’s “killer app”? It’s awesome all around, that’s what’s killer about it. Guys waiting for a “killer app” are going to be on the sidelines forever. Activity tracking and notifications are what the Watch is all about, it works great, if you don’t intend to use it for those things, don’t buy it.