Smartwatch category ready to blast off thanks to Apple Watch

The Australian market is warming up to smartwatches and wearable devices according to technology analyst Telstye with the floodgates set to open within the next three years.

Already 40 per cent of Australians wear a wristwatch every day and the mature watch jewellery market may face a challenge against high tech competitors.

Telsyte’s Australian Smartphone and Wearables Devices Market Study 2015 revealed the smartwatch market in Australia alone will be worth more than $400m by 2018.

With the anticipated arrival of the Apple Watch in April, the smartwatch market is expected to grow by 50 per cent in 2015 alone.

Samsung, being an early player in this field, is the current market leader.

TECH GUIDE’S APPLE WATCH HANDS ON

The latest models – which actually look like regular watches – have attracted even more interest from customers with the 25-44 age group representing the best sales target.

“There is a lot of anticipation for the Apple smartwatch and our research indicates half of all smart fitness band users are looking to upgrade to a smartwatch, creating a potentially vibrant new product category” says Telstye managing director Foad Fadaghi says.

The top applications customers are looking for in a smartwatch is telling the time and date, the ability to set alarms and receiving notifications.

Sales of activity bands have also been healthy. More than 800,000 made by companies like Garmin, FitBit and Jawbone were sold in 2014.