Fitbit, Garmin Big Winners, Apple Clear Loser, in IDC's Q2 Wearables Report

decline in Apple Watch unit volume, IDC said. Two sectors within the wearables category “traveled at different speeds and directions” during Q2, it said. Shipments of “basic” wearables, which IDC defines as devices that don’t support third-party applications, grew 48.8 percent in the quarter from a year earlier, while “smart” wearables, defined as devices that do support third-party apps, declined 27.2 percent, IDC said. Most fitness trackers fall into the basic wearables sector, and they have benefited from “a clear value proposition for end-users, an abundant selection of devices from multiple vendors, and affordable price points," IDC said. But smart wearables “are still struggling to find their place in the market," it said. "There is plenty of curiosity” about what smartwatches can do, “but they have yet to convince users that they are a must-have item,” it said. “The good news is that smart wearables are still in their initial stages and vendors are slowly making strides to improve them. But this also means that it will be a slow transition from basic wearables to smart wearables." Fitbit’s “dominance” in fitness trackers remained “unchallenged” in Q2, IDC said. Its shipments in the quarter jumped 28.7 percent to 5.7 million units, giving it a 25.4 percent leadership market share, 11.4 percentage points better than Xiaomi, its closest competitor, it said. Garmin shipped 1.6 million devices in the quarter, a 106.7 percent increase from Q2 a year earlier, putting it into a virtual tie with Apple with a 6.9 percent market share, IDC said. “Garmin's vertical integration and constant expansion of the ConnectIQ app store have allowed the company to slowly expand its channel presence and gain consumer mindshare.” As for Apple’s woes, shipments of the Apple Watch declined 56.7 percent in Q2, mainly because Apple let the quarter lapse without debuting a new model on the anniversary of its first-generation Apple Watch, IDC said.