Tag: smart watch

Fitbit will maintain its wearable technology industry dominance

According to a recent report from BI Intelligence, the company’s wearables will stay at the top of the market.

The wearable technology market has been growing in a direction that had not been predicted by many industry analysts, especially when it comes to the impact that smartwatches were supposed to have, following the release of the Apple Watch.

Fitness trackers have remained well in the lead of wearables and it is Fitbit that has been keeping ahead of the pack.

Fitbit recently reported its Q4 2015 revenue as being $712 million. That figure was hugely greater than the average prediction from analysts, which had been $648 million. Throughout all of last year, the company brought in a massive revenue of $1.86 billion. To do this, it sold 8.2 million of its wearable technology devices in the last quarter, bringing its total number of sales for 2015 to 21.4 million. According to analysts, that figure will only continue to rise, this year as the company adds more products to its offerings, such as its very own smartwatch, the Fitbit Blaze, as well as a more fashion-focused fitness band, the Fitbit Alta.

Currently, Fitbit’s wearable technology products are most popular in the United States, where it generated 75 percent of its revenue.

Fitbit - Wearable TechnologyThat said, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, combined, made up 12 percent of the company’s revenue. Still, that represents a 191 percent year over year growth in Q4 for those regions, revealing a tremendous rise in popularity within those parts of the world. This indicates that 2016 may be seeing action in far greater markets than the United States. According to BI Intelligence research analyst, Jonathan Camhi, the company’s wearables are seeing considerable traction being gained outside the U.S.

Last year, the company’s focus was aimed at establishing and growing its Fitbit Wellness program. This allowed it to boost its healthcare market customer base by 1,000 in 2015. This shows the growing appeal of the wearable devices within that industry, as well.

Now, BI Intelligence has predicted that the most promising area for growth for these wearable technology devices will be within the health sector. As a number of trends form both among customers and professionals in the healthcare industry, the interest in these gadgets is expected to rise considerably.

Newest wearable technology from Will.i.am unveiled

The musician and performer has now announced the latest version of his smartwatch, which is voice-activated.

Will.i.am has now announced the latest edition of his wearable technology device, with a voice-activated smartwatch headed to the United Kingdom which, he claims, will rival top options such as the Apple Watch and the Samsung Gear line.

The musician is far from the only one who has stepped into wearables, a category that is struggling for acceptance.

Indeed, wearable technology is growing and there have been some huge names thrown behind it, but many companies and celebrities, including Will.i.am (whose real name is William Adams), have yet to reach the point in which they could genuinely call themselves successful in this area. That said, it looks as though Will.i.am still has a few tech tricks up his sleeve (and around his wrist) as he has now come out with a new voice-activated smartwatch that can send texts and emails, play music, track fitness and allow users to search for information. This particular device also has a front-facing 2 megapixel camera.

This wearable technology stands out from the smartwatches from Apple and Samsung as it doesn’t need a smartphone.

Wearable Technology - Will.i.amUnlike its top rivals in the wearables industry, Will.i.am’s smartwatch doesn’t need to be paired with a smartphone in order to be able to use all its functions. Most smartwatches need to be wirelessly paired to a smartphone in order to send and receive texts, access WiFi and notify the user that a call is coming in. That is not the case, here. This device is powered by 4G by way of a SIM card.

The singer explained that “It is not tethered to a device, it is the device.” He pointed out that “The reason we built the platform this way is that it is for areas you are truly mobile – in the gym, in a car, on a bike, on a hike, areas where the phone really isn’t meant for.” He underscored the fact that while a smartphone is fine in many circumstances, it simply doesn’t fit in others, such as at the gym or while riding a bike through the streets of New York City.

The musician has secured a mobile phone partner in Three, for his wearable technology. The smartwatch will be available in the U.K., starting in early April.