Google ranked second in the smart watch market for the first time with its Pixel Watch, which was launched last year, according to statistics released by market research company Canalys for the fourth quarter of 2022.
Research shows that Google's progress in this market is due to its acquisition of Fitbit, as well as the sale of Pixel Watch smartwatches. In addition to smartwatches, the study also included wristbands that track physical activity, such as those made by Fitbit.
Google accounted for 8% of the market in the fourth quarter of 2022, rising to second place after Apple, which accounts for 27.5% of revenue. Notably, Google ranks fourth in the same statistic released in 2021. Since the release of the Pixel Watch smartwatch, Google has seen an estimated 16% growth, according to the study, adding that Google will save 880,000 hours in 2021. And most recently, in the last year's quarter , accounted for 22% of the company's total shipments in the same period, reaching 4 million wearable devices.
While Fitbit's revenue was down 25% year-over-year last year, Google has been gaining ground in this market.
It should be noted that since Google acquired Fitbit devices in 2019, Google has made some changes to Fitbit devices and announced the removal of some non-essential features and Google Personal Assistant support for Fitbit watches via a published update. Last August, there appeared to be a decision to limit this feature to the Pixel Watch, which angered many users.
What Google achieved with the Pixel Watch that was launched last year is seen as a huge step forward for the company in this space, as Google offers limited distribution of its watches as the watch is not officially available in nine countries, compared to competing smartphones. . The Apple Watch is available in more than 60 countries while the Samsung Galaxy Watch is available in more than 31 countries. The Pixel Watch is also more expensive than most of its counterparts.