Alphabet
’s
GOOGL
division Google is firing on all cylinders in the smartwatch market on the back of its innovations and advanced features.
This is evident from the latest plans to roll out a feature called ‘Smart Unlock’ on Wear OS 3-powered smartwatches.
Notably, the new feature is capable of unlocking the user’s Android phone, tablet or Chromebook when the Wear OS 3 watch is unlocked on the wrist and kept close to these devices.
Further, a separate app called Google Pixel Watch is set to be unveiled and needs to be connected to set up the Smart Unlock feature on Pixel phones.
We believe that the latest feature will deliver an enhanced experience to users. This, in turn, will drive the momentum across Wear OS 3, as well as the watches backed by it.
Growing Smartwatch Efforts
The latest move bodes well for Google’s growing efforts to strengthen its Wear OS.
Apart from the new feature, the company is gearing up to add a home screen tile to the YouTube Music app for Wear OS.
It added Google Maps to Wear OS watches. GOOGL’s growing focus on improving battery life and health features of smartwatches holds promise.
In addition to this, Google recently ended the quest for its long-awaited smartwatch by introducing Google Pixel Watch, powered by Fitbit’s technology.
The company’s Fitbit acquisition remains noteworthy.
Growth Prospects
These strong initiatives are expected to help the company expand its presence in the booming smartwatch market.
Per a Facts and Factors report, the global smartwatch market is expected to reach $97.5 billion by 2028, witnessing a CAGR of 21.5% from 2022 to 2028.
According to a Counterpoint Research report, global smartwatch shipment grew 13% in first-quarter 2022 from the year-ago quarter.
Although Alphabet, which currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), is a late entrant in this market, its growing smartwatch efforts are likely to intensify competition for other incumbents like
Apple
AAPL
,
Amazon
AMZN
and
Garmin
GRMN
, which are leaving no stone unturned to expand their footprint in the smartwatch market.
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Apple, which is currently dominating the wearable space on the back of its expanding Watch family, is constantly making efforts to sustain its supremacy. The strong adoption of the Apple Watch on the back of useful and advanced features like Cycle Tracking, the Noise app and Activity Trends, remains a major positive.
Notably, Apple accounted for 35.9% of the total smartwatch shipment in first-quarter 2022.
Further, Garmin’s expanding product portfolio for the Fitness and Outdoor business, which has been built with both internal development efforts and acquisitions, makes the company a potential player in the wearable space.
Garmin accounted for 4.5% of the total smartwatch shipment in first-quarter 2022.
Amazon is riding on the growing momentum across its Amazon Halo and Amazon Halo Band, the fitness tracking service and wearable, respectively. Recently, the company introduced Halo View, Halo Nutrition and Halo Fitness in a bid to expand its personal health monitoring efforts.
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