Early Apple Watch adopters were mostly men, but latecomers are starting to skew toward women
At launch, the overwhelming majority of Apple Watch buyers were men. But in the year since it debuted, women have begun to close the gap and embrace Apple's new wearable platform, new research shows.
E-commerce analytics firm Slice released new data on Thursday, showing that while 80 percent of Apple Watch buyers at launch were men, the gap has since closed considerably. Men are still more likely to buy an Apple Watch, but the split has since narrowed to about 60-40.
The data also shows that rival wearable maker Fitbit is also headed in the same direction, though its customer base remains predominantly female. A year ago, 56 percent of Fitbit buyers were said to be women, and by March of 2016, buyers had increased to 63 percent.
Slice's data comes from more than 4.2 million online shoppers, measuring digital commerce directly from the consumer. The data comes from e-receipts after consumers complete their purchase.
Slice found that the launch of the new Fitbit Alta was a big hit for the company, though its Charge HR remains its best seller through the first quarter of 2016. The Apple Watch Sport took second among wearables tracked by Slice, ahead of the Alta, which launched in February with swappable bands. Apple's more premium priced stainless steel Apple Watch came in seventh, behind the Fitbit Flex but ahead of the One.
In all, Slice found that Fitbit accounted for 61.5 percent of wearable device sales in the first quarter of 2016, while the Apple Watch came in second place with 20.3 percent of all sales. Garmin was found in third at 10.3 percent, Jawbone took fourth with 6 percent, and Misfit was in a distant fifth with a 1.4 percent share.
E-commerce analytics firm Slice released new data on Thursday, showing that while 80 percent of Apple Watch buyers at launch were men, the gap has since closed considerably. Men are still more likely to buy an Apple Watch, but the split has since narrowed to about 60-40.
The data also shows that rival wearable maker Fitbit is also headed in the same direction, though its customer base remains predominantly female. A year ago, 56 percent of Fitbit buyers were said to be women, and by March of 2016, buyers had increased to 63 percent.
Slice's data comes from more than 4.2 million online shoppers, measuring digital commerce directly from the consumer. The data comes from e-receipts after consumers complete their purchase.
Slice found that the launch of the new Fitbit Alta was a big hit for the company, though its Charge HR remains its best seller through the first quarter of 2016. The Apple Watch Sport took second among wearables tracked by Slice, ahead of the Alta, which launched in February with swappable bands. Apple's more premium priced stainless steel Apple Watch came in seventh, behind the Fitbit Flex but ahead of the One.
In all, Slice found that Fitbit accounted for 61.5 percent of wearable device sales in the first quarter of 2016, while the Apple Watch came in second place with 20.3 percent of all sales. Garmin was found in third at 10.3 percent, Jawbone took fourth with 6 percent, and Misfit was in a distant fifth with a 1.4 percent share.
Comments
i mean for something that has a visual maps application and apps like Instagram you'd expect there to be a little more real-estate
Having it smaller is a huge advantage for Apple compared to the competition as they can target women, which eventually will be the ones driving sales.
yeah its huge watch-wise but device-wise its the opposite. i just think theyre trying to do way too much with it
I've notice the same trend applies to the larger phone phenomenon. Tiny little guys usually carry a big ole phone, doesn't make them appear taller, but sure looks comical. Add dark or colored socks pulled up to knees in shorts for extra clown points.
well everyone has their own reason but I'm sure more than a few men wear giant watches or have huge phones because of some fragile sense of masculinity
but what foggyhill is saying is correct
Apple picked 42mm because it's the current average. You know how average with a normal distribution works,
most clustered around it with everything else, less than 25%, beyond sigma at both ends.
So, you seeing many watches doesn't prove one thing, except maybe about the crowd you hang out with.
Apple caters to the general public, not your tiny demo in your immediate surroundings.
Definitely agree about the gender patterns in selling. I've seen more women on the subway with them as Apple has released the new bands and finishes. As much as people make fun of "new bands", the are responding to people being selective about what they'll wear as what is essentially an electronic item of clothing.
Fwiw, I have never seen a female wearer of an Android Wear watch or Samsung Gear or Microsoft Band.
I have the 42mm, and I don't have "large" male wrists - average I guess - but the watch size is perfect. With the mid-mount of the strap pulling the bottom into wrist a bit, it has a great fit.
yeah, I was shocked when I saw it in person. the camera makes it seem much larger than IRL.
I think the convetional wisdom of WS that the AW is a failure is wrong.
One year, the AW will have an iPhone 6 like moment where it will take off exponentially. I suspect that it will be model 3 when the second generation case style debuts.