According to a new survey conducted by Pew Research Center, 21 percent of adults say they regularly wear a smart watch or fitness tracker.
Use of the devices varies across socioeconomic factors and demographics: for instance, 25 percent of women say they regularly use a fitness tracker or smart watch, compared to 18 percent of men. Meanwhile, 31 percent of individuals living in households earning more than $75,000 wear one regularly, compared to 12 percent of those whose annual household income falls below $30,000. Differences by education follow a similar patter, with 27 percent of college graduates reporting regular wear.
The survey lends itself to various interpretations for those in the traditional watch industry: first, smart watches and fitness trackers are beating traditional watches (when I say traditional here, I mean digital, quartz, mechanical — anything except the smart watch!) in market share and in capturing the consumer. However, the bet for traditional companies is that somehow, someway, at some point, some of these smart watch wearers will be converted into wearers of traditional watches. Consumers will get tired of their smart watches, the same one that they and all their friends have — or so the theory goes. Of course, Apple, Fitbit and others are combating this by releasing a number of colorways and strap styles. Most importantly though, the operating systems of these watches improves, almost on a daily basis, constantly improving the user experience and adding new (and useful) features.
According to a 2017 study from NPD Group, 32 percent of consumers wore a watch on a daily basis, with a mere fraction of those owning smart watches or fitness trackers. So, while more consumers than ever are thinking of wearing something on their wrist, they’re not necessarily thinking that something should be a traditional watch. It’s up to the watch industry to change that.
For more thoughts on smart watches, read: Thoughts on the Apple Series 4; Or, What Even is a Watch?