Global smart personal audio market declines by 3%, Apple leads

New Delhi: Global smart personal audio shipments fell 3 percent (y-o-y) to 110 million units in Q3 2023, with developed regions struggling while emerging regions grew strongly.

TWS made up 73 percent of shipments, Canalys reports, as they continue to penetrate affordable mass-market segments.

With 23.4 million units and 21 percent share, Apple leads the global market, followed by Samsung and homegrown company boAt.

Shipments of wireless headphones overtook wireless earphones for the first time, primarily due to vendors seeking stronger revenue drivers through wireless headphones and wireless earphones being replaced by TWS.

Alternative wearable forms, such as air and bone conduction devices, accounted for less than 2 percent of shipments in the third quarter.

Research analyst Jack Leathem said, “The decline in the third quarter was partly due to vendors’ strategic decision to skip annual major releases, effectively extending the refresh cycle as vendors prioritized premium models. “

In China, one of the fastest-growing players was Huawei, which leveraged its strong smartphone growth to cross-sell ecosystem devices, and as a result grew its shipments by 30 percent compared to the third quarter of 2022.

“We expect growth to return in the fourth quarter driven by replenishment of inventory and holiday shopping season deals,” Leathem said.

Improving economic conditions and expected flagship portfolio launches from Apple and Samsung will further boost the market in 2024.

Canalys estimates total shipments in 2024 will be 3.3 percent higher than in 2023.