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Wearable Technology - UK - December 2015

OVERVIEW
What you need to know
Covered in this report
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Wrist-worn wearables experience strong growth in 2015
Figure 1: Estimated unit sales of wrist-worn wearable devices, by product category, 2014 and 2015
Less than one in 10 consumers own a wearable device
Figure 2: Personal ownership of wearable technology, September 2015
Smartwatches to gain traction in the next 12 months
Figure 3: Plans to buy or upgrade wearable technology, September 2015
Wearables are true fashion accessories
Figure 4: Important features when buying wearable technology, September 2015
Health and sports monitoring attract most interest
Figure 5: Most interesting applications of wearable technology, September 2015
Three fifths of consumers interested in some sort of information alert
Figure 6: Information alerts that consumers would be interested in receiving via wearable technology, September 2015
Security and lack of killer application the main barriers to adoption
Figure 7: Attitudes towards wearable technology, September 2015
What we think
ISSUES AND INSIGHTS
Taking wearables into the mainstream
The facts
The implications
How can wearables become more relevant to consumers?
The facts
The implications
THE MARKET – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Wrist-worn wearables experience strong growth in 2015
Rise of phablets to boost uptake of wearables
Data security a major barrier to wearable payments
In-home fitness spurs interest in wearables
Wearables’ potential in the enterprise segment
MARKET DRIVERS
Wrist-worn wearables experience strong growth in 2015
Figure 8: Estimated unit sales of wrist-worn wearable devices, by product category, 2014 and 2015
Figure 9: Estimated unit sales of wrist-worn wearable devices, by product category, 2014 and 2015
Rise of phablets to boost uptake of wearables
Figure 10: Smartphone screen size, June 2015
Data security major barrier to wearable payments
Figure 11: Consumer security rankings of different payment methods, July 2015*
In-home fitness spurs interest in wearables
Wearables’ potential in the enterprise segment
KEY PLAYERS – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Apple heavily investing in promoting its smartwatch
In-store displays key to success
2016 set to be the year of consumer-ready 3D headsets
Launch activity in the clothing and jewellery segments
Microsoft rumoured to be ready for hearables in 2016
Gesture control arrives to wearables
The year of flexibility
BRAND COMMUNICATION AND PROMOTION
Apple heavily investing in promoting its smartwatch
Figure 12: Recorded above-the-line, online display and direct mail advertising expenditure on smartwatches and fitness trackers, by company, 2015 (year to date)
In-store displays key to success
Figure 13: Apple Watch range at an Apple Store, 2015
Methodology and coverage
LAUNCH ACTIVITY AND INNOVATION
2016 set to be the year of consumer-ready 3D headsets
Figure 14: Oculus Rift and Oculus Touch controllers, 2015
Figure 15: Google Cardboard viewer, November 2015
Figure 16: PlayStation VR headset used with PlayStation Move controls, 2015
Launch activity in the clothing and jewellery segments
Figure 17: Digitsole’s Warm Weries insole, November 2015
Figure 18: Ringly with black onix, November 2015
Figure 19: Bellabeat’s Leaf, November 2015
Microsoft rumoured to be ready for hearables in 2016
Gesture control arrives to wearables
Figure 20: Gest, November 2015
The year of flexibility
Figure 21: Samsung’s bendable batteries, October 2015
Figure 22: Polyera’s Wove Band, November 2015
THE CONSUMER – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Less than one in 10 consumers own a wearable device
Smartwatches to gain traction in the next 12 months
Wearables are true fashion accessories
Health and sports monitoring most interesting applications of wearables
Three fifths of consumers interested in some sort of information alert
Security and lack of killer application the main barriers to adoption
OWNERSHIP AND PLANS TO BUY
Less than one in 10 consumers own a wearable device
Figure 23: Personal ownership of wearable technology, September 2015
Millennials the most likely to own wearables
Figure 24: Personal ownership of wearable technology, by gender and age, September 2015
Multiplicity of use cases impacts penetration
Smartwatches to gain traction in the next 12 months
Figure 25: Plans to buy or upgrade wearable technology, September 2015
Core audience drives future growth
Figure 26: Ownership of wearable technology, by plans to buy or upgrade wearable technology within a year, September 2015
IMPORTANT FEATURES
Young consumers value battery life
Figure 27: Important features when buying wearable technology, September 2015
Wearables are true fashion accessories
Figure 28: Fossil’s Q collection of fitness trackers and smartwatches, November 2015
Figure 29: Apple Watch Hermès collection, September 2015
Figure 30: Blocks’ removable covers, November 2015
INTEREST IN APPLICATIONS
Health and sports monitoring attract most interest
Figure 31: Most interesting applications of wearable technology, September 2015
Most promising applications reflect key consumer trends
Secondary use cases could promote certain product categories
Access control could drive adoption among the disengaged
Figure 32: Most interesting applications of wearable technology for consumers who do not own nor plan to buy/upgrade any wearable technology, September 2015
Virtual tourism appeals beyond core audience
Figure 33: Most interesting uses of virtual reality headsets, August 2015
INTEREST IN INFORMATION ALERTS
Three fifths of consumers interested in some sort of information alert
Figure 34: Information alerts that consumers would be interested in receiving via wearable technology, September 2015
Men look to connect, women to stay healthy
Figure 35: Information alerts that consumers would be interested in receiving via wearable technology, by gender, September 2015
ATTITUDES TOWARDS WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY
Security and lack of killer application the main barriers to adoption
Figure 36: Attitudes towards wearable technology, September 2015
Building familiarity to encourage mainstream adoption
CHAID ANALYSIS
Methodology
Early adopters open to contextual marketing
Figure 37: Attitudes towards wearable technology – CHAID – Tree output, October 2015
Figure 38: Target groups based on attitudes towards wearable devices – CHAID – Table output, October 2015
APPENDIX – DATA SOURCES, ABBREVIATIONS AND SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Data sources
Abbreviations

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