Apple Continues to Lead Wearables Market, Shipping 29.4 Million Units in Q2 2020

Apple maintained its lead in the global wearables market in the second quarter of 2020, according to research conducted by IDC.

apple watch airpods gift 2019

The market for wearable devices grew 14.1% overall during the second quarter of 2020, thanks to strong demand for "hearables," such as AirPods, and continued interest in health tracking metrics amid the global health crisis. The top vendors such as Apple, Huawei, and Xiaomi gained market share, while other vendors struggled to attract new customers. Fitbit notably declined by 29.2 percent.

Apple shipped 5.9 million more wearables in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same time last year; an increase of 25.3 percent. The company's market share of wearables grew from 31.1 percent to 34.2 percent. Huawei followed at a distant second place, shipping 18.5 million units less than Apple.

Screenshot 2020 08 31 at 16

Hearables showed considerably stronger demand than smartwatches and fitness trackers, growing by 32.6 percent, and accounting for 60 percent of all wearables during the quarter. Apple led the sector again here, shipping 23.7 million AirPods and Beats devices in total, followed by Samsung and Xiaomi.

Apple is expected to launch new AirPods and Apple Watch Series 6 models in the immediate future. The upcoming products will likely help Apple maintain its dominant lead in the wearables market.

Tag: IDC

Popular Stories

iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Intel Inside iPhone Feature

Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone

Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone. In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
iPhone 14 Pro Dynamic Island

iPhone 18 Pro Leak Adds New Evidence for Under-Display Face ID

Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker. According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds Second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found. Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
Johny Srouji

Apple's Chipmaking Chief Johny Srouji Responds to Report About Him Potentially Leaving

Monday December 8, 2025 9:23 am PST by
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future. "I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
Johny Srouji

Apple Chip Chief Johny Srouji Could Be Next to Go as Exodus Continues

Sunday December 7, 2025 10:41 am PST by
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
google pixel 10

Switching Between iPhone and Android Will Get Easier With New Apple and Google Collaboration

Monday December 8, 2025 11:10 am PST by
Apple and Google are teaming up to make it easier for users to switch between iPhone and Android smartphones, according to 9to5Google. There is a new Android Canary build available today that simplifies data transfer between two smartphones, and Apple is going to implement the functionality in an upcoming iOS 26 beta. Apple already has a Move to iOS app for transferring data from an Android...
Apple Fitness Plus expansion hero

Apple Fitness+ Coming to 28 New Regions With Digital Voice Dubbing

Monday December 8, 2025 6:19 am PST by
Apple today announced that Fitness+ is expanding to 28 new markets on December 15 in the service's largest international rollout since launch, accompanied by new language dubbing and a K-Pop music genre. Apple Fitness+ will become available in Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and additional regions on December 15, with Japan scheduled to follow early next year....
maxresdefault

iPhone Fold: Launch, Pricing, and What to Expect From Apple's Foldable

Monday December 1, 2025 3:00 am PST by
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone next year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that 2026 could indeed be the year that Apple releases its first foldable device. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that ...

Top Rated Comments

Ds6778 Avatar
69 months ago
There is literally no competition for the Watch, Apple could not release a new watch for 3-4 years and it would still be number one. I tried the Galaxy Watch and it was terrible, inaccurate health data, shoddy hear rate monitor, almost no dev support since its Tizen, Bixby is laughable even for simple tasks, build quality is meh (chunky plastic), and the performance is passable but not near as fluid as WatchOS.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WiseAJ Avatar
69 months ago
Oh look a market where Apple actually is a monopoly leader. Can we start an antitrust lawsuit because they don't work with Androids?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
69 months ago
Apple: We are waiting for the new Apple Watch.

Ready to Pre-Order.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
alexhardaker Avatar
69 months ago

Silver stainless steel for me!
I was looking at the current options available & I can’t decide what to go for (assuming the options are the same for series 6). There’s too many options
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ds6778 Avatar
69 months ago

Apple: We are waiting for the new Apple Watch.

Ready to Pre-Order.
Silver stainless steel for me!
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
m4mario Avatar
69 months ago
Where are the "Apple Watch will doom" predictors now?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)