Amazon continues to lead the market for smart speakers and smart screens with devices like the Echo Dot and Echo Show, but Apple has nearly doubled its market share in this segment thanks to the HomePod mini, according to research firm Strategy Analytics.
Strategy Analytics estimates that Apple shipped 4 million smart speakers in the third quarter of 2021, taking a 10.2% share of the combined smart speaker and smart screen market. Google's Nest Mini was the top-selling device in the segment, followed by the HomePod mini and Amazon's fourth-generation Echo Dot, the research firm said.
By comparison, Apple's market share for smart speakers and screens was estimated at 5.9% in the year-ago quarter, prior to the HomePod mini launching.
Apple is at a disadvantage in this particular report, as it does not compete in the smart screen market. In his latest newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expressed his belief that Apple should launch a larger iPad as a home hub to compete with devices like the Echo Show 15. It's unclear if Apple will ever release such a device, but Gurman did earlier this year report that Apple was exploring future iPads with larger display sizes.
As for the HomePod mini, the $99 speaker has not been updated since launching in October 2020, beyond getting new yellow, orange, and blue colors. Based on Apple's increased market share, the current HomePod mini appears to remain a success.
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Apple should collaborate with Amazon and offer Alexa and Siri at the same time.
Siri seems to be not reliable many times. It needs a lot of work still.
Please no. Apple has no motivation for creepy data collection, while Amazon and Google do. Yes, Siri needs improvement, but bringing Amazon and Google onboard does nothing to help that.
I have to say, I've started to really buy into Amazon's Echo ecosystem. It's a good product that's affordable enough to buy enough of them to put in various reaches of my home. It integrates with my Apple Music subscription, and it works with SmartThings stuff as well.
