Apple Watch shipments are forecast to fall more than 25% year-over-year in comparison to 2015, according to new research. The report, from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, said the wearable device sold an estimated 10.6 million units in eight months last year. However, Kuo predicts that even with the launch of the Apple Watch 2, […]
Apple Watch shipments are forecast to fall more than 25% year-over-year in comparison to 2015, according to new research.
The report, from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, said the wearable device sold an estimated 10.6 million units in eight months last year.
However, Kuo predicts that even with the launch of the Apple Watch 2, and a full twelve months of sales, the device’s shipments will still come in at less than 7.5 million units in 2016.
The analyst describes an “immature wearable device market” and a few key lacking features of the first-generation Apple Watch — iPhone independency, no killer app, limited battery life, that will contribute to its overall sales decline prior to the launch of the second-generation version.
Contradicting an earlier report of a June unveiling for the Apple Watch 2, Kuo says it will enter mass production in third quarter of 2016 and possibly launch alongside the iPhone 7. This would limit the new model’s affect on sales numbers for the year.
Notably, the Apple Watch 2 is said to feature under the hood improvements and minor form factor changes. A major redesign isn’t expected until 2017.
Apple cut the price of its entry level watch to $299 from $349 last month.
