Wearables are big business for Apple as its watch sales nearly double in a year

Apple reported financial results for the first quarter of 2017 that were mostly in line with expectations. The company earned $11 billion on revenues of $52.9 billion.

One of the company’s fastest growing segments is its wearables business. It seems the release of Apple Watch Series 2 gave Apple a much needed financial boost. Tim Cook said that Apple Watch sales nearly doubled year on year and touted it as the best selling smartwatch in the world.

Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets for 2017

However, no exact figures were given as Apple Watch sales are bundled into Apple’s “other devices” category which also includes the Apple TV, Beats products, iPod, and Apple-branded and third-party accessories. Sales in this category posted a 31% increase in revenue over the prior year.

“Combine Apple Watch, AirPods, and Beats and our revenue from wearable products in the last four quarters was the size of a Fortune 500 company,” said Cook.

Its not really surprising that Apple Watch sales are doing well. While the Cupertino company didn’t deliver a significant design refresh in 2016, new components in Apple Watch Series 2 make it better, while software upgrades makes it smarter and more useful. The design, hardware and software updates mean the Apple Watch is finally getting closer to where it should have been all along.

Cook also added that he is not surprised that some of the competition has pulled back from the smartwatch market.

“I’m not very surprised that some people are falling out of it,” said Cook

“but we are very committed to it and believe it is a big business and feel that over time it will be larger

It seems we can expect more innovative products from Apple. Cook said Apple has a “really great pipeline here” – though he wouldn’t give out any more specific information.

Like this article? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter and never miss out.

Marko Maslakovic

Marko founded Gadgets & Wearables in 2014, having worked for more than 15 years in the City of London’s financial district. Since then, he has led the company’s charge to become a leading information source on health and fitness gadgets and wearables.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.