45 Million Smartwatches Expected to Ship by 2017

The wearable wristband market is already heating up, but forecasts expect more than 17 million wearable devices will ship in 2014. This includes both smartwatches and fitness wristband trackers.

According to research firm Canalys, annual smartwatch shipments alone are estimated to reach 8 million in 2014; that number is estimated to grow to more 23 million units by 2015 and more than 45 million by 2017

Fitbit became the leader in the wristband fitness tracker space in 2013, thanks to its Flex, a wristband that launched in May and even smarter Force device that debuted in October. In the second half of 2013, Fitbit dominated the market with 58% market share, followed by the Jawbone UP (21%) and Nike's Fuelband devices (13%). Read more...