Today Canalys released statistics on "Wristwatches," a muddled category that includes both smartwatches and "basic watches." Canalys doesn't describe what they consider a "basic watch." More than likely Canalys has added "basic watch" to water down Apple's massive market lead.

Canalys report goes on to note that "Wristwatch shipments overtook those of basic bands for the first time in Q4 2020, and this trend has continued since then, with wristwatches accounting for over 60% of all wearable band shipments for three consecutive quarters to date. Canalys expects wristwatches to be the key growth driver for the wearable band category for years to come.

In the "Wristwatch" category, Apple is shown to be the clear leader holding 31.1% market share. In the real wristwatch category, Xiaomi is in 5^th position with 5.7% market share.

Canalys clearly states: "Apple continues to lead the global wristwatch market, commanding a sizable lead with a 31.1% market share in Q2 2021 with 29.4% growth Year over Year.

Apple has yet to enter the cheap fitness band segment. While Apple was  granted a patent for a fitness band in 2020, it's unknown if they'll ever bring this to market. The image below is from Apple's granted patent. Even if Apple ever does enter that market, they won't be selling bands in the dirt cheap price range, to be sure. 

In respect to "wearable band" shipments, what is Canalys talking about? They present a chart with Xiaomi inching Apple out in this category. What? Xiaomi sells dirt cheap fitness band-like devices at $9-39 with a watch face as presented below. Apple sells watch bands as an Apple Watch accessory. How do you lump those two completely different things in one made-up category? It's a useless creation to make it like Xiaomi surpassed Apple at something. 

With Apple Watch 7 with its new design and larger display, Apple's lead is likely to spike in Q3-Q4. That of course will happen if its recent manufacturing delay gets ironed out quickly. 

For more on this, read the full Canalys report.