TWS (true wireless stereo hearables) and smartwatches continued to shore up the wearables market in 2020, with annual TWS shipments expected to grow 83% to 238m units, while smartwatches will weather subdued category spending to increase 2% to tip the 100m mark.

The wearables market is divided into five distinct segments, of which earwear and wristwear comprise the majority of devices. Combined, they accounted for 93% of the overall market with earwear growing fastest on product changes from vendors and shifts in consumer demand.

Based on the latest figures from Counterpoint Research’s TWS Market Tracker and Smartwatch Model Tracker, premium products continued to lead, with Apple products comprising 29% and 28% of TWS and smartwatch shipments. Ms. Lim observed that, “Apple’s powerful iOS ecosystem, typically comprised of consumers with larger disposable incomes, has been the main driver for growth – especially in terms of revenues.