Information about how well Android Wear has been doing has been scarce over the past year; however numbers showing exactly how many units have been sold have been released.
Analysts suggest that over 720,000 Android Wear smartwatches were shipped in 2014, which certainly isn't as many as some would have hoped.
"Over 720,000 Android Wear devices shipped in 2014 out of a total of 4.6 million smart wearable bands," said Canalys, the company that announced the numbers. "Though the Moto 360 remained supply constrained through Q4, Motorola was the clear leader among Android Wear vendors. LG's round G Watch R performed significantly better than its original G Watch, while Asus and Sony entered the market with their own Android Wear devices."
It's no surprise that the Moto 360 was the most well received Android Wear device, being released to a much fanfare and hype, largely because of the fact that at the time of its release, it was the best-designed Android Wear smartwatch. While that title could now be disputed, it is still very celebrated.
In the "general wearable band" category, Fitbit was the winner, with this likely to continue in 2015, based on the fact that the company has just released two more smart bands.
The smart band market, however, has a different leader. Samsung was the clear winner in the smart band category, largely because of the fact that it released a whopping six devices on a number of different platforms in a matter of just over a year. Despite this, the report suggests that the company is struggling to keep customers engaged and interested in its devices.
Another problem for Samsung will be Xiaomi, a Chinese company that is beating Samsung in China in smartphones, and it seems as though wearables might by Xiaomi's next conquest. Xiaomi formally launches in the United States and will market the wearable technology, along with headphones and powerbanks.
The future of the smart watch, and Android Wear, is a very interesting one. This is especially true because of the fact that the Apple Watch is set to be released in a matter of months. On the one hand, many suggest that the Apple Watch will bring the wearable category to the forefront of consumer consciousness, and Android Wear will ride this wave. On the other hand, some suggest that the Apple Watch will essentially make Android Wear devices irrelevant.
"Apple made the right decisions with its WatchKit software development kit to maximize battery life for the platform, and the Apple Watch will offer leading energy efficiency," said Canalys Analyst Daniel Matte. "Android Wear will need to improve significantly in the future, and we believe it will do so."
