Apple reportedly ships 600k HomePods during Q1 as Amazon faces increasing competition

Strategy Analytics is today out with its latest report covering the smart speaker market during the first quarter of 2018. The data shows that Apple shipped just over half a million HomePods during the quarter, locking in less than 10 percent in terms of marketshare…

The smart speaker market reached 9.2 million units shipped during the first quarter of 2018, with Amazon accounting for 4 million of those shipments. Following Amazon is Google with 2.4 million shipments and Alibaba with 700,000 shipments.

Amazon holds 43.6 percent of the market, which is down from the 81.8 percent it held during the first quarter of 2017. Meanwhile, Google’s marketshare increased dramatically from 12.4 percent to 26.5 percent.

According to Strategy Analytics, Apple shipped 600,000 HomePods during the first quarter, which equates to 6 percent of the total smart speaker market.

According to the latest quarterly research from Strategy Analytics, global smart speaker shipments reached 9.2 million units in Q1 2018. Market leader Amazon is estimated to have shipped an impressive 4 million smart speakers during the quarter though its global market share has nearly halved from the same period last year.

Google and Alibaba consolidated their number two and three rankings while Apple became the fourth largest smart speaker brand worldwide following the launch of the HomePod in February 2018.

Arguably what’s most interesting about today’s data is Amazon’s loss of marketshare. The company has largely dominated the smart speaker industry, but is now facing increased competition from Apple, Google, and Xiaomi. While its 4 million unit shipments are impressive, it’s certainly evident that it will have to do more to keep up with its newfound competition.

HomePod has faced several doomsday stories since its release. Several reports have indicated that Apple has slashed HomePod forecasts and supplier orders due to lackluster sales. The company, however, is rumored to have a lower-priced model coming at the end of this year to help complete its lineup.

Another important thing to note is that, at $349, HomePod will never compete on a unit shipment basis with companies like Google and Amazon, which offer versions of their smart speakers for as low as $49. As we’ve learned from the Mac and iPhone lineups, however, Apple doesn’t need to win in shipment numbers to succeed.

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