True wireless earphones became truly mainstream in India this year, with almost every tech brand trying its hand at this segment. Now we have data to verify these claims, confirming that the TWS shipments did actually explode over the last few months.
Counterpoint Research has published its TWS shipments report for India for the third quarter of 2020, revealing key insights and some interesting facts about the market. The segment grew by 723% as compared to Q3 of last year, recording the highest-ever growth in a single quarter.
While some product categories experienced stagnation, the hearable market defied the impact of the economic slowdown. This growth was further driven by inventory build-up prior to the festive season, frequent sales and ample options due to the new entrants in the space.
Indian brand BoAt emerged as the market leader in Q3, capturing 18% of the market share with its affordable offerings at multiple price points, such as the Airdopes 441. Xiaomi, including its sub-brands, retained the second position with 16% share. The new Redmi Earbuds 2C at Rs 999 became the best-selling true wireless earbuds this quarter. Realme slipped to the third position with no major new launch this season. However, the Realme Buds Air Neo and the Buds Q were amongst the best-selling models. JBL succumbed to the competition, dropping to 8% from 15% in Q2, indicating a shift in preference towards lower-end products which were cheaper.
Once a pioneer, Apple returned to the leaderboard with a 6% share, thanks to strong sales of the AirPods (2019). It also managed to bring up the average selling price of TWS in the segment. Counterpoint suggests that the exclusion of wired earphones with the iPhone 12 series was also a factor here.
The rise in remote working and related activities such as increased calls and media consumption made truly wireless earphones indispensable in India. Accordingly, most smartphone OEMs entered the space to benefit from the potential of the market.
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