MacRumors reports that a recent survey conducted by UBS indicates that overall interest in the smartwatch market is on the rise, a trend likely influenced by the upcoming release of the Apple Watch.
In a survey sent out to 4,000 people across five countries, 10% of respondents indicated that they're "very likely" to purchase a new smartwatch in the next 12 months while 17% indicated that they're "somewhat likely" to do so.
That is a three-fold increase vis-à-vis the 386 respondents claiming to already own a smartwatch and a four-fold increase if we assume that around one-third of the currently owned smartwatches are actually fitness bands
Based on the 10% figure cited above, UBS analysts anticipate that Apple Watch sales over the next year may check in at 24 million units. That figure is based on 10% of the estimated number (240 million) of compatible Apple Watch devices (iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 and 6 Plus).
Statistics can be skewed quite easily and these figures should understandably be taken with a grain of salt. Note that the UBS survey centers on smartwatch purchases in general and not the Apple Watch in particular. Further, the 10% figure UBS uses in its 24 million calculation may not be appropriate if one assumes that decent percentage of surveyed respondents don't own Apple Watch compatible devices to begin with. What's more, it's hard -- and perhaps foolish -- to predict consumer behavior when full pricing information for Apple's highly anticipated wearable device hasn't yet been released.
Still, one can't deny that overall interest in the smartwatch segment is increasing, a fact which bodes well for Apple's foray into an entirely new product category. As for a release date, a report surfaced last month claiming that Apple is aiming to release the Apple Watch sometime this Spring.
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