by maomaobear
A while ago Tencent did a survey on wearable devices, with a sample size of 24,877 and with weighting applied, so its credibility is quite high. The data revealed some very interesting phenomena. Let’s take a look.
1. Wearable devices: much thunder, little rain
The data shows that among the internet population, a great many people know about wearable devices, but only 2.9% are willing to use one, which is a fairly low proportion. On the one hand this shows that the market still has great potential; on the other hand, it shows that today’s wearable devices have not yet found people’s real pain points, and too few people can actually make use of them. 
As for the types used, people still use whatever they can buy. And they are closely tied to phones. Smart glasses are all the rage, but you cannot buy them. Samsung’s smart watch and Xiaomi’s smart band are sold alongside phones, so it is very convenient for users to add some money and pick one up. So these two still hold a numerical advantage. 
2. Trying something new — novelty is the selling point
Looking at the channels through which people learn about them, tech websites are the main channel through which users hear about wearable devices, followed by product official sites and shopping sites. Online media, especially specialist media, play an important role in promoting wearable devices. 
I did the maths on the proportion of users who bought one themselves: about three quarters paid out of their own pocket. Adding in the 2.9% usage rate from above, only 2.17% of users actually paid money for a wearable device. In terms of channels, official sites and physical stores are also important channels for phone purchases, which shows that wearable devices are currently very closely tied to smartphones. 
The product usage rate is pitiful too: 58% of people are still using theirs, and the rest have basically given up, which shows that fitness bands are not very practical and that quite a few get thrown aside after the novelty wears off. 
The satisfaction rate is about the same as the still-using rate. Too few functions, poor battery life and the hassle of connecting to a phone are the three main reasons. A poor experience and not being of much use are the main problems with wearable devices. From this data, wearable devices are still at the toy stage: people see them introduced in the tech media, pick one up along with a phone purchase to play with, and stop using it once it turns out not to be much good. A product that truly hits a pain point and is widely accepted has yet to appear.
3. Who is using wearable devices?
There is a very interesting figure in the survey: students make up 20% of users, and 18.1% were unwilling to disclose their income. Students with no income account for no small share of wearable device users. Looking at the groups, people with an education from junior high school up to university, and the backbone of society aged 20-40, are also the main force consuming wearable devices. Wearable devices are gladly accepted by the backbone of society, but that shows their potential; the fact that they are not yet widespread is a problem with the products themselves, not with the users.
4. Conclusion
Judging from Tencent’s survey results, wearable devices are already recognised by netizens and have very high awareness among the mainstream population. They have great market potential, but since current products do not have sufficiently attractive features and the experience is not good either, people’s satisfaction and desire to buy are both fairly low, and they remain at the toy stage. There is still a long way to go from potential to sales. From www.zoopda.com/2719
