Recently, IDC Japan released Japan's wearable device shipment statistics report for the fourth quarter of 2021, which shows that the Japanese wearable device market has shrunk in the last quarter of last year, but Apple still occupies the leading position with more than 70% of the market share. Apple's influence in Japan is there for all to see, not just in its iPhone lineup, but also in the wearables market. Among them, the main product is naturally the Apple Watch series.
1, accounting for 70% of the market share, Apple wearable devices are proud of the Japanese market
According to the report data, in the fourth quarter of 2021, the total shipment of wearable devices in Japan was 2.52 million units, down 6.7% year-on-year. However, for the whole year of 2021, the total shipment of wearable devices in Japan reached 8.03 million units, an increase of 6.6% year-on-year. Apple shipped 1.8 million units in the fourth quarter of 2021, accounting for about 71.5% of total shipments, down 2.8 percentage points from the same period last year.
In recent years, there have been more and more types of wearable devices, common ones are smart watches, smart bracelets, ear-worn products and so on. In addition to the types become more abundant, the device functions are also more and more, in addition to the conventional viewing time, call, electronic payment and other functions, but also added health monitoring, activity management and other health elements of the function, it is these functions and applications of continuous innovation to open up a new consumer market.
In the Japanese market, the influence of local consumer electronics companies in Japan is limited, especially in the wearable device market, which is different from the Chinese market. In the Chinese market, there are many manufacturers of wearable devices, and mobile phone manufacturers such as Huawei, Honor, OPPO, Xiaomi and so on are involved in the wearable device market. From smart bracelets to smart watches, this is also one of the directions that mobile phone companies have been laying out. Moreover, the influence of Chinese mobile phone manufacturers in the international market and the reserves of technology are interconnected, and it is reasonable to obtain a certain market share.
Japan's mobile phone companies have long since declined, and they have lost their former glory, so it is logical that there is no better performance in the wearable device market. The development of consumer electronics technology in Japan is represented by giants such as Sony, Toshiba, and Fujitsu, but in the development of wearable technology, these giants obviously do not participate much, so the corresponding products are also very scarce. Moreover, the mobile phone business of these traditional "Japanese" manufacturers has basically shrunk, and Sony has focused more on games and images, including sensors, and the contraction on mobile terminals is more obvious. It is reasonable that Apple can obtain sufficient market share in the Japanese market, after all, the popularity and reputation of the Apple Watch series of products are obvious to all, and japanese users are also very receptive to the products of American companies.
2. Why don't wearable devices from innovative Japanese companies stand out?
In terms of the wearable device market, some innovative companies in Japan have actually had good technical potential and research and development momentum. For example, Japanese companies have demonstrated non-invasive continuous blood glucose monitoring equipment. The company's prototype wearable device, which can accurately measure blood glucose from the wrist, is equipped with a small spectrometer inside to scan blood to monitor glucose. In addition to blood glucose monitoring, the watch can also monitor other vital signs, including heart rate and electrocardiogram.
As we all know, many smart watches or smart bracelets today have increased the function of heart rate and electrocardiogram, including blood oxygen and other monitoring have been realized, only the monitoring of blood glucose, has not really been realized, especially non-invasive monitoring of blood glucose has not been the corresponding mobile terminal products have come out. Nowadays, there are many "sugar friends", if there is a wearable device that can monitor blood sugar in real time without invasiveness, I believe that it will get the likes and purchases of many "sugar friends", but there is no mature related wearable device at present. The attempts of Japanese companies in this regard have not been further promoted.
It is reported that the core technology of the product of japanese companies is a patented spectral material in watches and straps. With it, the wearer simply swipes the watch, activates the monitoring function in the menu, and after about 20s, the data will be displayed. However, I don't know how high the accuracy is? As we all know, non-invasive blood glucose monitoring is a technical bottleneck that the medical industry and wearable device manufacturers attach great importance to, with the rising rate of obesity, there are more and more users with abnormal blood glucose today, and the increase of "sugar friends" also stimulates technological breakthroughs in this field.
To stay healthy, today's diabetics either need regular blood tests or implant a glucose tester. If there is a simple wearable device that can dynamically meet this monitoring in real time, I believe that the purchasing power of the market is extremely large. Unfortunately, no company has succeeded in launching such a simple wearable device today. There have also been rumors in the market that Apple's Apple Watch 8 will launch such a function, but it is only a kind of speculation. Of course, there is news that Apple has been developing a blood glucose monitoring platform. But the current Apple Watch series products have not yet implemented this function.
3, wearable is not good, why is Japan's female intelligent robots so hot?
In the Japanese market, the share of wearable devices by Japanese companies is not high. However, when it comes to female robots, Japanese companies have unique capabilities and market shares. With the ability of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and AI chips becoming more and more prominent, the research and development and advent of high-tech intelligent robots in the Japanese market are becoming more and more realistic, especially the emergence of some female intelligent robots, which makes the market full of expectations.
We have noticed that many Internet companies and scientific research teams have developed robots with their own characteristics, including Google, Microsoft, Baidu, etc. have set up robot research and development projects. Bill Gates has also predicted that home robots will soon sweep the world. Nowadays, including banks, hotels, airports, hospitals, restaurants and other public places with large traffic, there are gradually different shapes of service robots, which can almost do most of the daily work, including delivering express delivery, doing housework, querying and guiding routes, etc. Robots play an increasingly diverse role in human society.
In addition to such robots, Japanese companies seem to have a special love for female intelligent robots. It is reported that the female robot developed and manufactured by a Japanese company has stimulated consumers' enthusiasm for purchase as soon as it is listed, and it is almost immediately snatched up. One of the reasons why users snapped up the purchase is that this female robot in Japan is not only fully functional, resembling a real person, the internal structure is also very precise, the skin is made of high-quality silicone material with soft touch, and the interior is composed of a large number of precision parts, which can simulate the temperature close to the human body and can be adjusted by itself.
In terms of functions, almost all the skills commonly used in life are equipped, and a large number of built-in NPU modules are implanted in the body to develop more practical functions for robots. Japanese companies are the world leaders in female robots, and female robots developed in Japan can even replace the position of wife to a certain extent. For example, being able to cook, do laundry, sweep the floor, and so on. In addition, the female robots developed by Japanese companies can realize the interaction between humans and machines because they are implanted with more AI chips. When a human issues a task command, the robot can react quickly and make corresponding actions, and even be able to perceive human emotions, such as when the owner is sad, the robot will tell jokes to make the owner happy, and even communicate with the owner face-to-face.
Interestingly, although female robots in Japanese companies have won the favor of male users, they have been resisted and complained by female users. As we all know, Japan is a country with a very low marriage rate and fertility rate, and most women in Japan no longer desire to get married, and this environment has also created Japan's "otaku" culture. The emergence of female robots fills the inner emptiness of "otaku", which is also an important reason for the popularity of the female robot market, and the emergence of female robots is considered by the Japanese female group to be an insult and contempt for the female group.
Of course, if you put aside the gender discrimination, the continuous progress of science and technology, will undoubtedly promote the rapid development of intelligent robots, we enjoy the convenience of science and technology at the same time, we can also see that robots gradually replace simple and repeated manual work has become unstoppable, perhaps the future robot will be like mobile phones and computers into thousands of households, become a part of our lives. If so, are you okay with that?