According to new data from research firm Strategy Analytics, Apple has nearly doubled its market share in the smart speaker segment thanks to HomePod mini. In the third quarter of 2020, it had only a 5.9% market share. That has nearly doubled to 10.2% in Q3 of 2021. Amazon and Google continue to dominate the industry with a combined 50% market share between the two companies.
Apple’s HomePod mini is performing better in the market than its predecessor
Strategy Analytics estimates that the Cupertino tech giant shipped 4 million smart speakers in the third quarter of 2021, capturing a 10.2% share of the combined smart speaker and smart screen market. Google’s Nest Mini was the top-selling device in the segment, followed by the HomePod mini and Amazon’s fourth-generation Echo Dot.
Amazon leads the segment with a total market share of 26.4%. Google is in the second position with a market share of 20.5%. Baidu and Alibaba come in third and fourth place with a respective market share of 13.6% and 10.8%. Apple comes in at number five and Xiaomi is in the sixth position with a 5.1% market share.
Unfortunately, the smart speaker industry is unable to keep up with consumer demand. David Watkins, Director of Intelligent Home, said that almost all companies in the segment are experiencing supply chain issues.
While our earlier forecasts showed we expected the market to return to stronger growth levels in 2021 if component supply constraints eased, this scenario is not playing out. China alone typically accounts for 30% to 40% of the global market each quarter, so challenges experienced by Alibaba, Baidu, and Xiaomi will be indicators for how well – or not – China is managing its supply chain issues. The contract manufacturers partnered with these three, and dozens of other smart speaker and smart display brands, are settling in for a prolonged period of supply chain issues.
Launched in 2020, HomePod mini offers advanced technology for a fraction of the price of its predecessor. With a price tag of $99, the speaker is powered by an S5 chip that offers rich acoustic sound powered by computational audio and advanced software. It pairs seamlessly with iPhone and features native Siri support which is private and secure.
Beyond getting new yellow, orange, and blue color options this year, HomePod mini has not been updated since it launched in October 2020.
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