According to the latest research from our Wearable Device Ecosystems (WDE) service, global smartwatch shipments reached a record 2 million units in 2013. Android captured 61 percent share of all smartwatches shipped worldwide and it is commanding an early lead over rivals.

Global smartwatch shipments reached a record 1.9 million units in 2013. It is very early days, of course, but the smartwatch market is starting to take shape. We estimate less than 1 percent of all smartphones shipped worldwide were bundled with smartwatches in 2013, so there remains huge scope for smartwatch growth in the future.

Android shipped a record 1.2 million smartwatches worldwide for 61 percent marketshare in 2013. Android shipped more smartwatches than the rest of the entire market combined. Android’s growth has been driven mostly by Samsung’s Galaxy Gear model, which is being promoted heavily in major countries such as the US, UK and South Korea.

Android currently has several challengers in the smartwatch space, like Firefox and Pebble OS, but none of them are a major threat at this stage because of their relatively limited ecosystems and modest retail presence. Android’s main risk to its smartwatch dominance in the future will come from Apple iOS, Microsoft, and perhaps Tizen or COS. These four brands have the potential scale or marketing power to offer a credible alternative to Google’s popular platform.

Exhibit 1: Global Smartwatch OS Shipments and Market Share in 2013 [1]

[1]  Numbers are rounded. The period 2013 refers to the full calendar year of January to December.