U.S. sales of connected devices are projected to reach 715 million units in 2018, which is a 6.6 percent growth year-on-year, according to the U.S. Consumer Technology Sales and Forecasts.
U.S. sales of connected devices are projected to reach 715 million units in 2018, which is a 6.6 percent growth year-on-year, according to the U.S. Consumer Technology Sales and Forecasts.
The report was compiled by Consumer Technology Association (CTA), the organizer of CES and the largest tech trade association in the U.S. The driving themes of CES 2018, including voice computing, AI and connectivity make people’s lives better and more efficient, said Gary Shapiro, CTA President and CEO.
Voice-controlled smart speakers, including Amazon Echo and Google Home, came off a tremendous 2017 holiday season, during which unit sales surged 279 percent. CTA predicts continued growth in 2018: 43.6 million in unit sales, while reaping in US$3.8 billion in revenues, a 93-percent increase.
“As voice recognition technology is integrated into more speakers at a variety of price points, smart speaker is a category to watch in 2018,” CTA said.
The popularity of smart speakers is likely to drive smart home adoption, CTA observed, predicting that sales in the category – including smart thermostats, smart smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, IP/Wi-Fi cameras, smart locks and doorbells, smart home systems and smart switches, dimmers and outlets – to reach US$4.5 billion in 2018, which represents a 34-percent increase.
Consumers are rapidly adopting new, emerging technology products with voice-activated smart speakers as the stand-out of 2017 and 2018, sparking growth in smart home devices, said Brian Markwalter, Senior Vice President of Research and Standards at CTA. “Voice interaction adds a new level of convenience and excitement to our lives,” Markwalter noted.
Global smart home market
The size of the global smart home market is also trending upward. Based on Statistica’s study, the market size will reach US$31.4 billion in 2018, up from US$27.5 billion in 2017.
The U.S. still has the highest smart home penetration in the world, followed by Japan and Germany.
Smart homes are predicted to spread not just to residential areas and living spaces, but various types of buildings, industries (the automotive industry in particular), and eventually lead to the emergence of whole smart cities, Statistica said.