Apple’s HomePod device accounts for just 5% of the smart speaker market in the United States, according to data from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners.
As expected, Amazon continues to dominate the market and is the number one smart speaker brand in the United States, followed by Google which trails in second place.
Amazon dominating the market
Amazon Echo accounted for around 70% of all smart speakers in the United States in the second quarter of 2019, the data revealed, with Google Home in second place with 25%.
The market as a whole has continued to grow, with more than 76 million smart speakers in the United States alone.
That figure is up from 70 million in the first quarter of 2019.
By comparison, last June approximately 50 million smart speakers were installed across the United States – representing a 26 million unit increase, or around 50% year-on-year.
Speaking of the data, Josh Lowitz, Partner and Co-Founder of CIRP, said: “While the biggest growth in the market for smart speakers is in the holiday fourth quarter, Amazon Echo and Google Home continues to grow their installed bases in the past couple of quarters.”
“The market grew by 9% in the second quarter, and more than 50% year over year. Including Apple HomePod, all three major producers have maintained steady shares of the market in the past year.
“Continued aggressive pricing of the entry-level models seems to continue to encourage new customers to try a smart speaker and existing owners to consider adding more devices to their home.”
A cheaper HomePod?
The most popular speakers are cheap models like the Echo Dot and Google Home Mini, which combined account for more than half of all smart speakers sold in the quarter.
And despite Apple dropping the price of its HomePod to $299 (cheaper on some websites and in some retail stores as part of promotions), the device is still very expensive compared to options from Google and Amazon, leaving Apple struggling to catch up.
The Echo Dot, for example, is priced at $50 but has been marketed as low as $20 in sale periods like Amazon Prime Day, and Google has been running similar offers, too.
Apple has been rumored to be releasing a cheaper HomePod in the coming months, but those rumors are sketchy and there’s no concrete guarantee the company will drop its pricing or launch a “lite” HomePod.
Do you have a HomePod? Are you surprised to see Apple lagging behind Google and Amazon when it comes to the smart speaker market, or does the company have more to do if it wants to grab a decent slice of the pie? Drop us a tweet with your answers.