According to Strategy Analytics, Apple sold just under 4.5 million of the HomePod mini in the first quarter. For the first time, Apple has the best-selling smart speaker model globally, surpassing Amazon’s fourth-generation Echo Dot and Google’s Nest Mini, both of which are considerably less expensive than the HomePod mini.
In the first quarter of 2022, Apple sold 4.5 million HomePod mini devices, enough for a 12.7 percent share of a 35.3 million unit pie, indicating that it is capable of efficiently moving its own devices (after the retirement of the “standard” HomePod).
Google’s Nest Hub and Amazon’s Echo Show 8 were in second and third place, with Strategy Analytics not providing sales data for the other models. It does, however, provide sales figures for the overall smart speaker market. When all Amazon and Google’s various smart speakers are considered, Apple drops to third place.
Overall, Amazon sold 9.9 million smart speakers, with the second generation of its Echo Show 5 accounting for 1.6 million devices, according to Strategy Analytics. Google is in second place with a total sales figure of 6.1 million, although it did not specify how many Nest Hubs were sold.
Apple was also able to post a much wider increase in sales than it did during the same period last year. The HomePod mini increased by 29.9 percent, Google expanded by 6.6 percent, and Amazon grew by 1.5 percentage points YoY.
How did Apple beat Google and Amazon?
While the worldwide smartphone market has taken a hit in recent years, younger and less-densely populated parts of the technology sector have outperformed expectations by growing at a rapid pace.
With Amazon still dominating the market for smart speakers, it’s easy to assume that 2021 was a good year for them. However, the first three months of 2022 were not as successful for these internet-connected assistants as they had been in previous years… until now. Amazon has always dominated this industry and pushed rivals like Google and Apple far behind. However, things are changing fast due to competition among some manufacturers seeking to drive up demand.
The top three Chinese technology companies’ double-digit drops helped Apple achieve the vendor throne, but Amazon and Google remain unrivaled in their gold and silver medal positions, respectively. Naturally, attributing the HomePod mini’s rise to recent Chinese restrictions and other market “disruptions” resulting from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine only is highly unjustified, especially when considering another remarkable accomplishment performed by the Siri-enabled speaker.
However, Strategy Analytics expects the growth of the HomePod mini to “plateau significantly” in 2023, “as Apple uses up its chances to sell HomePods to its iPhone consumer base.”
With numerous models under their belts, Amazon and Google now have a 28.2% and 17.2% market share, respectively, compared to the first quarter of last year when they had single-digit growth rates.
Three top Chinese players are anticipated to rebound… in mid-2023 at the earliest, while the top three global vendors will have to overcome their big challenges… somehow. The US market is starting to show clear indications of saturation, making life difficult for Amazon, Google, and Apple. The latter also has to worry about “exhausting potentials to sell HomePods to its iPhone consumer base.”
