Samsung started selling smartwatches long before Apple and Xiaomi entered this race but it appears that the Korean manufacturer will soon find itself between a rock and a hard place, where on hand you have Apple ruling the premium smartwatch market and on the other Xiaomi sweeping the budget conscious customer. Samsung could find itself stuck between the two and thus feel the pinch from these relatively new entrants in the global wearable market.
Apple is believed to have sold some seven million units of the Apple Watch since it was released in April while Samsung's Galaxy Gear smartwatches are only said to have sold around two million units since they were released around two years ago. The Apple Watch's stellar performance has now made Apple the dominant force in the global smartwatch market with its lead set to extend as the Apple Watch goes on sale in additional markets every month. Apple has also positioned its first smartwatch as more of a fashion accessory with a variety of collections and colors, it has built a robust app ecosystem with over 3,500 apps, all of this has led research firm Strategy Analytics to predict that the Cupertino company will grab 54.8 percent of the global smartwatch market by the end of 2015.
Xiaomi is establishing its dominance among the budget conscious consumers by launching cheap wearable devices, its Mi Band is believed to have sold around six million units as of June 10. Mi Band is not really a smartwatch, it's more of an activity and fitness tracker, but Xiaomi is rumored to be working on a very cheap smartwatch which would certainly shake up the industry when it arrives. So where does Samsung stand in all this? It appears that all hopes must be pinned on the Orbis because it may have the potential to allow Samsung to challenge the Apple Watch. Samsung Orbis will be the company's first smartwatch with a round design and it's expected to be unveiled this September at the IFA 2015 in Berlin.
