New Delhi, Aug 26 (IANS): India's wearables market grew 118.2 per cent year-over-year (YoY) in 2Q21 (April-June), shipping 11.2 million units, a new report said in Thursday.

According to the International Data Corporation's (IDC) India Monthly Wearable Device Tracker, watches continued to be the fastest-growing category accounting for 81.2 per cent share in the wristwear category that includes watches and wristbands, up from 35 per cent a year ago.

The earwear category also maintained its momentum, doubling its shipments in 2Q21 and remains the largest category in wearables.

The second wave of Covid-19 had a marginal impact as the overall wearable shipments declined by 1.3 per cent sequentially in 2Q21. Partial lockdowns, weekend curfews, and disrupted supply chains resulted in a skewed slump in the early-quarter shipments. However, unlike last year, the market was quick to recover as the vendors stocked the channels to fulfil the pent-up consumer demand in June'21.

Over the quarters, the watch form factor seems to be appealing to the consumers, and Indian brands have been quicker to leverage this trend and align their device portfolio. Among the top five brands, three spots are captured by Indian brands, while Huami and Realme are at third and fifth positions, respectively.

Noise continues to be the leading player in the overall watch category for five straight quarters with a 28.6 per cent share in 2Q21 and closely followed by BoAt with a 26.9 per cent share. Fire-boltt, another homegrown brand, has entered at fourth position in just three quarters of starting its business in this category.

However, Xiaomi maintains its formidable lead in the wristband category with 38.9 per cent share.

"Affordability has been the key for Indian brands, and these brands have been immensely successful in gaining a significant portion of the watch market with competitive pricing, aggressive marketing, and faster adoption of new features," IDC India, Market Analyst, Client Devices, Anisha Dumbre said in a statement.

The earwear category grew by 113.1 per cent YoY in 2Q21, shipping 9.2-million-units. BoAt's aggressive shipments and diverse portfolio helped it gain a dominant 45.5 per cent share in 2Q21. It also led the TWS category with a 39.6 per cent share in the quarter. OnePlus finished second with an 8.5 per cent category share in the second quarter of this year.