Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Smart Home
  3. News

Amazon Echo smart speaker feels squeeze as Google and Apple make gains

Trevor Mogg
By

Smart speakers are all the rage just now, with the market becoming more competitive with every passing month.

Amazon started the craze with the launch of its first Alexa-powered Echo speaker back in 2014, but more recently other big hitters such as Google and Apple have entered the market with their own offerings, putting pressure on sales of Amazon’s growing range of smart speakers.

Recommended Videos

Global smart speaker shipments reached 9.2 million units in the first quarter of 2018, the latest data from research firm Strategy Analytics suggests.

Click to enlarge. Image used with permission by copyright holder

Amazon is estimated to have shipped 4 million units during the period from January to March, but its global share of the market has fallen by almost 50 percent from the same quarter a year ago.

Related

The squeeze isn’t just the result of the growing popularity of Google’s smart speakers, or indeed the arrival of Apple’s HomePod speaker in February, but also because of a surge in interest among consumers in China, who are flocking to smart speakers made by local tech firms such as Xiaomi and Alibaba.

Strategy Analytics’ data indicates that Amazon had 43.6 percent of the market in the first quarter — down from 81.8 percent a year earlier — with Google in second place with 26.5 percent, up from 12.4 percent a year ago. Alibaba is positioned third with 7.6 percent, Apple next with 6 percent, and Xiaomi fifth with 2.4 percent.

“Amazon and Google accounted for a dominant 70 percent share of global smart speaker shipments in the first quarter of 2018, although their combined share has fallen from 84 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017 and 94 percent in the year ago quarter,” Strategy Analytics director David Watkins said in a release.

He put it down, in part, to strong smart-speaker growth in China, where major Western brands are currently absent. Alibaba and Xiaomi are the leaders there, with their strong showing in the domestic market alone enabling them to push into the global top five, Watkins said.

Strategy Analytics vice president David Mercer noted that while the current crop of smart speakers are “by no means the finished article,” the device has nevertheless succeeded in capturing consumers’ imaginations at its relatively early stage of development.

Mercer predicted that the smart speaker market is set to see a “rapid evolution in design, functionality, and associated use cases over the coming years,” adding, “We are clearly heading toward a time in the not too distant future when voice becomes a standard mode of technology interaction alongside established approaches like keyboard, mouse, and touchscreen.”

If you’re yet to dive into the smart-speaker market and want to find out more, be sure to check out Digital Trends’ look at some of the best smart speakers on the market today.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Trevor Mogg
Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Apple HomePod vs. Apple HomePod 2023
Apple HomePod second-gen.

It has been quite a few years since Apple first launched the (now-defunct) HomePod, but the old smart speaker has been given a revival. The second generation HomePod retails for $299, and it offers some serious improvements over the original. Not only does it bring enhanced audio quality, but there are plenty of other upgrades that make it much better than its older sibling. Here’s a closer look at all the differences (and similarities) between the original HomePod and HomePod 2023.
Design

When compared side by side, you won’t notice many differences between the two HomePods. The new HomePod is about 200 grams lighter than the original model and is a couple of millimeters shorter, but overall the two are very similar. The touchpad on top of the HomePod 2023 is also a bit larger and now extends almost all the way to the edge of the device. Beyond those minor differences, they both sport an oblong design and come in multiple colors.
Speakers and sound
A diagram of the second-gen Apple HomePod internals (left) seen next to those of the first-gen HomePod. Image used with permission by copyright holder

Read more
Apple finally activates HomePod Mini’s hidden temperature/humidity sensor
Black HomePod mini on a side table, in front of an Apple TV

Apple recently revealed its second-gen HomePod, which is set to become the company’s flagship smart speaker in 2023. Featuring the S7 chipset, spatial audio, Matter compatibility, and tons of fancy room-sensing tech, the device is certain to be a hit when it launches in February. It’ll also feature a temperature and humidity sensor. Oddly enough, so does the existing HomePod Mini -- except Apple has only just activated the feature.

Apple has kept the temperature and humidity sensor deactivated for years, although now, with the launch of a new HomePod around the corner, the company has finally gone ahead and turned on the instrument in its existing Home Mini lineup. Once your HomePod Mini receives the update, you’ll be able to use it to track both the temperature and humidity in your home, then use that information to create various automations through Apple Home.

Read more
Apple reportedly working on a new iPad-like smart home display
Someone holding the 12.9-inch version of the iPad Pro (2022).

Apple recently announced a new HomePod with support for Matter, but it seems the company might have bigger smart home plans for the rest of 2023. According to the latest report from Bloomberg, Apple is allegedly working on an iPad-like device that could directly compete with Amazon’s Echo Show and Google’s Nest Hub Max.

Details on the rumored product are scarce, but it seems the device would feature a touchscreen and function similar to an iPad. Magnets would allow it to be mounted to a wall, and HomeKit would give it access to all your smart home products. It’s unclear at this time if the device would feature a stand, allowing it to sit on your countertops like the Echo Show and Nest Hub. What is clear, however, is that Apple wants to gain a stronger foothold in the smart home market -- and this could serve as a great alternative to using the HomePod Mini as a HomeKit hub.

Read more