Smart Home Appliances in Numbers
By: Alexey Pelykh
Tags: Strategy, Consumer Electronics, Marketing, Growth, Smart Home

A few years ago a smart home was perceived only as a place full of diverse interesting devices. But with technological progress, the concept of smart home has significantly changed — nowadays it is not only related to smart gadgets. A modern smart home is also about eco-friendliness and resource efficiency. It should be not only a curious place to live in, but also a very comfortable one. Apart from this, a smart home, as a tendency, engages with a smart city and a smart car. Together, all these components create a favourable environment for people.

Companies developing smart home appliances do their best to follow these trends, and so should you. To give you a better understanding of what the modern market of smart home appliances is, we prepared an analytical report about its size, numbers, trends and perspectives. Keep reading to discover all the details and get some inspiration to create the strategy of your own smart home device.

Smart Home Appliances: Definition and Main Categories

We would define smart home appliances as gadgets which take your commands, execute them, send you the information (if applicable) and communicate with each other in the smart home environment. Smart home appliances are a very broad category of gadgets, so we divided them into a few sub-categories:

Security and access control (smart locks, doorbells, cameras, etc.)

Smart monitoring and control (for instance, appliances for tracking energy and water consumption, smart thermostats, air conditioners and smoke detectors)

Lighting control (smart switches, bulbs and so on)

Smart kitchen (smart fridges, cookers, blenders, etc.)

Smart entertainment (smart music systems, TVs, speakers and so on)

Home healthcare (devices checking the quality of the air, gadgets dispensing pills and reminding users to take them, gadgets for sleep, etc.)

Others (for instance, smart gardening and smart bathroom appliances, waste recycling devices, and gadgets for filtering water before and after it reaches the house)

2019: Market Trends in Numbers

Here is a list of trends and facts backed by numbers — take a closer look.

1.

The smart home market is growing rapidly. In 2018, it was worth around $76 billion, while by 2024 it is expected to grow up to more than $151 billion.

2.

In particular, the size of the smart home healthcare market is expected to exceed $35 billion by 2024 — that’s almost 5 times more than it is expected in 2019! So if your project is going to belong to the healthcare category, it is high time to join the trend — such appliances will become more and more popular.

3.

70% of consumers who already have one smart home appliance are planning to purchase another one. Moreover, 81%of people who use such appliances claim that they would prefer to buy a house with some smart gadgets already installed.

4.

According to the research done in the UK In 2018, Amazon Echo became the most popular smart speaker (69%), while Google Home took the second place (19%). Apple HomePod was the least demanded — only 1% of consumers preferred it. Consider these numbers, as the situation is not expected to change a lot in 2019.

Smart Speakers Market Research

5.

By the way, around 50% of those users who own multiple smart home appliances are interested in buying a hub to connect them. This is another reason to make your future smart gadget compatible, for instance, with Amazon Alexa.

6.

And here the top devices consumers were interested in 2018. There is no detailed statistics as of 2019 yet, but you can still use this data to create your strategy — things are not likely to change significantly.

Top devices consumers were interested in 2018

7.

Wi-Fi 6 (also known as 802.11ax) is expected to become the most demanded technology to be used to ensure wireless connectivity. Thanks to new chipsets developed by Intel and Qualcomm, it will work from 5 to 10 times faster than the technology we use at the moment.

8.

Regarding the main reasons why people refuse to buy smart home appliances, high cost is at the top. According to the research, 66% of non-users think that smart devices are too expensive. 39% of people are not sure how well these gadgets work, while 37% think that the technology is still developing — they don’t feel confident about its reliability. The 4th place is taken by those who worry about their privacy — 27%. In turn, 24% of non-users aren’t really concerned about security, health, and other aspects of their lives which can be improved by smart home appliances. The last place is occupied by those who didn’t see the need to buy such a gadget until recently — 22%.

According to research (credit: McKinsey)

9.

Speaking of key factors which motivate consumers to buy safety and security gadgets, ease of use comes first (82%). Monthly service price is just a bit less important — 81%. Reliability takes the third place (80%). However, all these factors are still almost equal in their importance, so it is crucial to cover all of them in case you are planning to work on such a device.

10.

If we talk about the users’ willingness to pay for monthly service of safety and security devices, only 45% are ready to pay more than $20 (per month). When it comes to diverse utilities management devices, the rate is even lower — 12%. Gadgets for wellness monitoring are the least popular in terms of monthly service — only 6% of consumers are willing to pay the above-mentioned amount.

According to research (credit: McKinsey)

Our List of Top Products from CES 2019

CES 2019 showcased numerous smart home appliances. This list doesn’t include each and every smart home appliance unveiled there (the article would be much longer in this case), but we prepared for you some details about the most interesting and exciting gadgets.

When talking about voice-activated assistants, most people imagine Amazon Echo or Google Home — they imagine something looking like a speaker. But Simplehuman Sensor Mirror Hi-Fi Assist breaks these stereotypes. Apart from being an a mirror with excellent illumination, this device features Google Assistant and is backed by an app which allows customising the mirror according to your preferences.

KitchenAid Smart Display is a perfect companion for any cook. It also features Google Assistant, and allows finding new recipes and watching cooking tutorials. Ordering groceries is available as well. Those users who sign up for premium services, also get access to step-by-step recipes from famous master chefs. But water-resistance is the best feature of this hub — it can be cleaned under the running water, so you don’t have to worry that you will get it dirty with dough, oil, sauce or anything else.

With this gadget, you can talk to your visitors from anywhere in the world. When someone rings the doorbell, your smartphone receives a video call, and you decide if you want to respond this guest or not. Besides, Netatmo Smart Video Doorbell has the people detection feature, so you will know that someone is standing in front of your door even if they don’t push the bell’s button. And using an in-built microphone and speaker, you will also be able to scare such unwanted visitors off.

Eve Light Strip can significantly refresh your interior — this Wi-Fi connected LED light strip is very flexible, and can be installed in any shape. The choice of colors is up to you, as LEDs feature a triple-diode architecture and make any color possible. Obviously, the brightness can also be customised. Eve Light Strip works with iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and iPod Touch. In turn, HomePod, Apple TV or iPad can deliver functions of a home hub.

Ecovacs Atmobot is an autonomous air-purifying robot. Using a laser distance sensor and ultrasonic sensors, it selects purifying spots in your house, and then move between them and make the air you breathe cleaner and fresher. The robot is rather independent, but with the help of a special app you can take it under control. Smart assistant integration is not available at the moment, but it will come later.

Now you are familiar with the current condition of the market of smart home appliances and can use this information to create a strategy for your own product. However, if you have any extra questions, we are always ready to help. Just get in touch with us, and we will get back to you.

Source: https://brainbeanapps.com/best-practices/smart-home-appliances-industry-in-numbers/

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