The worldwide smart home devices market will grow by nearly a third (31%) in 2018 compared to the previous year, rising to 643.9 million shipments, according a new smart device forecast from International Data Corporation (IDC).
The research firm further forecast that the entire smart home market — including smart speakers, video entertainment products, connected lighting, smart thermostats, and home monitoring/security products – will grow to almost 1.3 billion devices by 2022, representing a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.8%, led by an estimated 39.1% CAGR in smart speakers, particularly Amazon Echo and Google Home.
Home device shipments could be even higher, according to IDC, but privacy and security are still concerns for many consumers.
“While dedicated smart speakers with built-in voice assistants will be prevalent throughout the forecast, we’re already seeing a notable shift in this market,” said Jitesh Ubrani, IDC senior research analyst for mobile device trackers, in a prepared statement. “Many new types of devices, both inside and outside the home, now include built-in voice assistants. Not only do these help to increase the number of touch points available to end users, but it also helps each assistant to grow by expanding reach and gaining a deeper understanding of what, when, and how users approach various tasks.”
A few other highlights from the IDC research:
- Video entertainment products, primarily smart TVs and digital media adapters, will grow at a 10.9% annual compounded rate during the forecast period.
- Home monitoring/security devices will have a CAGR of 27.3% and will account for nearly one fifth (19.4%) of the smart home market by the end of 2022.
- The category of connected lighting, thermostats and other products is expected to have a five-year CAGR of 26.9%.