Do you need a smart watch? Most internet users in China don’t think they do?and their numbers have grown as they have seen the early marketing for the Apple Watch, according to research from CTR Market Research.
CTR conducted its first survey about the Apple Watch in March, and at that time, 41% of internet users who weren’t planning to pre-order the product said they just didn’t need a smart watch. When CTR followed up in April, after more fanfare surrounding Apple’s launch, 56% said they didn’t need a smart watch.
The other main barrier to buying was price: 37% of April respondents said the Apple Watch was too expensive.
Meanwhile, loyalty to Apple emerged as the runaway reason for buying one. While just 13% of internet users who planned to buy an Apple Watch in March said it was because they were Apple fans, 60% of respondents to the later survey said the same.
The second and third most common reasons for pre-ordering had nothing to do with the device itself: Respondents just wanted the latest, trendiest gadget?before their friends.
Research conducted in August 2014 by GfK found that smartphone users in China were most interested in a smart watch for activity tracking (35%), followed by for phone calls (16%) and as a navigation system (11%).
