Commentary

Do Teens Tick, Click With Apple Watch?

What tech devices are teens attracted to? Perhaps not the Apple Watch.  A recent Piper Jaffray survey of 7,200 U.S. teens found that 7% of teens own a smartwatch, but a relatively modest 16% said they might buy an iWatch for $350, compared with 17% in the spring survey.

While interest in the iWatch might wane, the survey shows that Apple's position as a leading technology company for teens remains strong. It's important to note that the fall survey was done prior to the Apple Watch announcement. Despite the timing, consumers are questioning the features and speculation continues to rise. Piper Jaffray Analysts Gene Munster and Douglas Clinton estimate that 10 million Apple Watches will be sold in 2015.

Beyond the Teen Survey data, the analysts say iPhone continues to gain share among teens. Teens are attracted to the iPhone 6. The big screen will give brands added room to keep teen interested. Some 67% said they own an iPhone today, up from 61% in the spring survey. The gain appears to come almost entirely from Android, which lost 5% compared with the spring, per Munster.

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Apple will likely hold on to the gains. Some 73% of teens said they expect to purchase another iPhone when it's time.

On Tuesday, Samsung Electronics announced that third-quarter operating profit likely fell between 58% and 62% compared with the year-ago quarter. In an interview in the Wall Street Journal,  Munster said Apple could continue to contribute to the loss. A big hole in Apple's product line was filled with the Apple iPhone 6, which now competes with the Samsung Galaxy.

Tablet sales remain strong. Some 63% of teens said they own a tablet. Market share for iPad, both Air and Mini, remain flat at 66%, compared with spring. Of those teens expecting to buy a tablet in the next six months, 60% said they would buy an iPad, while 19% expect to buy a Microsoft Surface. Notably, interest in Android OS-running tablets continues to wane.

2 comments about "Do Teens Tick, Click With Apple Watch?".
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  1. Scott Swill from Scott Inc, October 9, 2014 at 8:46 p.m.

    I literally joined just to comment on this article. I'm sorry, but I think this is a bad article. The reason is the forced spin that is put in outdated data. Ask a teen whether or not he/she will by ANYTHING sight unseen, and I'm sure there will be extremely low stats.

    Ask a teen whether they will buy an iPod...before an iPod existed, and I'm sure they'd say no.

    The best statistic you can get from this article is that most teens plan on buying the new iPhone. What that translates to is that they are bought into the ecosystem of Apple, and simply they will be EASY targets for the Apple Watch.

    The article title didn't help either either. I mean really? Throwing in tick because it rhymes with click? It doesn't even make sense. leaving out tick and just having click would have have been a fine enough article.

  2. Laurie Sullivan from lauriesullivan, October 9, 2014 at 8:59 p.m.

    Awesome, Scott! Thank you for your point of view. Keep them coming.

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