"smart watch" articles

Google’s annual I/O event, which took place from May 11-12, revealed a handful of new releases and updates to its range of hardware and software. Google also shared that a few previously discontinued and canceled products would be revived, including Android tablets and watches, the latter of which will feature a partnership with Samsung. Android 13 was also debuted and is slated for release in August alongside the new Pixel 7 and 7 Pro. Key points of emphasis for Android 13 include...

Wearables are the leading product category in connected health, with smart watches the most adopted product overall.   Smart watch owners are a particularly enthusiastic core of the connected health market, as they tend to own a variety of other products, including connected fitness devices, connected weight scales, and even more medically oriented devices such as smart thermometers. Since 2019, adoption of wearables from Apple and Samsung has grown exponentially, helping to...

This article is compiled from a presentation by Jennifer Kent, VP of Research at Parks Associates, during the firm's 8th annual Connected Health Summit. Today there are at least four main models developing for care that happens from home, including telehealth, virtual visits – typically for check-ups, primary care, or urgent-care type condition; remote patient monitoring to diagnose a specific condition, often cardiac issues or sleep disorders; ongoing remote patient monitoring...

According to Reuters and CNBC, Google (aka Alphabet) has made an offer to acquire Fitbit. This stands to considerably shake up the wearables space. Fitbit is the number one wearables company in the US—Parks Associates consumer surveys find that among the 19% of heads of US broadband households that own and use wearables, Fitbit has nearly 60% penetration—twice that of its nearest competitor, Apple. Looking specifically at smart watch models, Parks Associates finds that...

When the Apple Watch Series 4 was released in September 2018, a number of new health-related smartwatch features made their debut. The newly built-in ECG feature, and the most recently announced enhanced sleep tracking feature, have been the focus of many reviews; however, the fall detection capability may prove to be one of the most valuable features the Apple Watch has to offer. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports that between the years 2007 and 2016, fall death rates in...

Apple kicked off the company’s Apple Event day with the introduction of the new Series 4 Apple Watch. As anticipated from leaked photos, the new version maintains the same exterior dimensions as the Series 3 but has 30% larger screens. It has louder speakers, a faster dual-core processor, and greater interaction with the Siri digital assistant – all very useful and largely anticipated upgrades. More significant are new functions that turn the watch into a medical...

Parks Associates research finds that 75% of smart watch owners and 68% of fitness tracker owners are using their devices every day . How are consumers utilizing digital health applications? This new infographic below highlights the top 10 ways consumers use health apps the most, including tracking resting heart rates and consumed calories, setting exercise goals, and logging food and drink. Notably, almost half (48%) of daily app users utilize their health devices to track the...

As the Parks Associates team gears up for our annual Connected Health Summit next week, we’re reviewing some of our latest research on trends in consumer health concerns.  One of the most striking trends is the rising level of consumers who report concern that stress and anxiety will cause their health to worsen. A stunning quarter of U.S. broadband households are “very concerned” (rating 6-7 on a 7-point scale) about stress and anxiety worsening their health. Said another way,...