The Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi sold 2.8 million wearable digital devices in the first quarter of 2015, giving it about a quarter share of the growing wearable computer market worldwide, a US computer market researcher said yesterday.

Xiaomi’s total sales were second to market leader Fitbit, which sold 3.9 million devices in the quarter, according to International Data Corporation (IDC).

Xiaomi’s sales were impressive, IDC said, considering the device just started shipping during the second half of 2014. Sales of Xiaomi’s Mi Band were primarily within China, but IDC said the company’s recent announcements indicated “more global aspirations”.

The Mi Band’s low price of about US$13 was another reason for its success. Jitesh Ubrani, senior research analyst at IDC, said more than 40 percent of the devices sold in the first quarter were priced under US$100.

Overall, wearable sales grew worldwide for the eighth consecutive quarter in the January-March time span, IDC said.

Vendors shipped 11.4 million wearables, a 200-percent increase from the 3.8 million wearables shipped in the first quarter of 2014, IDC said.

The growth not only bucked the typical post-holiday decline but demonstrated growing consumer interest and the vendors’ ability to deliver a range of different devices, said Ramon Llamas, research manager at IDC, based outside Boston.

Samsung, with a broad array of smart watches, sold 600,000 devices, putting it in fourth place with a market share of 5.3 percent, IDC said. Garmin was third with 700,000 devides sold and a market share of 6.1 percent.

The results reflect the shape of the market before sales of the Apple Watch began.

“The Apple Watch will likely become the device that other wearables will be measured against, fairly or not,” Llamas said. “This will force the competition to up their game in order to stay on the leading edge of the market.”

Ubrani said that Apple’s entrance at the high end of the spectrum would test consumers’ willingness to pay a premium for a brand.

- dpa