Wear your own device

Accessorisation will drive innovation, differentiation and growth in the smart devices industry

With 2014 round the corner I often ask myself this question - how many screens will I be facing today? They seem to be omnipresent - my phone, laptop, tablet, TV, screen in the car panel and finally the one on my wrist. Also, to handle this vast array of gadgets - these have to be protected, be accessible and functional (when needed). The brands and variants in the accessory segment are endless.

There are two ways the gadgets get accessorised - by the customer and by the manufacturer (bundled/built-in or optional at the point of purchase). Until now most of the accessorisation was being done at the consumer level. But with more and more brands entering the same market, the scope for differentiation is fast diminishing. And price points have been done to death.

So how do they differentiate?
Via accessorisation. We will see more and more products being bundled with accessories like cases, headphones, bags or built into the product to enhance their functionality or just the cool factor. Many handset manufacturers have brought in focus to this category with their own line up of lifestyle accessories with Samsung, Nokia, BlackBerry leading the way and now even home grown boys like Micromax and Karbonn are following suit. With the launch of Apple's new iOS7, the company has ensured accessory manufacturers fall in line and join the MFi programme (read as made for iPad/ iPad/iPhone). So watch out for more manufacturer built, regulated or licensed accessories.

I reckon 2014 will be the year of wearable device ecosystem (WDE).

Wrist bands like Fuelband, UP & Flex have already led the first phase of the personal tracker market with many me-too brands jumping in. In Phase-II we saw smart watches from Qualcomm, Motorola, Sony and most recently Samsung. And then there is the Google Glass. I don't know how practical it would be to create a barrier between yourself and the real world with this sophisticated but unfinished tech. In a conference, I attended in Hong Kong some time back, it was shared that 27 per cent of App Developers worldwide are focused on apps for the WDE. Considering we are looking at 7 million smartwatches to be sold in 2014, that is a huge number of apps on your wrist.

For our smart-devices to be functional all the time, they need power. Enter higher capacity battery banks, wireless chargers (based on Qi inductive system), motion chargers (Kinetic recharge while walking or running) and eco-friendly chargers (solar powered, finger powered). Also, cases and screen protectors are major drivers in the accessories segment.

Technology is another big driver. Take the case of 4G LTE, where Korea and Japan already lead the pack. Near field communication (NFC) will be embedded in nearly all smart-devices including your home entertainment system. For example many brands have already incorporated NFC in the Bluetooth speakers.

Going ahead, I just don't see a robust growth in smart-device accessories but accessorisation driving innovation, differentiation and growth in the smart devices industry.

Pankaj Mirchandani
Managing Partner, RCA