158 million ear-worn devices to be shipped across globe by 2022: Gartner

Hear, hear

According to Gartner, Inc. ear-worn devices will see tremendous growth in the coming years with the research and advisory company making a forecast that by 2022, as many as 158 million units will be shipped across the globe, nearly five times the 2018 levels of 33.44 million. Called hearables, these devices such as Apple AirPods, Samsung’s IconX and Plantronics’ BackBeat FIT will outnumber any other category, be it smartwatches, wrist bands, head-mounted display or anything else. At current levels, smartwatches are the most popular device with the projected sale for 2018 being 53 million units. By 2022, the ear-worn devices will account for more than 30 per cent of all shipped wearables, as their capabilities expand beyond communication and entertainment, said a statement released by Gartner, Inc. Currently, the main use cases for ear-worn wearables are fitness and health coaching, communications and entertainment, hearing aids/medical devices, and professional, it added.

Not enough

It’s been more than a year and a half since the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) was enforced, with consumer protection and business development in mind. However, experts believe that there are several shortcomings to the way it has been implemented. “The Centre’s aim to have it enforced in each state to regulate the Indian real estate sector still falls way short of the intended mark. It may be recalled that RERA intended to cover developers as well as real estate agents seamlessly across the country,” says Anuj Puri, chairman, ANAROCK Property Consultants. Puri adds that there are quite a few states still in the process of notifying their RERA rules, while there are others where buyers have been continuously fretting about the dilution of the rules notified. However, one provision that makes RERA across a few states a ‘hit’ among consumers is the rising number of complaints being registered with the respective state authorities, and its redressal timeline.