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　　At Apple's new product launch event on September 7, wearable devices stole the thunder of Apple's iPhone for the first time. Apple has released a professional-grade smartwatch, the Apple Watch Ultra, for a whopping $799, built for extreme sports like snow climbing and diving and surfing, with longer battery life and a sturdier design.

　　Before Ultra, Apple's smartwatches mainly focused on monitoring people's daily health. With its first professional-grade new product, Apple began to enter the professional smartwatch market, aiming at the track focused by competitors such as Garmin and Polar. Break the pattern of the existing professional watch market.

　　Two brands monopolize the market of more than 500 US dollars

　　At present, Apple has dominated the global smartwatch market. According to a new report released by research firm Canalys on Wednesday, Apple topped the list of smartwatch shipments in the second quarter of this year, with a market share of 26.4% and shipments of 8.4 million units; Garmin’s market share was only 5.5%. The shipment volume is 1.7 million; Apple and Garmin have almost monopolized the entire market of high-end smartwatches over $500 in the United States, with a share of 74% and 22%, respectively.

　　Garmin still dominates the higher-end, high-end watch category, though, like Garmin's Fenix 7 watch that sells for a whopping $1,000. The price of the Ultra launched by Apple has soared to $799, which is one step closer to Garmin's professional positioning.

　　In this regard, Canalys analyst Liu Jiansen told the first financial reporter: "Apple Ultra is a price segment that directly benchmarks Garmin's Fenix series products, which is not only expected to attract Garmin's users who focus on outdoor extreme sports, but may also attract professional users. There is an appeal to people who like the look of the Apple Watch and who might use the watch as a status symbol."

　　A Garmin person told Yicai.com that in the smart watch market with a price of more than 800 US dollars, currently there is basically only Garmin. In the case of Apple Watch 8, is it worth the user to spend more money (3000 more? To buy a watch with dual-frequency GPS titanium alloy appearance, you also need to observe the user's acceptance and trust.

　　In addition to Apple and Garmin, Samsung, Huawei, Google and other manufacturers are also targeting professional outdoor sports people. Samsung has released the Galaxy Watch 5 series and will launch the Watch 5 Pro for professionals, targeting the premium market. Liu Jiansen told the first financial reporter that the market competition pattern of professional smart watches will further intensify in the future.

　　However, from the perspective of Canalys' smartphone shipments in the second quarter, Samsung's market share was 8.9%, still far behind Apple, but shipments increased by 58% year-on-year to 2.8 million.

　　Apple's position in China's supply chain is hard to shake

　　Yu Qinke, founder of Shanghai Rhenium Strontium Information, who provides OEM services for many overseas smart watch brands, told Yicai that the technical threshold for professional-level watches is high, not only involving software technologies such as algorithms and battery management systems, but also in The display screen, cover plate, chip, battery and other hardware aspects of the watch are also more demanding, so the manufacturers that can provide professional-grade equipment are very limited. According to reports, the latest Ultra has a battery life of up to 36 hours and up to 60 hours in power saving mode.

　　According to Apple's 2020 supplier list, the domestic foundry of Apple Watch is mainly Luxshare Precision, and other suppliers include USI, which provides SiP for Apple Watch, Changxin Technology, a touch screen supplier, and Lens Technology, a sapphire supplier. , Structural parts supplier Changying Precision and antenna supplier Xinwei Communication.

　　Although it has been reported recently that Apple has transferred the supply chain of products such as watches to Vietnam and other places, Yu Qinke told Yicai that China is still Apple's most important manufacturing base, and Chinese suppliers play an important role in Apple's supply chain. The status has been gradually cultivated and established in the past ten years. Even from the manufacturing and design process, the Chinese supply chain has already participated in Apple's products, and the production capacity made in China is unmatched by other places.

　　Gene Munster, managing partner of Loup Ventures and Apple analyst, also said: "Although Apple hopes to be more diversified in manufacturing, it is a difficult road because Apple is really very dependent on the Chinese supply chain."

　　A research report by Xing Yuqing, a professor of economics at Tokyo's Graduate School of Policy Studies, said that over the past decade, China has nurtured local supply chain companies that can replace Apple's global supply chain, and these companies run through almost all the zeroes required for electronic devices. Components, including speakers, cut glass, supply batteries, and cameras.

　　"Chinese companies are taking control of the global supply chain of smart electronic products, and this trend will continue for a long time to come." Yu Qinke told Yicai.com.