Consumer spending on smart home devices has grown despite tightening economic circumstances according to a new report from ABI Research.
The report states that by the end of this year, smart home hardware revenues (devices and hub/controllers) will surpass $30bn worldwide, up 15% over 2021 spending.
“The Covid pandemic-induced emphasis on home improvement boosted the smart home industry,” said Jonathan Collins, smart home and smart buildings research directors at ABI Research. “It then moved into a more mainstream awareness that continues to bolster spending as consumers look to replace or improve devices in and around their homes.”
Helping this growth, large consumer technology and home goods brands, such as Amazon, Apple, IKEA and Somfy are expanding their products to connect to existing smart home systems. Strong support for the Matter 1.0 specification, released in early October, enables different branded devices to work together, maximising products’ potential to reach consumers, and simplifies consumers’ purchase and installation of new devices.
As the smart home market grows thanks to consumer demand and more capabilities, device purchases are pushing into new market areas, such as Multi-Dwelling Units (MDUs), hospitality and more.
“That is not to say growth will be even across device categories or vendors,” Collins continued. “Interoperability, functionality, and application integration will all be key to spending as consumers increasingly transitions from single-device purchasing to building out whole-home systems.”
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