Bluetooth finds its place in the Smart Home Market

ABI Research  has predicted that the smart home market will make-up for over 13% of Bluetooth device shipments by 2024, which will total to over 815 million Bluetooth products at this time. Substantial growth in a wide range of device varieties, including that of smart lights, voice-control front ends, smart appliances and sensors, among numerous others, which support Bluetooth, is propelling the market to grow from 250 million units in 2019 to become one of Bluetooth’s main market opportunities within the next five years.

“The smart home market is beginning to ramp up, and strong growth for wireless devices and services is anticipated over the next few years as an increasing number of homes deploy solutions,” says Andrew Zignani, Principal Analyst, ABI Research.

Thanks to its specific benefits like that of low power consumption, audio capabilities, vast presence in mobile devices, and mesh networking support, the technology is extremely well- positioned to take advantage of a large number of opportunities over a variety of device types.

“Bluetooth’s growing presence in voice control front ends from the likes of Amazon, Alibaba, Google, Baidu, and Xiaomi makes up a significant portion of this growth, alongside increased traction within smart lighting, smart appliances, door locks, sensors, and many other device types,” Zignani adds.

It is not just Bluetooth however that will take advantage of this vast increase in devices. Wi-Fi, 802.15.4, and Z-Wave smart home products are all expected to experience a rise in device shipments between now and 2024. “The smart home market is made up of numerous different device types, each with their own specific throughput, power, range, and topology requirements. Smart lighting device shipments will break the 300-million-unit barrier by 2024, with 60% of these based on 802.15.4 technology. Bluetooth and Wi-Fi will account for 30% and 8%, respectively. Likewise, Wi-Fi will be nearly ubiquitous in smart appliances alongside Bluetooth, while 802.15.4 and Z-Wave will gain traction in low power sensor devices,” says Zignani. When looking beyond the smart home, opportunities for Bluetooth within the IoT (Internet of Things) will also include beacons and personal trackers, healthcare devices, commercial building automation and lighting, as well as numerous kinds of wearable devices which include, smartwatches and fitness trackers. These will soon start to open increased opportunities for the likes of Nordic Semiconductor, Dialog Semiconductor, Cypress (recently acquired by Infineon), Silicon Labs, NXP, Microchip, Espressif Systems, MediaTek, Qualcomm, Broadcom, STMicroelectronics, Telit, TI, Redpine Signals, On Semiconductor, u-blox, and Atmosic.