IDC says new products in the “hearables market” made up almost half of the shipments, driven by people’s need for wireless earphones due to multiple vendors’ decision to ditch the headphone jack. Ramon T. Llamas, research director for IDC’s Wearables Team, explains:

“Hearables have become the new go-to product for the wearables market. This began with multiple vendors removing the headphone jack from their smartphones, driving the move toward wireless headphones. It continued with hearables incorporating additional features that either augment or expand the audio experience. Next, hearables have taken on multiple form factors — ranging from truly wireless to over-the-ear headphones — appealing to a broad base of earwear user preferences. Finally, prices have come down significantly, with some reaching below $20.”

While the availability of more affordable options boosted wearables’ performance, Apple was still responsible for most of the quarter’s shipments. The growing popularity of the AirPods, the Apple Watch and Beats’ heaphones — none of which could be described as “affordable” — put Apple at the top of the list with a 35 percent marketshare (29.5 shipped units). Xiaomi came in at second place after shipping 12.4 million wearables, thanks to its Mi Band lineup, in Q3 2019. Samsung occupies the third place in the list (8.3 million units shipped), thanks to its new watches and earphones like the Galaxy Buds. Meanwhile Huawei and Fitbit came in at fourth and fifth after shipping 7.1 million and 3.5 million devices, respectively

IDC and Gartner count shipments slightly differently, but IDC saw “high single-digit” US growth and Gartner saw a slight sales decline stateside. The number of units shipped went up for both desktop and portable PC models, according to IDC. Apple’s MacBook keyboard problems may or may not have affected worldwide shipments, which were flat according to Gartner, and up 9 percent in IDC’s report.

Even the modest gains might not continue, however, the analysts believe. Manufacturers and suppliers have been rushing to get inventory delivered with the threat of additional tariffs looming from the Trump administration.

“While the U.S.-China trade war did not impact the PC market in the second quarter of 2019, the next phase of tariffs could have significant impact,” said Gartner’s Mikako Kitagawa. “Most laptops and tablets are currently manufactured in China and sales of these devices in the U.S. could face significant price increases if the punitive tariffs are imposed and vendors do not take quick action to respond.”