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Looking at the entire headphone market in 2021, there are several main characteristics:

1. In 2021, the high-end market will still be dominated by Apple, Sony, and Sennheiser, but domestic brands are beginning to make efforts in the high-end market.

2. The price range below 200 yuan is the most concerned by consumers, accounting for up to 37.33%.

3. New China-Chic earphone brand 1MORE/Wanmo earphones and old domestic manufacturers are strollers. In the first half of 2021, the pace of product update will be fast, and in the second half of 2021, especially from Q3, the pace of product update will slow down. The two brands are the manufacturers with the highest attention and the second highest attention in 2021.

4. Apple AirPods Pro has the highest user attention in the true wireless headphone market, followed closely by Huawei FreeBuds 4 and 1MORE Color Buds 2.

5. The user's attention to Bluetooth earphones is rapidly increasing, with 32.09% attention in the first half of the year and 62.56% attention in the second half of the year; The attention to traditional wired headphones such as HiFi headphones has significantly decreased.

(* Data source - ZDC User Data Research Center)

1、 Brand and product attention in the headphone market for the whole year of 2021

1.1 User attention to popular headphone brands

       In 2016, Apple launched the first generation AirPods, and since then, the market share of true wireless headphones has been increasing year by year. In 2021, true wireless headphones have become the most concerned headphone product among consumers. Meanwhile, true wireless earphones have transformed from a niche market to a red ocean market. Next, let's take a look at the changes in the headphone market based on the ZDC data for the whole year of 2021.

First, let's look at the brand attention. China-Chic brand 1MORE continues the momentum of the first half of 2021, becoming the most concerned earphone brand by consumers in 2021 with 11.33% of the total. This is also the third consecutive year after 2019 and 2020 that 1MORE has become the most concerned earphone brand by consumers throughout the year. As a representative brand of high tide headphones, 1MORE has accelerated its product update speed in recent years and launched self-developed noise reduction algorithms. In recent years, 1MORE has been very active in product design, technology development, and promotion and marketing. The endorsements of popular stars such as Jay Chou and Zhang Zining have greatly increased 1MORE's popularity. The rapid iteration of 1MORE Color Buds 2 Cat Eye Earphones, Hi1MORE ComfoBuds 2 Comfort Bean Upgraded Edition and other products released in the second half of 2021 has also made 1MORE very popular among young people and even consumers of all ages.

The rapid development of veteran audio manufacturers such as Walkman and 1MORE forms a sharp contrast. In 2021, Walkman continued to maintain a steady and steady strategy, but relied on its accumulated technical strength and brand influence over the years. Of course, more importantly, this year, Walkman released the world's first "Hi Res" certified true wireless headphones. In addition, Walkman's rich product line also includes customized versions of true wireless headphones such as "Pikachu" and "Minions" priced at several hundred yuan. These fashionable products have won the favor of many young consumer groups. Excellent products combined with a strong brand influence enable Walkman to outperform international giants like Apple in the fiercely competitive true wireless headphone market, ranking second on the brand attention list.

Ranked third to fifth are Apple, Huawei, and Sennheiser, while Sony's brand attention has dropped from third place last year to sixth place this year due to the fact that it only had one heavyweight new product, the Sony WF-1000XM4, throughout 2021. Apple is still very calm and leisurely launching new headphones, relying on its long-standing user reputation and the new AirPods 3 to firmly occupy the third place on the brand attention list. On the contrary, Huawei has been updating its headphone product line very quickly this year, launching true wireless products such as FreeBuds 4, FreeBuds 4i, and FreeBuds Lipstick, jumping from sixth place in brand attention last year to fourth place this year.

OPPO and vivo are both new brands on the list this year. OPPO has launched Enco Free 2, Enco Free 2 Conan Limited Edition, Enco Free 2i and other true wireless products this year, while vivo has two products, TWS 2e and TWS 2; In the price range of around 500 yuan, two manufacturers are steadily enriching their true wireless headphone product lines, and the product experience and market response are both very good.

S&O Magic Wave, ranked eighth, and JBL, ranked tenth, have shown slight changes in their attention compared to last year's brand attention chart. S&O Magic Wave released two new products in the second half of this year, which gained a lot of market attention and ranked eighth in terms of attention. On the contrary, compared to last year's three to four new products, the product update speed of international giant JBL has slowed down significantly this year, so JBL barely squeezed into the tenth place on the brand attention list.

1.2 User attention to popular headphone models

In the TOP10 product attention list, Apple AirPods Pro outperformed many TWS new products this year, becoming the most highly anticipated TWS headphone product among consumers in the first half of 2021. Although it has been released for more than a year, AirPods Pro is still the first choice for many consumers to choose high-end noise cancelling headphones, and many AirPods Pro sold on e-commerce platforms can have very good discounted prices, which has attracted a large number of consumers' attention and purchase. In addition, Apple's new true wireless product AirPods 3 for the second half of the year also made the list. As this product was just released in October, it only ranks fifth. These two headphones have a very high popularity in terms of their product strength, market sales, and overall consumer attention.

The four products ranked second to fourth and sixth are: Huawei FreeBuds 4, 1MORE Color Buds 2, Walkman NeoBuds Pro, and Sony WF-1000XM4. These four products should represent the current situation of domestically produced true wireless earphones, with a youthful and stylish appearance design, excellent sound quality, excellent noise reduction, technological innovation, and a more cost-effective price. Although these products do not have the halo effect like Apple's AirPods Pro and AirPods 3, we can find that the real wireless products of domestic brands have caught up with or even surpassed the products of top foreign brands, which is a matter of pride for every countrymen.

The products ranked seventh to tenth are: vivo TWS 2、OPPO Enco Free2、 Sony WF-1000XM4 Beats Studio Buds。 It is worth noting that these four products are all newly released and newly listed true wireless products this year, while products with high attention in the first half of this year, such as the Bloody Ghost M70, Mifo O5 Generation 2, and Aigo TWS2, have directly fallen out of the top ten positions. From this, it can be seen that the competition in the true wireless market is very fierce, and the product update speed is also very fast. As long as there is a new product release, it means that some products may be squeezed out of the ranking list.

2、 2021 Annual Earphone Price Range and Product Function Usage Focus

2.1 Attention to the price range of headphones for the whole year of 2021

     From the perspective of the proportion of attention to headphone price ranges throughout 2021, the price range below 200 yuan is already the most concerned price range among mainstream consumer groups in China, with a proportion of 37.33%. Compared with last year's 35.26%, the growth rate is not significant, only increasing by 2.07 percentage points. Compared with last year's 21.41% growth rate, the growth rate is not much. From this, it can be seen that entry-level consumer products have become the price range that consumers are most concerned about. Even this year, some manufacturers have started to launch true wireless products with higher cost-effectiveness of around 150 yuan, in order to further seize the fiercely competitive entry-level true wireless headphone market. While large manufacturers are laying out entry-level products, it also has a significant impact on those small factories.

       Over the years, the proportion of consumers paying attention to the price range of 200 yuan to 500 yuan has remained relatively stable. In 2020, 21.83% of consumers paid attention to this price range, and in 2021, 24.06% of consumers paid attention. It can be said that the proportion of consumers paying attention is basically the same. In 2021, the proportion of consumers who paid attention to the price range below 500 yuan reached 61.39%, while only 38.61% of consumers paid attention to the price range above 500 yuan (excluding). In 2021, many mainstream manufacturers have launched noise cancelling true wireless earphones priced under 500 yuan, which also indicates that the market within 500 yuan is a battleground for every mainstream manufacturer.

       When consumers choose headphones, price is often the first consideration, followed by sound quality, appearance, design, and other aspects. From the perspective of market sales, brands with good reputations, fashionable and youthful product designs, and affordable prices usually achieve good sales with effective promotion and advertising. In addition, from the sales of headphones on e-commerce platforms such as "618" and "Double 11", it can be seen that headphones under 500 have an absolute advantage, fully reflecting that consumers are very sensitive to the price when choosing headphones.

2.2 Attention to the Function and Usage of Headphone Products in the First Half of 2021

       When it comes to the functional use of headphones, Bluetooth headphones and noise cancelling headphones are still two categories that consumers pay very high attention to. Especially for Bluetooth headphones, the attention rate this year has reached an astonishing 65.56%, an increase of 24.47% compared to the same period last year. Consumers maintain an absolute advantage in the attention rate of Bluetooth headphones. Of course, this data is also in line with our expectations. In recent years, the supply chain technology related to true wireless earphones has developed rapidly, solving multiple pain points and difficulties in the use of true wireless earphones. Therefore, it has attracted more consumers' attention and purchase of true wireless earphones.

        Next, the second most important product feature and usage is gaming audio and video headphones, with a proportion of 9.11%, which is basically the same as 9.34% in the same period last year. However, in the second half of 2021, COD18, Battlefield 2042, Island 6 and other 3A blockbusters will be launched. In addition to the very active PC platform, the mobile game market is also showing a blowout growth. The emergence of both the big Genshin Impact and the League of Heroes mobile version has made the game market very hot this year. Players cannot do without using headphones when playing games, and the release of major games has also attracted more gamers, naturally increasing the number of consumers who pay attention to game audio and video headphones.

       For consumers who love music, HiFi headphones that place more emphasis on sound quality are also a category that consumers are more concerned about, with a attention rate of 5.46%. However, compared to last year's 11.36%, the attention to HiFi headphones has decreased this year. Nowadays, the convenience of using true wireless earphones has become more prominent, and many HiFi manufacturers have started to launch HiFi true wireless earphones. Therefore, many consumers have given up traditional wired HiFi earphones and chosen true wireless HiFi earphones.

       For mobile phone headphones and monitoring headphones, whose market share has become increasingly small, it is reasonable that consumer attention continues to decline. These types of headphones are actually mostly traditional wired headphones (non HiFi). Nowadays, there are few phones on the market with 3.5mm headphone jack, and traditional wired headphones have gradually been squeezed out of the market by true wireless headphones. Perhaps, when we want to see wired headphones again in the future, it may only be in the very niche market of HiFi.

3、 Attention to the types and wearing methods of headphone driver units for the whole year of 2021

3.1 Attention to headphone driver unit types for the whole year of 2021

       In terms of headphone driver units, dynamic headphones still hold the top spot on this ranking with 47.35% attention, which is basically the same as the attention of the same period last year. The dynamic coil unit is relatively cheaper in cost and easier to tune. It is usually used in some entry-level headphones with several times the price, which is in line with the fact that consumers are more concerned about the price range below 500 yuan.

       At the same time, there has been a subtle change in the position of the second and third places on the ranking list. In 2021, the second most popular driving unit type was the dynamic iron unit, while the circular iron mixed unit fell to third place on the ranking list with 18.56%. In fact, it can be seen from the new products launched by manufacturers that in 2021, especially in the second half of the year, many manufacturers have launched earphones with pure electric iron units. This shows that consumers' tastes are currently changing. The circle iron hybrid unit, which was very popular in the past two years, although compared to the dynamic coil and dynamic iron, the circle iron hybrid unit compensates for their respective shortcomings in sound and can bring more comprehensive sound performance. However, in 2021, it seems that consumers' tastes have changed, and instead, the dynamic iron and dynamic coil units have gained more attention from consumers.

3.2 Attention to headphone wearing methods throughout 2021

       Based on past data, headphones have always had a high level of attention, but in the first half of 2021, in ear headphones surpassed headphones as the most popular way for consumers to wear headphones. From the data of the whole year of 2021, users still pay more attention to headphones, with a proportion of 39.07%, followed closely by in ear headphones with 30.58% of attention.

       In the second half of this year, the Bose QuietComfort 45 first captured the attention of a wave of consumer grade head mounted noise cancelling headphones, while the Baiya DT700 PRO X and DT900 PRO X, two Baiya PRO X series monitoring headphones, ignited the head mounted HiFi headphone market. Therefore, in 2021, it remains the top spot in terms of the attention paid to the wearing method of headphones. I don't know if the popularity of in ear headphones can rely on the top position of true wireless headphones on the wearing style attention chart in the data for the whole year of 2022.

       The popularity of earbuds in 2021 has remained almost unchanged compared to 2020, ranking third with 14.87%. In fact, in recent years, in ear headphones have been in a lukewarm state, mainly because in ear noise cancelling headphones led by AirPods Pro have become popular worldwide. This year, the competition in the true wireless noise cancelling headphone market is particularly fierce, and there has even been a price war within the inner circle. Therefore, earbuds with poor sound insulation can only be in such an awkward situation, but this also indicates that user needs are changing, and such attention is also in line with market trends.

       For the two types of headphone products, rear hanging and ear hanging, the attention paid to their wearing methods has not changed much, consistently ranking fourth and fifth. Based on the current market situation, these two types of headphones for wearing belong to the category of professional sports headphones and bone conduction and auxiliary listening headphones, which belong to a very specialized market. For mainstream consumers, there is not much attention paid to this type of professional market, which to some extent explains why these two wearing methods have always been at the bottom.

4、 Outlook on the Technology Trends of the Earphone Industry in 2022

       Looking back at the headphone industry throughout 2021, top companies such as Apple and OPPO have launched many new products and technologies, bringing consumers a brand new user experience. In our opinion, among the new technologies released throughout 2021, the most representative ones are Apple's newly launched streaming lossless audio and spatial audio (Dolby Atmos) technology, OPPO's personalized noise reduction technology, and so on. These new technologies are already the development direction of the headphone industry in the future, and they are also worth every consumer's attention to these emerging technologies.

4.1 Disrupting the Audiovisual Experience with Spatial Audio

Representative product：AirPods 3、AirPods Pro、Beats Studio Buds

       In May of this year, Apple first released the air press audio technology that supports Dolby Atmos. Dolby Atmos is an immersive audio experience that uses mixing technology to surround and top the space with sound. The spatial audio released by Apple is based on the Dolby Atmos algorithm. Currently, AirPods and Beats earphones equipped with Apple's self-developed H1 or W1 chips support spatial audio technology. And in 2021, Samsung and Xiaomi also began to launch headphones that support Dolby Atmos technology, indicating that this is the future direction of true wireless headphone development.

       Along with Dolby Atmos came lossless audio, which Apple uses the ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio codec) format to preserve every byte in the original audio file. This also means that Apple Music subscribers will be able to hear the exact same sound as artists creating music in the studio.

       Since the release of lossless audio, Bluetooth earphones have not supported lossless audio, including the four mainstream earphones in the AirPods family bucket. To experience Apple's lossless audio service, you need to use traditional wired headphones. For iPhone users, they can use a Lightning to 3.5mm audio cable to connect wired headphones to their iPhone and experience the pleasure of lossless audio. Although it is not a simple task to experience lossless audio using Apple devices, it also provides a new option for users who want to pursue high sound quality.

4.2 Personalized noise reduction technology that varies from person to person

Representative products：OPPO Enco Free2、OPPO Enco Free2i

       The personalized noise reduction technology newly launched by OPPO this year is first installed on OPPO Enco Free2 true wireless noise reduction headphones. It can be said that the emergence of this technology can take the noise reduction effect of headphones to a higher level. At present, most of the noise reduction tests for noise cancelling headphones are based on laboratory fake head tests. However, in actual use, factors such as leakage, ear canal length, ear canal shape, and shape variation of the ear cap inside the ear canal can affect the noise reduction effect. And personalized noise reduction technology is to change the noise reduction curve through algorithms to achieve the best noise reduction effect for headphones.

       OPPO's personalized noise reduction technology, in layman's terms, refers to the sound emitted by headphones, which is then collected by the microphone inside the ear canal. The noise reduction curve is intelligently optimized based on the user's ear canal structure, using the most suitable noise reduction parameters to help users achieve the best noise reduction effect, truly achieving personalized noise reduction customized for the ear. At present, this technology has been implemented in multiple true wireless products and is expected to be widely used in the future, bringing users a better noise reduction experience.

4.3 Ultra high adaptability AEM adaptive curve

Representative product: Huawei FreeBuds 4

       The "AEM Adaptive Curve" launched by Huawei in 2021 can be considered a black technology. For each user, the ear canal is different, but headphone tuning is standard, so standard headphone tuning cannot adapt to everyone's ear canal shape. In fact, the sound heard by each user is also different. The AEM adaptive curve aims to change this phenomenon through algorithms.

       The basic function of the "AEM adaptive curve" technology installed on FreeBuds 4 is basically the same as the adaptive curve of high-end monitoring speakers. The headphones collect the sound emitted by the headphones themselves through a microphone facing the inside of the ear canal, and automatically adjust the frequency response curve to ensure that every user hears the same sound as much as possible. This technology is currently only being applied on a small scale, and the actual experience effect is not very perfect. However, with the development of technology and its widespread use, it can bring more realistic and natural sound effects to headphones. We believe that this technology deserves continuous attention from relevant practitioners.

5、 Conclusion:

       Looking back at the entire headphone industry in 2021, we see a year of stability and change. The overall trend this year still revolves around true wireless headphones, and mobile phone manufacturers with richer technological accumulation are injecting new vitality into the true wireless headphone market. At the same time, we can also see from the relevant data centers that domestic headphone brands are starting to make efforts, while also attacking the high-end market that has been dominated by foreign capital. Whether it's 1MORE, which has risen rapidly in recent years, or veteran audio manufacturers that have firmly established themselves, or Apple OPPO、vivo、 Huawei and other mobile phone manufacturers have begun to lay out and accelerate their efforts to seize market share of true wireless earphones. Perhaps in the near future, mobile phone manufacturers will surpass audio manufacturers and monopolize the true wireless headphone market.