Children's brands like Imoo and start-ups like Amazfit also performed well, the company said. citing statistics from its own Global Smartwatch Tracker.

Research director Jeff Fieldhack said Apple continued to dominate the market with 30% share.

"The introduction of the Series 4 this fall was the biggest update from a design and features standpoint, and has quickly resonated with Apple’s loyal user base," he said.

"Apple’s Series 3 saw an uptick later in the quarter with discounted pricing, while Apple’s Series 1 continued to be the single biggest selling SKU contributing to almost half of all Apple Watch shipments. This could change in holiday season quarter as our channel checks showed pent-up demand for the Series 4.”

American consumers cited the LTE communications capability in the Apple Watch as its most desirable feature.

The top five brands in the smartwatch market accounted for 69% of shipments by volume:

• Apple’s quarterly shipments grew by 24% sequentially and 31% year-on-year in Q3 2018 due to response to its Watch Series 4.
• Fitbit’s share grew to 16%, primarily due to the continued success of its Versa, which was released in April 2018.
• Imoo is a sub-brand of a Chinese OEM BBK Group (which owns OPPO, vivo and OnePlus). Imoo held a healthy 10% global market share in Q3 2018.
• Samsung held 8% global market share in Q2 2018. The shipments grew due to a better performance of both its Gear S3 and the new Galaxy Watch launched in August 2018.
• Amazfit is a sub-brand of a Chinese OEM Huami, which is also a manufacturer of wearable products for Xiaomi. Amazfit currently holds 3% market share and grew 41% QoQ in Q3 2018.