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TVs and Laptops Top People’s Tech Wish Lists This Holiday Season

By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
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By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 10, 2018, 11:38 AM ET

Technology is always hot during the holiday season, but 2019 could be the best year ever.

The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) projects shoppers will spent $96.1 billion dollars on gadgets, gizmos, and big screen TVs from October to December. That’s a 3.4% increase over a year ago. Two-thirds of all shoppers (66%) will make some sort of tech purchase during the holidays, the CTA estimates.

The most popular items on wishlists probably isn’t too surprising: TVs are number one, followed by laptops, and a third-place tie for smartphones and tablets. But what people want and what people plan to buy for others don’t quite line up together.

The CTA says it expects incredibly strong sales of smart speakers, like Amazon’s Echo and Google Home. Unit sales are predicted to hit 22 million this year, a 44% increase from 2017.

Thirty-six percent of the shoppers the CTA spoke with say they plan to buy a smart home device and 20% plan to buy a smartwatch, resulting in a sales forecast of 7 million, a 26% increase over last year.

Other expected hot sellers include wireless earbuds (with a projected 60% year-over-year surge) and drones (up 8%).

“2018 has shown us that consumers are willing to spend a premium on technology that is essential to their everyday lives – such as smartphones, laptops and TVs – and we expect that dynamic to continue through the season, driving overall holiday consumer tech sales to a new high this year,” said Ben Arnold, senior director of innovation and trends at CTA.

About the Author
By Chris MorrisFormer Contributing Writer

Chris Morris is a former contributing writer at Fortune, covering everything from general business news to the video game and theme park industries.

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