145 Hardware launches in five years. That's enough data to see real patterns. The numbers below show whether this category is growing, who's winning, and where the gaps are.
Five years of Hardware launch data. Volume, engagement, and the products that stood out.
145 Hardware launches in five years. That's enough data to see real patterns. The numbers below show whether this category is growing, who's winning, and where the gaps are.
| Quarter | Launches | Avg Interest Score | Top Product |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 2026 | 5 | 194 | Umbrel Pro |
| Q1 2025 | 3 | 161 | Framework Desktop |
| Q2 2025 | 6 | 157 | DeskHog |
| Q3 2025 | 5 | 160 | Nothing Phone (3) |
| Q4 2025 | 11 | 136 | BizCard |
| Q1 2024 | 11 | 189 | Petcube GPS Tracker |
| Q2 2024 | 8 | 124 | Copilot+ PC |
| Q3 2024 | 8 | 294 | Omi (formerly Friend) |
| Q4 2024 | 8 | 248 | Friend.com |
| Q1 2023 | 4 | 112 | Charcoal Desk |
| Q2 2023 | 4 | 133 | shelf |
| Q3 2023 | 5 | 118 | Project E Ink |
| Q4 2023 | 8 | 85 | Milky Plant |
| Q1 2022 | 4 | 174 | Norm Model B Desk |
| Q2 2022 | 3 | 96 | Amofit S |
| Q3 2022 | 6 | 120 | Lumina Desk |
The Hardware category has been steady over the past 6 years of tracked data. Total launches went from 36 in 2021 to 5 in 2026.
Average engagement ratio across all Hardware launches: 0.18. Products above that line tend to solve a specific, painful problem. Products below it often entered a crowded space without clear differentiation.
Hardware peaked in 2021 with 36 launches. That was 5 years ago. The decline since then could signal market consolidation, saturation, or attention shifting to adjacent categories.
Average engagement per product dropped from 0.18 in 2021 to 0.07 in 2026. More products competing for the same attention pool. The community is spread thinner, which makes high-engagement launches more impressive.
The highest-performing quarter was Q3 2024, with an average interest score of 294 across 8 launches. Omi (formerly Friend) led that quarter.
59 B2B launches (40%) vs 86 B2C (60%) across the full Hardware dataset. Hardware leans consumer. Most products target individual users rather than teams or companies.
2021: 36 launches. Average interest: 147. Average engagement: 0.18. Top launch: Opal C1 (550 interest).
2022: 23 launches (-36% vs 2021). Average interest: 127. Average engagement: 0.27. Top launch: Norm Model B Desk (256 interest).
2023: 21 launches (-9% vs 2022). Average interest: 107. Average engagement: 0.19. Top launch: shelf (212 interest).
2024: 35 launches (+67% vs 2023). Average interest: 212. Average engagement: 0.15. Top launch: Omi (formerly Friend) (748 interest).
2025: 25 launches (-29% vs 2024). Average interest: 149. Average engagement: 0.17. Top launch: DeskHog (479 interest).
2026: 5 launches (-80% vs 2025). Average interest: 194. Average engagement: 0.07. Top launch: Umbrel Pro (343 interest).
Launch volume drops but engagement per product rises. Fewer builders entering, but the ones that do find a more receptive audience. That's an opportunity signal. We flag it when we see it.
We report what happened. We don't predict. Five years of data shows patterns, but markets surprise people for a living.
Three common reasons. The market consolidated around winners. The technology matured and stopped generating new startups. Or builder attention shifted to adjacent categories. Usually it's a combination.
Volume without engagement is saturation. Engagement without volume is opportunity. Check which one you're looking at.
Sum of all interest scores in the quarter divided by number of products. Simple average. We don't weight by category or product age.
Depends on what's declining. If volume drops but engagement rises, the market is maturing. That's often good for existing players. If both drop, the category may be dying. The quarterly breakdown on each page tells you which pattern you're seeing.
At least three. Two data points is a line, not a trend. We have five years of data for most categories, which is enough to distinguish real shifts from noise.