Sadly I have to agree with this. It will be at least a week. More than likely longer though.
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Apple Delays AirPods, October Launch No Longer Happening
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I predict that if we get them before Christmas they'll be preorder or for sale in time for Black Friday. If they are not, it could be next year.
It's hard to imagine at this late date, without even a pre-order date, that Apple would be able to achieve volume shipments in time to meet holiday demand before December 25th. Given that, they are probably better off not trying, than dealing with huge disappointment, especially if whatever is causing the delay turns out to be a support nightmare as people open their gifts and try to unsuccessfully use them, when they have nothing else to do during the holidays than post on tech and review jobs about their dissapointment.
Although if the delay is caused by a software issue, they could already have a ton produced. People have pre production models and from what I've read there's been no major problems with them.
That was what I was thinking, really.
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I don't think they'll actually do a preorder unless they know they have plenty. Otherwise, they'll just show up for sale and they'll have inventory they sell through and then people will be on wait after that.
They're already doing pre-orders on the Beats W1 earbuds. Why wouldn't they do it for the AirPods?
Hopefully it's not a hardware problem, or one they patch with software.
I think they will be constrained and I Don't think that I'll be able to get any before Christmas 
I think they will be constrained and I Don't think that I'll be able to get any before Christmas
I can tell you this. There will definitely be a heavy constrain when these launch. I'm also thinking some might be purchasing more than one set for resale or scalping, being the hype is definitely building. I hope they release soon. I have been waiting for a proprietary Airpod for while From Apple.
I think they will be constrained and I Don't think that I'll be able to get any before Christmas
They will likely be constrained, but not because of demand. Hype is building in tech communities such as these, but most who have bought an iPhone 7 have long resigned themselves to the fact that they have to use an adapter with their old headphones, since the Lightning headphones won't work with anything else (there are no adapters, even for a MacBook). Unless they already had a pair of BT headphones, or just use their EarPods solely with the iP7, customers are getting into the habit of using the adapter, and change will be slow now that Apple dropped the ball on rolling out essential products for use with a jack less phone.
I doubt they will be out before Christmas, and even if they are, the general awareness has passed. I'm sure Apple will roll out a massive campaign to re-announce their availability, but it won't have the drive or focus that surrounded them when first announced after the keynote. So it will take a while for demand to build again as people have gotten used to not needing them, and that's always a dangerous place to be with a new product.
9to5Mac has a rumor of January 2017
https://9to5mac.com/2016/11/01/chin...pple-airpods-not-shipping-until-january-2017/
https://9to5mac.com/2016/11/01/chin...pple-airpods-not-shipping-until-january-2017/
Bought myself some wireless headphones from amazon for £22 so that will keep me going in the meantime. Can't see myself wanting to go back to wires after this
I bought a pair of cheap ones from mobile fun a few weeks ago. So they will have to tide me over until I eventually get my hands on a pair of the airpods.
Yeah, there was absolutely no way Apple would miss out on the holiday sales for these barring a catastrophic event.
I was driving by Apple headquarters this morning and had to stop at a red light. An Apple (presumed) employee was crossing the street in front of me wearing Airpods. This is the first time I'd seen them in the flesh. Contrary to some of the opinions here, they were unobtrusive -- smaller than the adverts seem to show -- and didn't look like they would easily fall out. Too bad you have to work at Apple in order to get your hands on a pair this year.
So I am going to try to avoid the usual Apple is doomed language but given that they took away the standard headphone jack, this was a target they needed to hit. The optics are pretty bad on this, I noticed the Powerbeats 3 went out on time but not the headset that was so prominent on stage at the event and certainly in time for the holidays.
I'm not a fan of crying doom and gloom, either, but this could be a white iPhone 4 scenario. In which case they'd do good to get those new Beats X out, too. People who want the AirPods will still buy them, but they'll be less annoyed if they have other W1 options.
Why do people think they'll fall out? Numerous reviewers have been jumping around and headbanging to prove that's not the case.
Not just fall out, but fall out and get lost because they're big an ugly in your ears but hard to see otherwise.
Reviews don't matter. Derp is essentially immune to evidence.
The PowerBeats 3 can be pre-ordered but they don't start shipping until the 16th-21st. Who wants to bet those ship dates start to slide as we get closer.
Also, add to the fact that the only two headphones designed with the W1 chip that can currently be ordered, both have micro-USB charging ports, requiring an extra cable or dongle to be carried around with the iPhone 7 in order to charge them. How does that make any sense?
I agree it doesn't really make sense, yet another adapter I have to buy. But this seems an overall theme with Apple these days, I guess that is why they were so successful when Steve was alive, you had brilliant designs by Jony Ive but a second set of critical eyes in the form of Jobs. If I had to guess, I would say that that is what Apple is missing these days, no one at Apple has the desire to be that second set of critical eyes to ask those questions when Ive comes up with the designs for headphones or other products in the pipeline.