Apple Reportedly Lowering AirPods Production Due to Decreasing Sales

[Td1970]

See, again, to me it isn't the sound that matters most here at all. I have a good pair of Sony over-ear headphones that I love the sound of if I want to listen to something and the sound really does matter. AirPods are for casual every day listening, where the important feature is being able to easily use them with all my stuff and not notice they're in my ears. The sound on them is *fine* for this. It's not great but I'd take the worse sound for the ease they offer.

So your settling because it’s Apple

 

[avalon68]

Anyone else just not a fan of the ear 'plug' style of the Pro's? I don't understand how people say the regular AirPods don't stay in. I literally run with mine in and don't have to make any adjustments to them.

I prefer the non plug types of in ear headphones. I always hear my pulse with the plug ones, and every step I take. But...the non plugged ones fall out when I run, so I just deal with it. Dont wear them that often (and just have cheaper ones - anker)

 

[PBG4 Dude]

I would like to upgrade from my AirPod Pros... they have horrible battery life and tons of glitches like crackling!

Apple has a warranty replacement process for pros with crackling issues. I just had one of mine replaced last month. Had to answer a few questions but otherwise the process was painless.

 

[George Dawes]

I’ve hardly used my pair as I have constant connection problems with my iPad , sound is amazing though, when they work properly that is

 

[flottenheimer]

The batteries will die sooner than later, though.
And people who purchased will need to buy again.

 

[McScooby]

Only thing I want to see is they're lowering the price on the Max. I missed them when Amazon recently knocked £120 off the price for a few days.

 

[justperry]

So good in terms of feature set. TBH the first time of the replacement was probably due to my mistake. I left it in a house with a toddler and the next day when I went to get it back the noise cancellation of one of the AirPods units no longer worked. The second time was because of the problem with the seal - the seal degraded over time and I tried my luck to have it replaced under the replacement program and I succeeded.

In conclusion, a good product in terms of feature set, style and integration into the Apple ecosystem; some problems with build quality but largely solved after my second time replacement.

I just found your former post to be funny.
I do think though the battery should last way longer, like 4-5 years, or make it replaceable so it doesn't end up in a landfill before it actually breaks down.

 

[Abazigal]

As with many products they sell, it sometimes seems like Apple faces more competition from older versions of that product than the competition. Even if Apple is indeed lowering production capacity, it’s likely due to some other reason, and not because of greater competition.

My guess is that Nikkei added that part to get news outlets to feature their report, because they know that negative Apple news is what draws the clicks and views.

 

[ericwn]

AirPods in generally do not seem to be made to last, but I have bad luck with Apple headphones in general. Even before, the wired ones would die on me within a year (usually the left piece for some reason would stop working).

I had to get my AirPod replaced once (also the left one started to fail) and even with the replacement they last about 30 minutes now. My AirPod Pro also had to be replaced before because of the cracking issue. Lesson learned, if I ever do get AirPods again (they ARE convenient) I will add AppleCare+ to them for sure

In fairness most cheap headphones are not lasting very long for me either. I’ve tried a fair share of cable ones over the years.
My AirPods Pro are luckily not acting up and I’m pretty satisfied with them.

 

[I7guy]

So your settling because it’s Apple

No. I chose AirPods because, they are unique in what they do, comfortable with great sound quality. And they lasted me three years. Waiting for the next gen AirPods.

 

[I7guy]

I just found your former post to be funny.
I do think though the battery should last way longer, like 4-5 years, or make it replaceable so it doesn't end up in a landfill before it actually breaks down.

What manufactures of in ear devices has replaceable batteries that actually can be replaced. I’ll bet it’s a short list. However if one doesn’t recycle their AirPods when the life is over, they are environmentally remiss.

 

[The Game 161]

there comes a point where only so many can be in need of new air pods given the millions they have sold

 

[ericwn]

Shocking news. Maybe the prices are too high... make it affordable, please.

After years of strong sales it’s unlikely that they’re suddenly too expensive. The market is saturated and people don’t commute much plus as was mentioned there’s plenty of cheap alternatives.

 

[ericwn]

Everyone switched to AirPods Max.

Sure that’s how it likely went down.

 

[ericwn]

Cut from 110 M units to 75-85 M units.

This number are too crazy, considering it’s for iOS ecosystem only. I thought it would sell around 30 M units a year at best.

They all work as Bluetooth devices with other stuff too. They’re just better in their ecosystem than regular Bluetooth stuff, from a convenience perspective.

 

[1258186]

I bet it’s the overpriced AirPods Max headphones that are not selling well.

 

[tridley68]

I can see this happening they are too expensive and the sound sucks my B&O's sound so much better.

 

[DekuBleep]

I guess because everybody already bought new AirPods in 2020.

 

[smaffei]

Apple AirPods - Wireless Bliss for iPhone Users

The new AirPods combine intelligent design with breakthrough technology and crystal clear sound. Powered by the new Apple H1 headphone chip, AirPods now feature hands-free access to Siri using just your voice. And up to 3 hours of talk time on a single charge.

www.amazon.com

Apple AirPods Pro

Active noise cancellation for immersive sound. Transparency Mode for hearing and connecting with the world around you. A more customizable fit for all-day comfort. Sweat and water resistant. All in a super light, in-ear headphone that’s easy to set up with all your Apple devices.

www.amazon.com

😉

 

[Smigit]

Apple just needs to do what console manufacturers do and ship the same product in a different colour to reignite sales. Sure many people would love AirPods in various colours, even if it was just the case.

 

[canyonblue737]

It's also a lack of updates. AirPods v2 has been out for many years now and even the AirPods Pro are approaching 2 years. Everyone has them. I'm sure Apple will update both to try and give users a reason to upgrade.

 

[MrGuder]

Ok so make less so you can sell less...new business strategy lol

 

[lkrupp]

Over 100 posts about a ‘report’ from an overseas outfit that provides no supporting evidence, no actual figures, just blathers on about Apple losing market share. Shows the depth of lack of critical thinking on tech blogs with a preponderance of haters at its core.

 

[Pupi]

Headphones are a commodity. AirPods were first to market, have a few distinct advantage to them in the Apple ecosystem, but they new face a SLEW of competition, from cheap makers in China, to reputed audio & electronics brands. Sales can only go down with that kind of competition pressure, pushing on both fronts of price and sound quality.

Easy pairing isn’t good enough of a draw, some of these headphones can already store pairing memory for 2-3 devices. You do that once. It isn’t a big deal.

Plus them being disposable.

 

[JosephAW]

My AirPods gen 2 are about a year old now and still going strong. Use them nearly every day. Not interested to buy any in-ear devices. On ear is fine.