The history of Apple has been crossed by many products that at the time of their presentation had turned up more than a few noses, but which over time turned out to be enormous commercial successes: from the iPod to the iPhone, which respectively upset the market of music and telephony, to the various iPads and Apple Watches, which in their own way have created a slice of the market from scratch that was essentially non-existent before their appearance. There is another product that is rarely talked about and which instead represents very well Apple's ability to create objects that go beyond their simple function and become status symbols: the AirPods.
On September 7, 2016, Apple unveiled its two new iPhone models, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, at an event in San Francisco. The biggest novelty of those two new phones was the disappearance of the mini-jack audio output. , replaced by a Lightning output. Basically, those who wanted to use a normal pair of headphones with an audio jack would have had to use an adapter, or settle for the earphones included in the package of the iPhones. Simultaneously with the disappearance of the audio jack, however, Apple also introduced a new product, designed exclusively for iPhone owners: the AirPods, wireless earphones that connect to the phone via bluetooth, and which are recharged using a special case in turn. rechargeable.
When they were presented, the AirPods immediately aroused several doubts among the insiders, starting with the very high price and the design chosen by Apple. AirPods cost – and still cost – 159 dollars in the United States and 179 euros in Italy (today a version with wireless charging from 229 euros has been added), a figure considered by many to be exaggerated, especially due to the quality of the audio. , judged in line with that of normal earphones if not lower.
Apart from criticism of the price – which always happens with Apple products – it was above all the design that caused discussion of the AirPods. The AirPods in fact appeared as earphones almost identical to the EarPods, but with a base a few centimeters longer. There was no lack of ironies and teasing and, immediately after the presentation, memes began to circulate on the Internet in which the AirPods were compared to the interchangeable tips of electric toothbrushes. Those who criticized the AirPods, in essence, argued that they were a rather ugly product, not worthy of Apple's historic attention to design.
Airpod preview, in case you were wondering. #appleEvent pic.twitter.com/e5XJEGB6Rw
– Victor Baro (@victorbaro) September 7, 2016
The fact that, unlike other bluetooth headsets on the market, the AirPods were sold in a standard size for all, also raised some doubts about their stability. However, the tests they were subjected to when they went on sale showed that the AirPods stayed in the ears more solidly than one might think, even in the case of sudden movements. Some mocked Apple about this as well, claiming that it would soon be selling expensive cables to prevent AirPods owners from losing them (which actually happened, even though it wasn't Apple who made the cables). Over the years, however, the qualities of the AirPods have surpassed the doubts and ironies about the price and the somewhat clumsy design, and have made it a very successful product, which today has become very common to see around. The case, for example, is one of the elements most appreciated by experts and those who own them: it is very solid, the earphones fit perfectly magnetically, and it is very practical to carry with you. Having no wires to untangle or jacks to fit is very practical, and actually the absence of a wire makes them very stable in the ears.
Another reason for the success of the AirPods is the integration they have with Apple devices: the new versions, for example, have introduced voice commands to activate the Siri assistant without having to pick up the phone, but they also work perfectly. with Mac computers and non-Apple devices. Also, a new model is expected to come out soon with ambient noise cancellation included.
More than three years after their launch on the market, the initial skepticisms therefore seem unwarranted. The contraction in the sale of iPhones – and smartphones in general – has meant that accessories become more and more important in Apple's business. In 2018, AirPods dominated the bluetooth headset market, reaching 60 percent of total industry-wide sales.
In the third quarter of the current fiscal year, Apple's wearable division, which includes AirPods, Apple Watch and home devices, grew to record net sales of $ 5.5 billion (about € 5 billion). to make a comparison, sales of iPads alone were $ 5 billion (€ 4.5 billion). An estimated 50 million AirPods will be sold this year, and Apple believes sales will grow further in the coming years, accounting for 3.5 percent of the company's total revenue by 2021.
Last March, Jony Ive, Apple's longtime head of design who left the company in June, spoke to GQ about the success of the AirPods, and why they were initially under-appreciated. Ive said he believed the criticism was “a reaction based on academic understanding, rather than a practical, day-to-day understanding of earphones. We tend to focus on features that are easy to talk about, but just because they are talked about doesn't mean that those are the important features. They are simply the characteristics that are easy to talk about “.
