Apple CEO Tim Cook on Tuesday said AirPods continue to be "incredibly popular" and a "runaway hit" for the company.
"AirPods are incredibly popular and we're seeing them in more and more places—in the gym, in coffee shops, wherever people are enjoying music on their Apple devices," said Cook, following Apple's earnings report. "This product is a runaway hit, and we're working hard to meet the incredible demand."
Apple does not disclose AirPod sales, and instead groups the wireless earphones into its broad "Other Products" category in earnings results, but there's at least a few reasons to believe they're very popular indeed.
For starters, Apple reported $3.9 billion revenue from its "Other Products" category in the March quarter, an impressive 38 percent increase over the year-ago quarter. Apple said its wearable and home products like the AirPods, Apple Watch, Apple TV, and HomePod accounted for over 90 percent of that growth.
Second, Apple said unit sales of both AirPods and the Apple Watch reached a new all-time high for the March quarter, without revealing specifics.
Third, since launching in December 2016, AirPods have rarely been in stock on Apple's online store. Orders placed today still face a one-week delivery estimate, suggesting Apple can't keep up with strong demand, may be experiencing mass production challenges, or some combination of those two factors.
Barclays analysts recently forecasted that AirPods shipments may approach 30 million units in 2018, while former KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo estimated 26-28 million shipments on the year.
Looking ahead, Apple plans to release a wireless charging case for AirPods to be used with its AirPower charging mat, slated for release in 2018. Beyond that, Mark Gurman reported that Apple may release new AirPods with "Hey Siri" functionality as early as this year, and a water-resistant pair as early as next year.
AirPods are available for $159 on Apple's online store. Limited supplies are also available at select Apple retail stores.
"AirPods are incredibly popular and we're seeing them in more and more places—in the gym, in coffee shops, wherever people are enjoying music on their Apple devices," said Cook, following Apple's earnings report. "This product is a runaway hit, and we're working hard to meet the incredible demand."
Apple does not disclose AirPod sales, and instead groups the wireless earphones into its broad "Other Products" category in earnings results, but there's at least a few reasons to believe they're very popular indeed.
For starters, Apple reported $3.9 billion revenue from its "Other Products" category in the March quarter, an impressive 38 percent increase over the year-ago quarter. Apple said its wearable and home products like the AirPods, Apple Watch, Apple TV, and HomePod accounted for over 90 percent of that growth.
Second, Apple said unit sales of both AirPods and the Apple Watch reached a new all-time high for the March quarter, without revealing specifics.
Third, since launching in December 2016, AirPods have rarely been in stock on Apple's online store. Orders placed today still face a one-week delivery estimate, suggesting Apple can't keep up with strong demand, may be experiencing mass production challenges, or some combination of those two factors.
Barclays analysts recently forecasted that AirPods shipments may approach 30 million units in 2018, while former KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo estimated 26-28 million shipments on the year.
Looking ahead, Apple plans to release a wireless charging case for AirPods to be used with its AirPower charging mat, slated for release in 2018. Beyond that, Mark Gurman reported that Apple may release new AirPods with "Hey Siri" functionality as early as this year, and a water-resistant pair as early as next year.
AirPods are available for $159 on Apple's online store. Limited supplies are also available at select Apple retail stores.
Related Roundup: AirPods
Buyer's Guide: AirPods (Caution)
107 comments
Have a question about the HomePod?
Apple announced that it will be hosting a HomePod live event in its Support Communities on Wednesday, July 25, providing customers with an opportunity to ask...
In iOS 12, Apple has introduced new notification features, providing an expanded set of tools for monitoring and managing notifications in quicker and more intuitive ways.
There have been no...
Apple Business Chat, which is customer service through iMessage, is expanding to a total of 10 new partners and technology platforms.
Apple on Friday announced that satellite TV provider...
Samsung has expanded upon its "Ingenius" ad campaign with three new videos titled Dongle, Fast Charger, and Camera.
In each of the videos, Samsung depicts an Apple Store employee having...
Earlier this week, the repair experts at iFixit opened up the 2018 MacBook Pro, uncovering Intel's new JHL7540 Thunderbolt 3 controller, introduced earlier this year as part of its "Titan...
Following the release of the new 2018 MacBook Pro models, iFixit last week tore apart the 13-inch version and discovered the presence of a new silicone membrane underneath the keyboard's...
Apple today submitted revised blueprints for its planned Federation Square retail store location in Melbourne, Australia, according to the Federation Square website.
Apple first announced the...
In an internal document distributed to Apple Authorized Service Providers, obtained by MacRumors from multiple reliable sources, Apple has confirmed that the third-generation keyboard on 2018 MacBook...
