Apple Releases Limited Edition AirPods 4 for Year of the Snake - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Releases Limited Edition AirPods 4 for Year of the Snake

by

To celebrate the Lunar New Year that starts on January 29, Apple is releasing limited edition AirPods 4 that are engraved with a special Year of the Snake icon.

year of the snake airpods
Apple's Year of the Snake ‌AirPods 4‌ are available for purchase in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore at the current time.

The AirPods are identical to the standard ‌AirPods 4‌ with Active Noise Cancellation and are available for the same price, but there is a unique engraving on the USB-C case of the device. Released earlier this year, the ‌AirPods 4‌ are Apple's first earbuds that offer Active Noise Cancellation without silicone ear tips. The ‌AirPods 4‌ feature adaptive audio, transparency mode, support for spatial audio, and more.

Customers can place orders for the special edition ‌AirPods 4‌ as of today, with deliveries set to begin on January 8. Apple is limiting each customer to two of the Year of the Snake AirPods.

Creating special edition AirPods is a tradition for Apple, though in past years, Apple has customized AirPods Pro rather than standard AirPods. There have been limited edition AirPods to celebrate the Year of the Dragon, Year of the Ox, Year of the Tiger, and Year of the Rabbit.

Along with special edition AirPods, Apple is holding a New Year sale in China, dropping the price of the iPhone 16 models by 500 yuan, and discounting other devices like the AirPods, Macs, iPads, and accessories. Apple is also offering Year of the Snake themed Today at Apple sessions from January 4 to February 14.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.5 Features: Everything New in iOS 26.5

Monday May 11, 2026 5:09 pm PDT by
Apple released iOS 26.5 after a few months of beta testing, and while it doesn't have the Siri features we were hoping for since those are being held until iOS 27, there are a handful of useful changes worth knowing about. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. End-to-End Encryption for RCS Support for end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for RCS messages between iPhone and...
Read Full Article • 65 comments
Dynamic Island iPhone 18 Pro Feature

11 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 18 Pro

Monday May 11, 2026 9:01 am PDT by
We're only four months out from the launch of Apple's premium next-generation smartphone lineup, and while we're not expecting a sea change in terms of functionality, there are still several enhancements rumored to be coming to the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth noting is that Apple is reportedly planning a major change to its iPhone release cycle this year, adopting a...
Read Full Article • 40 comments
Four iPhone 18 Pro Colors Mock Feature

iPhone 18 Pro May Have 'Aggressive' Starting Price Despite RAM Crisis

Tuesday May 12, 2026 6:53 am PDT by
While the ongoing RAM chip shortage is leading some Android smartphone makers to increase prices, one analyst believes that Apple will take advantage of the situation with the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. In a research note with GF Securities today, analyst Jeff Pu said he expects Apple to outperform in the smartphone market by having an "aggressive pricing strategy" for the ...
Read Full Article • 54 comments

Top Rated Comments

G
GermanSuplex
18 months ago
Clearly a lot of thought and effort went into that one.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vertsix Avatar
vertsix
18 months ago
Thissss issss awessssome.

Just kidding, I will get them for cheaper on Amazon. Thank you very much Apple.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sw1tcher Avatar
sw1tcher
18 months ago

Along with special edition AirPods, Apple is holding a New Year sale in China, dropping the price of the iPhone 16 models by 500 yuan, and discounting other devices like the AirPods, Macs, iPads, and accessories. Apple is also offering Year of the Snake themed Today at Apple sessions from January 4 to February 14.
I don't see how a $68.00 USD discount is going to help turn around iPhone sales.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/01/03/foreign-phone-sales-plunge-47percent-in-china-spelling-trouble-for-apple.html

Sales of foreign phone brands in China plunged in November, according to official data released Friday, underscoring further pressure on Apple, the biggest international handset vendor in the country.

In November, foreign mobile phone shipments in China stood at 3.04 million units, according to CNBC calculations based on data from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, or CAICT.

That’s a fall of 47.4% from November 2023, and a 51% drop from October last year.

CAICT does not break down figures for individual brands, however Apple accounts for the majority of foreign mobile phone shipments in China with competitors like Samsung forming only a tiny part of the market.


I predict another trip to China for Tim Cook in the very near future.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
B
barkomatic
18 months ago
I wish Apple would release more special edition products in other markets as well. Special Apple cases or iPhone colors, or graphics
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Z
Zwhaler
18 months ago

Clearly a lot of thought and effort went into that one.
Haha read my mind.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SanderEvers Avatar
SanderEvers
18 months ago
Mine* is also unique, because it has my name engraved on it. But it's cool to have 'special' editions of the engravings.

(* mine are pro 2s with USB-C though)
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments