What you need to know
- A report suggests that shipments of Apple's AirPods is expected to double in 2019 compared to 2018.
- Bloomberg suggests Apple will ship 60 million units.
- Demand for AirPods Pro has surpassed expectations, pushing manufacturers to the limit.
A report from Bloomberg suggests that shipments of Apple's AirPods may be as high as 60 million units in 2019, roughly double last year's total.
According to the report:
Shipments of Apple Inc.'s popular AirPods wireless earphones are expected to double to 60 million units in 2019, according to people familiar with the Cupertino-based company's production plans. This has been driven in part by "much higher" than expected demand for the pricier AirPods Pro model unveiled in October.
The report further suggests that the demand for AirPods Pro has surpassed expectations such that it is pushing Apple's assembly partners "against capacity and technical constraints." Recently consumer research reported that at least amongst teens, Apple was the most in-demand brand this holiday season, and its AirPods were its most in demand product.
The Bloomberg report also notes that Apple's wearables revenue, which includes AirPods, grew by 54% in the last quarter, and is now growing exponentially faster than its iPhone sales, which actually shrunk overall to a paltry $33.4 billion.
A report earlier this week revealed that despite a slightly waning market share, Apple remains kind of the true wireless "hearables", holding a 45% market share, ways ahead of any competitors.
If you want to know what all the fuss is about when it comes to AirPods Pro, take a look at our review here!
Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.
Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple.
