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Post 8 - Innovation Of Diffusion - AirPods

 Innovation Of Diffusion - AirPods

What exactly are AirPods?

AirPods are Apple's wireless earbuds that have skyrocketed in popularity since their release in 2016. These earbuds became the most popular accessory sold by Apple two years after their release, and since the initial release of the AirPods Apple has come out with a second-generation Airpods and Airpod Pros. I believe the reason Airpods caught on quickly was because of how innovative and unique it was. Unlike other Bluetooth headphones at the time, Apple's AirPods were sleek and modern and came with many advancements Apple users weren't used to. 

AirPods Through the Lens of Innovation Diffusion

Innovators: Apple and its investors were the innovators of the AirPods. They were the ones who thought up, financed, produced, and pioneered the use and creation of the device.


Early Adopters: Airpods were announced at an Apple Special Event alongside the iPhone 7 and the Apple watch series 2 on September 7, 2016. The AirPods did not receive the best reviews initially, for example, CNN asked "Would people wear these?" and the Verge wrote, "They look... just like the old EarPods, with the wires cut off." EarPods were Apple's earbuds before the release of the Airpods. I would consider the early adopters of this product to be anyone who bought AirPods in the first few weeks after their release on December 13, 2016.


Early Majority: In 2017 Analysts estimate Apple sold between 14 million and 16 million AirPods, with that number skyrocketing in 2018 as AirPods became Apple's most popular accessory product and sold over 35 million units. Following the Innovation of the Diffusion Modle, I would have to believe that 2018 was the tipping point. 


Late Adopters: Apple announced the 2nd generation of AirPods on March 20, 2019, so I would consider anyone who bought the original AirPods after that announcement to be apart of the late adopters.


Laggards: Apple went on to announce the AirPod Pros on Apple on October 28, 2019, with the earbuds releasing two days later on October 31st. Anyone who purchased the original AirPods after the release of the AirPod Pros would be considered apart of the laggards since now there were two newer versions of the device out. 

The Pros and Cons

There are many good things that Airpods brought and bring to the table. Airpods are unique in the fact that they connect via Bluetooth to your device so you can have a hands-free listening experience. There is a built-in microphone to allow for phone calls and using Siri. There are also built-in and sensors on the AirPods that detect taps, for when you want to skip a song, and when an earbud is taken out of your ear, which allows the music to automatically pause. I also find it very easy to transition from listening to music on one device to another device while earing AirPods which is a nice addition.

There are a few negative about AirPods that can be hard to overlook. One being the price. It is much cheaper to buy knock off AirPods or Apple's Earbuds since the price for Airpods is a little more on the expensive side. Another downside is that since they are on the smaller side it could be easy to lose them if you do not put them directly into the case after you take them out of your ears. Apply has tried to combat losing your AirPods however by allowing you to play a sound to try and find your missing AirPods as long as they are charged.

Concluding Thoughts

AirPods have become a very large success for Apple and can be easily tracked by the Innovation Of Diffusion method. At the end of the day, I believe that the positive attributes of the AirPods outweigh the negative as they are well worth the purchase because they allow you to have a more mobile music listening experience and include many enticing features in a small, sleek package. In 2019 60 million AirPods, AirPod second generation, and Airpod Pros were sold in 2019 and analysts estimate all three AirPods together make up 60% of the global wireless headphone market.

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