Suppliers Not Expecting Significant Boost to Sales from AirPods Max [Report]

Taiwanese PCB makers are not expecting a significant boost to sales from Apple's new AirPods Max over-ear headphones, reports DigiTimes. Compeq Manufacturing and Unitech are both said to be PCB suppliers for the new headset.

PCB suppliers in Taiwan are not expecting a significant boost to their sales from AirPods Max, reasoning that over-ear headphones are positioned as a niche segment with higher prices but smaller market scale compared to earbuds, the sources said. The sources cited Canalys statistics showing that the world's quarterly shipments of true wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds came to around 45 million pairs in third-quarter 2019, compared to 20 million for over-ear headphones.

Sources say that products with rigid-flex boards will remain the mainstream solution for over-ear headphones in the short term.


Apple's AirPods Max cost $549 without a power adapter or audio cable. They are already sold out at most retailers until next year. You'll likely need to pay a premium on eBay if you want to get a pair before Christmas.

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