Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims that the AirPods 3 will not arrive until the third quarter of 2021, as opposed to what was rumored about its presentation this March.
Not all the rumors we see in some countries, especially concerning Apple, are true. There are indeed more or less reputable leakers but in general they all point in the same direction. The problem comes when several rumors clash with each other, which is just what is happening with the third-generation AirPods.
A few days ago, Jon Prosser, a famous leaker known for having been right on more than one occasion, was kind enough to warn that in March there would be an Apple event in which, among other things, new AirPods would be presented. Ming-Chi Kuo, a famous Apple-focused analyst also known for having a pretty solid hit ratio, says otherwise.
He assures, in an investor note, that the new AirPods will not only not arrive in March, but will not enter production until the third quarter of this year, that is, until summer 2021.
AirPods 3 will be delayed
What’s curious about Kuo’s note is that Apple would not release AirPods 3 in March simply because they would not be ready to market. The analyst’s report focuses on predictions for projected AirPods sales this year, which will be reduced in part by the pandemic.
That wouldn’t be the only reason; Kuo alludes to the fact that Apple has ever-widening competition, and that while they are in very good health in the industry, this won’t take away from the fact that shipments this year will be down. Kuo estimates that Apple will sell about 78 million AirPods this year, down from 2020 when it sold 90 million.
Although Kuo is not entirely sure about his analysis, he assures that Apple will be able to sustain itself on the AirPods Max and AirPods 2 to make time while preparing its third generation.
This information is nothing more than a prediction that, moreover, comes at a strange time. The latest rumors about the AirPods have been accompanied by leaked images, which in turn matched the rumored details of these devices. Therefore, it would be strange that in the end, Apple decided to delay so much some devices with so much public as are the AirPods. We will find out in a few days, in March.