A new factory near Hyderabad has already begun trial runs for the AirPods and is expected to enter the mass production stage early next year. Though China has been a massive boon to Apple’s business for a very long time, the cost of doing business with the country is becoming too much to bear.
Most troublesome is the U.S. taking stringent measures against the Chinese tech industry in the name of national security. This also includes president elect Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs which promise to make doing business with China extra difficult.
Apple’s shift away from Chinese production — using India and Vietnam mostly — is a stark contrast from a few years ago when Tim Cook defended choosing Chinese labor. AirPods are already manufactured in Vietnam to an extent and it’s good to see Apple expanding its production facilities. This move undoubtedly signals the end of AirPods production in China in the near future.
The Chinese industry — as Cook explained — is very advanced. Apple can rest assured knowing that its devices will be manufactured up to the standards imposed by the company. Moving production to other countries often results in a drop in quality and a ton of stock going to waste until the manufacturing methods are perfected.
However, AirPods are much simpler devices than the iPhone. I’m positive that India should not have much trouble producing satisfactory units if it’s able to assemble the iPhone successfully. The AirPods are excellent earphones — especially considering that they’re consumer products — and Apple wouldn’t dare compromise on quality.
So no worries if your next pair of AirPods comes from India: you’ll still be getting some excellent audio gear.
