AirPods

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Apple now offering in-store pickup for AirPods with February 8 availability

As first noted by AppleInsider, Apple yesterday began offering the in-store pickup option for its newly launched AirPods wireless earphones. Apple.com online store in the United States indicated at post time that first AirPods ordered with the in-store pickup option would be available on February 8.

If you choose to have AirPods shipped to your home, they're estimated to arrive in six weeks.

Teardown analysis suggests AirPods charging case quality issues might have caused delayed launch

Having torn apart Apple's AirPods wireless earphones and their charging case, repair masters over at iFixit have now posted their initial observations. AirPods have so many components crammed into tight space that the they're virtually not repairable or recyclable. As for the charging case, an X-ray analysis of its logic board reveals a few “quality issues” that may have contributed to the delayed AirPods launch.

Apple will charge you $69 to replace a lost AirPod

Apple will charge you $69 to replace a lost or broken AirPod, according to the company's iPhone Service Pricing support page. The wireless earbuds went on sale online earlier this week, and will be available in Apple Stores starting Monday.

It doesn't look like Apple will be offering its extended AppleCare warranty on the AirPods, so it has laid out a simple pricing table for what repairs and replacements will cost. Battery service, for example is $49 in the 1-year warranty, $69 out.

AirPods will be available in Apple Stores Monday

Apple will start selling AirPods in its retail stores on Monday, reports MacRumors. Citing a retail source familiar with the matter, the outlet says the company has begun informing its stores about the imminent launch and has even started shipping inventory.

The news follows the launch of AirPods online sales earlier this week, where shipping estimates quickly slipped beyond 4 weeks due to short supply. So for those hoping to score a pair of the wireless earbuds before Christmas, in-store is really your best bet.

AirPods now available to buy from Apple.com

Following an unexpected delay over manufacturing issues, AirPods are now finally available to purchase from Apple's online store, with delivery before Christmas. Apple's first Bluetooth earphones, AirPods feature an in-house designed wireless chip, dubbed W1, which provides reliable wireless connection, extended battery life and a few smart features, such as one-tap Siri integration, seamless zero-configuration pairing via iCloud, the ability for AirPods to automatically turn on when you put them in your ear and more. When used with non-Apple devices, the $159 earphones act as any standard Bluetooth device.

Gruber: AirPods might launch in time for Christmas

An authorized Apple retailer claimed today that the upcoming W1-equipped BeatsX earphones may not release in another 2-3 months. But what about AirPods? Daring Fireball's John Gruber said loosely on the latest episode of The Talk Show that AirPods, the company's first Bluetooth earphones, may arrive in time for Christmas after all, albeit in very limited quantities. You're advised to take this speculative report with a grain of salt because the sources Gruber's learned this from are not very reliable, according to the man himself.

WSJ: AirPods delayed because of issues with dual Bluetooth connectivity

Apple’s mysterious AirPods delay continues to puzzle us. Marking a rare public misstep, the company's failed to make its first-ever Bluetooth earphones available in time for the critical holiday season because, as Apple said, it needed “a little more time before AirPods are ready for our customers.”

A person familiar with the product's development told the Wall Street Journal on Friday that the problem with the AirPods stems from Apple's efforts to “chart a new path for wireless headphones” and, specifically, resolve what happens when you lose one of the earphones or its battery dies on you.

Cook: AirPods shipping over the “next few weeks”

We were originally promised the AirPods in “late October” before Apple delayed launch because, as the company explained in a statement, “we don’t believe in shipping a product before it’s ready.” Since then, multiple sources reported conflicting availability information pertaining to the product, ranging from end of November to year-end to January 2017.

According to an alleged reply that a MacRumors reader received after emailing Tim Cook, Apple's first Bluetooth earphones with an in-house designed W1 wireless chip will be shipping to customers over the next few weeks.

French retailer tells customers AirPods will begin shipping on or around November 30

Another European reseller is claiming that it's privy to when Apple's $159 AirPods wireless headphones will start shipping after German authorized reseller Conrad told a customer a week ago that it would be kicking off AirPods sales tomorrow, November 18.

French retailer Fnac has apparently started the pre-order process for the wireless earphones.

Fnac reportedly told customers who pre-ordered their AirPods that the accessory would start shipping on or around Wednesday, November 30, Mac4Ever said Thursday.

AirPods production said to kick off in December

A report earlier this week alleged that one of Apple’s European resellers told a customer it would receive first AirPods stock on November 17 and start selling the earphones by November 18-19.

Contradicting the story, Barclays analysts heard chatter in the Asian supply chain that mass production of the delayed accessory is scheduled to kick off in December in time for Christmas, but in limited quantities, Yahoo Finance reported Friday.

AirPods could launch next week, according to this Apple reseller

AirPods, Apple's Bluetooth earphones featuring the company's in-house designed W1 wireless chip, may be launching next week. That's the gist of a new report Thursday from German blog Apfelpage.de. The publication cited Apple's European reseller Conrad as confirming that it'll receive stock of the delayed earphones on November 17.

Conrad will reportedly make the AirPods sellable by November 18-19. The AirPods were originally advertised with a “late October” launch date until Apple said it needed more time to work out the issues. Apple.com currently lists them tentatively as “coming soon”.

AirPods may not ship until January 2017

Male headshot showing a profile of a young person wearing an AirPod in their left ear

After Apple shared disappointing news that the much vaunted AirPods aren’t quite ready yet and won't meet its self-imposed late-October deadline, a new report from Chinese-language Economic Daily News re-published Tuesday by Taiwanese trade publication DigiTimes suggests that Apple's first-ever wireless earphones may not actually go on sale before January of next year.