Apple has a firm grip on wireless headphones in the US
It took five months, but Apple is finally ready to ship the last of its new batch of wireless headphones. The company on Tuesday announced that BeatsX, the neckband-style earphones from its Beats subsidiary, will go on sale and join the fully wireless AirPods, over-ear Solo 3 Wireless, and exercise-focused Powerbeats3 Wireless by the end of the week.
As this chart from Statista shows, the new pair should only bolster Beats' already-dominant position in the wireless headphone market. According to the latest data from NPD Group (via CNET), Beats sold the most wireless pairs and made the most money of any audio manufacturer in the US last December - and it's not particularly close. Despite the AirPods' staggered rollout, Apple managed to grab 2% of unit sales and 3% of dollar sales as well.
None of this should be a surprise. Beats proved years ago that having a big brand can sell expensive headphones - note the big gap between dollar sales and unit sales - and its popularity hasn't died off since. While Apple hasn't done much with Beats since acquiring it for $3 billion in 2014, its ownership puts it in the driver's seat as the wireless headphone market continues to expand. And with all the new Beats cans getting the same advanced, proprietary W1 tech as the AirPods, they'll have a distinct selling point for iPhone users going forward.
