AirPods Are Officially Available to Order Online — But Don’t Expect to Get Your Hands on Them Anytime Soon

At long last, after over two months of delays, and all of the rampant speculation about when they’d actually launch, Apple on Tuesday morning quietly opened orders for its hotly anticipated wireless AirPods via the company’s official website.

Customers who have been eagerly anticipating Cupertino’s AirPods can now head on over to Apple’s website and place their order for the $159 “truly wireless” headphones. Unfortunately, the product is currently available only from Apple’s website, directly, and more than likely won’t be offered in Apple retail store locations for quite some time.

Speaking of time, order estimates for Apple’s AirPods initially opened this morning touting a “by December 21st” ship date. However, the product has apparently been selling like hotcakes and as of 10:00 am, customers are looking at the absolute minimum of a 4 week wait until they can get their hands and ears on a pair of their own.

Originally revealed back in September at the Silicon Valley tech-giants’ iPhone 7 unveiling event, Apple’s AirPods were stalled by a myriad of delays. However, the arrival of AirPods on the company’s online store this morning is perhaps unsurprising to some, especially considering that just recently it was rumored that they would be touching down within the “coming days.”

While Apple executives had initially indicated that there “was simply no way” their company would be able to meet a pre-Christmas release timeframe, the arrival of AirPods on the Apple online storefront is nonetheless welcome — even though, as we mentioned, if you place your order for them today, you likely won’t be receiving them until the middle of January — at the earliest. Moreover, it honestly wouldn’t be too surprising if the estimated ship times continued to climb throughout the day today. If orders continue at their current pace, some could possibly be waiting even longer.

Nevertheless, your AirPods order will certainly be worth waiting for. Featuring a truly wireless, dual-earbud design, Apple’s AirPods feature the company’s all-new W1 chip — providing a more formidable Bluetooth audio connection and easy iPhone pairing — and are capable of providing up to five hours of audio playback on a single charge. AirPods also feature a slew of advanced technologies made possible thanks to Cupertino’s new W1 chip. Each earbud, for instance includes beam-forming microphones, accelerometers, and infrared sensors. What’s more, the earbuds are housed in a small, form-fitting charging and carrying case, which is capable of providing you with extra battery power while you’re on the move.

Have you ordered a pair of Apple’s AirPods yet? Let us know in the comments!