AirPods in Color: Apple’s Abandoned Design Experiment
Kosutami / X
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It’s been just over nine years since the first generation of AirPods went on sale in 2016. Those original AirPods came in iconic “glossy Apple white,” and not much has changed. We’ve seen four generations of AirPods, and three of the more powerful AirPods Pro, yet Apple’s approach has remained the same: You can have the AirPods in any color you want — as long as it’s white.
We’ve seen numerous rumors of AirPods colors over the years, and Apple has offered two generations of its AirPods Max over-ear headphones in multiple colorways — ironically none of which included white. However, Apple’s in-ear headphones have unwaveringly maintained the plastic white finish that was once a staple of Apple’s product lineup, from the early iMacs, iBooks, and iPods to the white iPhone 3G and 3GS.
In early 2019, as the release of the first sequel to the original AirPods approached, leakers began pointing to a black version with a grippier texture, and when the “AirPods 2” arrived only in white, the rumor mill shifted gears to suggest that the more advanced “AirPods Pro” would come in as many as eight new colors, possibly color-matched to Apple’s iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro lineup.
Of course, we know that didn’t happen, but it turns out there may have been a kernel of truth to those rumors. In a post on X, “Kosutami,” a well-known leaker who also collects Apple prototypes, revealed photos purporting to be prototypes of pink and yellow cases for the original first-generation AirPods.
As noted by Hartley Charlton at MacRumors, which first spotted and shared Kosutami’s post, the finishes strongly resemble the style of the iPhone 5c, Apple’s ill-fated attempt to add a splash of color to the iPhone in 2013. Unlike today’s glass-and-aluminum designs, the iPhone 5c used a plastic casing that made it feel a bit too “Fisher Price.” That design, combined with the fact that it had the same specs of its iPhone 5 predecessor, resulted in poor sales. Apple abandoned that idea until 2019, when it tried again with the iPhone XR, an entry-level model that boasted a more refined design for its colors and lower but still current specs.
It’s hard to say whether the iPhone 5c’s failure to gain traction led to Apple abandoning similarly colorful AirPods, but it’s easy to see how it might have led designers to stick with the safer glossy white that made them feel more elegant than toy-like and hearkened back to the iPod era.
It’s also interesting to note that these early prototypes would have only seen the cases in additional color finishes. The earbuds themselves remained white, as did the case’s interior, suggesting Apple still wanted to retain the on-brand “silhouette” look of its earbuds, and the AirPods were essentially just EarPods without the wires (they even shared the same internal B188 model identifier during development).
In 2023, Kosutami also shared photos of “pink” AirPods that were supposedly intended to match the finishes of the iPhone 7, which came out the same year.
The “pink” version would have supposedly been paired with the rose gold iPhone 7, while Apple supposedly also planned matching black and (PRODUCT)RED versions, plus a champagne-gold shade internally referred to as blonde and a purple version that would have matched a widely rumored iPhone 7 finish that Apple reportedly scrapped at the last minute.
One thing that remains notable about both of these leaks is that they relate solely to the first-generation AirPods. Despite the run of rumors in 2019, there’s no solid evidence Apple ever considered offering the second-generation AirPods or the AirPods Pro in anything other than white — and even less that the earbuds themselves would have come in any additional colors.
While the AirPods Max come in multiple colors, their aluminum material puts them in an entirely different design category, letting Apple achieve fun colors without sacrificing the premium aesthetic. For the most part, Apple’s plastic products have always stuck with glossy white. The erstwhile iPhone 5c was a rare departure from that trend, but Apple is seemingly less willing to risk such experiments with its AirPods. Until the company finds a way to make colored plastic feel as classy as white polycarbonate, the in-ear AirPods will likely remain as white as the originals that started it all nine years ago.
[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]
