Apple's decision of not providing wired earphones for its iPhone 12 series is expected to create a wave of Bluetooth earphone demand, according to sources from the upstream supply chain.

At the moment, Bluetooth earphone shipments are estimated to reach around 200-300 million units a year, while smartphone shipments can go up to 1.2-1.3 billion units. If Android smartphone brands also stop poviding wired earphones, shipments of Bluetooth earphones can increase dramatically in the next few years.

In the second quarter of 2020, Apple's AirPods were the bestselling true wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds worldwide with an on-year shipment growth of 30%. The AirPods had a market share of 35% in the quarter, a slip from over 50% in 2019 as more TWS earbuds brands have joined the competition.

Digitimes Research estimates that iPhone shipments will total 195 million units in 2020 with 58% of the iPhone customers being potential buyers of the AirPods.

By DIGITIMES