While making my rounds at CES 2018, I don't think I've ever seen more "me too" Bluetooth headphones, earphones, IEMs, and health monitoring earphones in my life. I cannot believe how much investment has gone into this category of products.
How many different versions of a small, in-ear, Bluetooth earphone do consumers need? I love competition, but aside from the several dozen major name brands, there were hundreds, perhaps thousands, of damn near identical earphone products which were comparable to the Apple Airpod, or similary featured earphones with added heartrate monitoring capabilities. Some were water resistant for athletic use, but how many are needed for the marketplace? The same was true for on-ear and over the ear Bluetooth headphones / headsets which have very few differentiators other than a few which added 3D placement capabilities for AR/VR applications. Ultimately, when looking as a catalog of potentially thousands of wireless headphones, what are consumers going to buy?
It is shocking how many companies have invested in this space hoping to turn a profit.
How many different versions of a small, in-ear, Bluetooth earphone do consumers need? I love competition, but aside from the several dozen major name brands, there were hundreds, perhaps thousands, of damn near identical earphone products which were comparable to the Apple Airpod, or similary featured earphones with added heartrate monitoring capabilities. Some were water resistant for athletic use, but how many are needed for the marketplace? The same was true for on-ear and over the ear Bluetooth headphones / headsets which have very few differentiators other than a few which added 3D placement capabilities for AR/VR applications. Ultimately, when looking as a catalog of potentially thousands of wireless headphones, what are consumers going to buy?
It is shocking how many companies have invested in this space hoping to turn a profit.