William Gallagher
Apple is continuing to reduce its dependence on suppliers in China by having the AirPods Max made in Vietnam — but currently still by Chinese-owned companies.
Following previous moves away from China to reduce the impact of US trade disputes, Apple is reportedly having its new AirPods Max assembled in Vietnam. However, the factories assembling the headphones are still owned by companies based in China.
According to Digitimes, supply chain sources say that the headphones are being assembled by the Chinese companies Luxshare Precision Industry and Goertek. These unnamed sources say that the two companies beat Taiwanese competitors to the job even though Inventec Appliances had in some way participated in the development of the AirPods Max.
Digitimes says that its sources see the move to assemble in Vietnam as signifying that Apple is accelerating the relocation of its suppliers away from China. The same sources reportedly commented that the number of iPhones being produced in India is increasing.
China remains important to Apple, however. Recently it was revealed that Apple has been paying a bonus to staff who resume travelling to, and working in, China, following the lifting of coronavirus restrictions.
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30 Comments
I am going to moan about the obscene price every post about the Airpods Max.
This story illustrates that the company building Apple's products doesn't have to be based in the country where the labour is found. This means, for example, that Apple could start a company in China or Vietnam and hire a million people. Why doesn't Apple do that? Probably because Apple would be skewered for hiring people using local wage rates and labour practices. Apple wants plausible deniability.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plausible_deniability <--
Can't imagine if the AirPods Max is made in USA like the monitor stand. I would've easily been a $1000+ headphone.