Apple AirPods Pro Redesign
Timeline
10 weeks
My Role
UX Research
Life Cycle Analysis
Prototyping
Team
4 designers
Process
Research
Life Cycle Analysis
Impact Assessment
Prototyping
Usability Testing
Tools
Figma
Miro
Google Sheets
Overview
We were tasked with redesigning an existing product that had a physical component and a digital interface. The goal of the redesign was to reduce the environmental impact of the existing product.
We initially chose to redesign the Google Pixel Buds but switched to the Apple AirPod Pros after initial research.
The Apple AirPods Pro are advanced wireless earphones known for their active noise cancellation, comfortable fit, and superior sound quality. Our redesign reduces environmental impact by reducing the silicone waste from the unused earbud tips included with the accessories in the packaging.
While durable and useful, silicone is not widely recycled, produces greenhouse gases during extraction and manufacturing, and can cause long-term environmental degradation.
Research
Life Cycle Analysis
Our research started with a life cycle analysis, where we analyzed the extraction, manufacturing, production, use, and end of life phases of our product.
We found that the highest impact came from manufacturing and end of life. We decided to focus our redesign on these areas.
Impact Assessment
We conducted an impact assessment to determine the current environmental impact of the product and the projected reduction of impact of our design. At this point we struggled to find available information on the sales data of the Google Pixel Buds, so we decided to switch to the Apple AirPods Pro which had public data.
We decided that the impact from manufacturing and extracting silicone was where we wanted to focus, so we came up with our redesign idea: reduce the number of silicone ear tips that come in the packaging of the Airpod pros.
We found that our redesign would reduce CO2 impact by
285,000 kg of CO2.
User Research
We then conducted user research by conducting a survey of current ear bud users. With 28 responses, we discovered the current behavior of ear bud and AirPods Pro users.
Key Insights
33% of surveyed users swapped out their ear tips after purchasing AirPod Pros
A majority of participants expect to have the extra ear tips as backup when purchasing AirPod Pros
Only 20% of surveyed users plan to use the extra ear tips that came with their AirPod Pros
Silicone earbud tips are frequently thrown away
User testing showed that users would keep the box to store the ear tips
Design
We began our prototyping with some sketches of possible packaging redesigns to account for the fewer ear tips.
We redesigned both the Apple website where users can purchase AirPod Pros and the box packaging that the earbuds came in.
Design Sketches
Prototyping
We deconstructed an Apple AirPods Pro box to determine how much of the packaging we could reduce.
Final Prototypes
Deconstructed AirPods Pro box
Our final prototype consisted of a Figma prototype of the Apple AirPods Pro web page and a 3D CAD model of our final design.
Final prototype height different with original AirPods Pro box
Reflection
Regarding the future of this project, we urge Apple to implement sustainable alternative materials for their AirPod Pro ear tips. Another consideration with materials is extraction. Sourcing materials locally can reduce the environmental impacts from transportation. A third consideration we ask of Apple is to provide information about access to recycling facilities and possibly introduce incentives to increase the recycling rate of AirPod Pro silicone ear tips.
Throughout this project I learned that it is important to let ideas go if necessary. The lack of data on Google Pixel Buds caused a delay in the beginning of our process and we had to revisit part of our research.