When you think of Apple’s AirPods, you probably think of them in their generic white color scheme. Some people like the original design, but others may feel the need to make their AirPods more discreet, or more interesting to look at.
Learning how to paint AirPods, will require you to use a specific type of paint, due to the material that these earbuds are made from. AirPods are made from a polycarbonate plastic material, which is smooth. Therefore, using acrylic paint is the best option if you want to hide or decorate AirPods.
Before you rush off to find some paint and start to modify the appearance of your AirPods, it’s important to ensure that you take the necessary precautions.
AirPods are quite expensive devices, and painting them comes with a risk of damage.
You need to figure out what you’re trying to achieve by painting them, and the best plan of action to take. In this guide, you’ll learn how to paint AirPods efficiently and safely.
How to Hide AirPods
If you’re in a situation or environment where you would like to hide the facts that you have AirPods in your ears, the best way to do this is by covering them up with an item of clothing.
One of the advantages of wearing AirPods as opposed to wired headphones is that no cables are hanging down. This makes it much easier to hide them without having to feed the wires through your clothing in an attempt to disguise the AirPods.
The easiest way to hide AirPods is to wear them underneath a hat which fully covers your ears. A beanie or other type of hat that can be pulled down over your ears will keep the AirPods out of sight.
It’s important to ensure the hat isn’t too tight, otherwise, the small stems of the AirPods may protrude and make it obvious that you are wearing them underneath the hat. Unfortunately, most baseball caps won’t be suitable for this as they don’t cover the ear but rather sit above it.
Another option would be to wear a hooded jacket, sweater, or coat. As long as the hood comes far enough forward to cover your ears, this should successfully hide the AirPods from other people. Again, the material will need to be thick and slightly loose enough so that the shape of the AirPods cannot be seen pressing up against it.
You can essentially use any for of headwear to hide your AirPods, as long as it provides enough coverage. Alternatively, you could use paint to attempt to make the AirPods match your skin tone or the color of your hair, which may disguise the fact that you’re wearing them, especially from afar.
If you have long hair, you could also attempt to hide your AirPods by styling it so that it falls over your ears and covers the area. Whether or not you can do this will depend on your hair color and its natural style.
The issue with using your hair to cover AirPods is that a strong gust of wind is likely to expose them unless you wear something to hold the hair in place.
Can You Paint AirPods?
There are certain aftermarket services that you can purchase so that a professional company will paint your AirPods any color that you wish. Most of these services will also paint the charging case too.
If you’d rather not pay someone else to paint your AirPods, you could attempt to do them yourself. It’s highly important that you take all of the necessary precautions if you do decide to do it yourself, otherwise, you may end up damaging your AirPods beyond repair.
You should avoid using any spray paint or other paint that is too thick for the surface of the AirPods. Ideally, you should use a thinner paint so that it doesn’t become lumpy, and the AirPods can retain their smooth finish.
Plasti-Dip paint is a good choice. This paint comes in an aerosol can and is available in a variety of different colors. It is thin enough to leave the AirPods feeling smooth, and you won’t need to use much to cover the whole plastic area.
It’s also advisable to use a surface primer on your AirPods before you attempt to paint them, as this will help the paint to stick to the material with ease.
You should also use masking tape to cover up all of the parts of the AirPods that you don’t want to expose to the paint, ensuring that it can’t get into the speaker holes. This is vitally important as it could potentially damage your AirPods if any paint gets into the speakers.
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- Active Noise Cancellation blocks outside noise, so you can immerse yourself in music
How To Paint AirPods
If you’ve decided to paint your AirPods, there are a few things that you should consider before getting started.
Firstly, use tape to fully cover the earbud holes on your AirPods so that no paint can get into them. It’s really important to check that they are fully covered to avoid any damage from occurring.
As I previously mentioned, the polycarbonate plastic material that is used for AirPods’ enclosure is very smooth, which will make it difficult for the paint to stick to.
Rougher surfaces are generally easier to paint because the paint can dry against the material and is less likely to be rubbed off easily or spread unevenly across the surface.
That’s why it’s important to clean the AirPods case, preferably with an anti-static cleaning solution before you apply the paint. Secondly, I would recommend using acrylic paint as this is going to be the easiest to work with when painting such a small surface.
Once you’ve removed any dirt or debris from the AirPods by cleaning them, and you’ve chosen the acrylic paint color that you would like to use, you should now apply the primer to the AirPods, making sure you distribute it evenly across the surface that you intend to paint.
After applying the primer, you can then start to apply the acrylic paint to the AirPods, or the case, depending on what you are painting.
I would advise starting with very thin layers of paint and focusing on brushing evenly across the surface. The more time you take and the attention you give, the better the finished job is likely to be.
After you’re pleased with the way the AirPods look, leave them to fully dry, then apply a coat of sealant so that the colors won’t fade or come off when you are using the AirPods.
Check out this YouTube video that shows how to paint AirPods
Can You Get Black AirPods?
Black AirPods can be purchased from a company called ColorWare, which specializes in customizing AirPods. However, they’re significantly more costly than the standard-colored AirPods that you can buy from Apple.
Colorware offers glossy black AirPods, or versions that have a matte-black finish. They’re ideal for people who would aren’t too keen on the standard white design that AirPods come with.
There are several other companies that also paint AirPods professionally, but you should always check that they are reputable.
Some would argue that the significantly increased price for black AirPods is not worthwhile, as they will still sound the same and have all of the same features that standard white AirPods offer.
There has been speculation that Apple will eventually offer AirPods in different color schemes to cater to the desire of their customers for more interesting designs. This would make sense, as most other Apple products are available in a wide range of colors.
Related Questions
Are AirPods waterproof?
None of the AirPods models that have been released are fully waterproof, but some of them are resistant to a small amount of water or sweat. AirPods Pro and 3rd Generation are rated as IPX4 water-resistant, for example.
Why do my AirPods Pro keep falling out?
If your AirPods Pro is constantly falling out of your ear, you probably need to change the ear tip to one that fits the dimensions of your inner ear. AirPods come with the regular-sized ear tip, so you may need to use a different size.
Should a 10-year-old have AirPods?
It is recommended that AirPods shouldn’t be used by children, as they could potentially cause hearing damage if they are used at loud volumes. They also may cause physical discomfort due to the child’s ear not being fully grown.
