White earbuds were designed to make the original iPod stand out from black-corded rivals.

In 2001, almost all portable music players came with cheap black headphones. When Apple launched the iPod, they packaged it with bright white earbuds. Apple's design chief at the time, Jony Ive, realized that the headphones were the only part of the device people could see when it was in a pocket. By making them white, Apple made their product instantly recognizable on the street. This design choice was backed up by Apple's famous 'silhouette' ad campaign. These ads showed dark silhouettes dancing against bright colors, with the only detailed, bright white objects being the iPod and its iconic white earbuds. This created a massive cultural shift, turning white headphones into a symbol of status and youth.