The AirPods Max retail for $549 (though you can get them for $449 from Amazon, at least for the moment).

And for an additional $980, you can have a Gucci case to go with. Follow the headline link and check out that first image to get a sense of what your $980 will buy you.

I get it. People who love Gucci and Apple and have the disposable income will see this as a must-have accessory. When you reach a certain echelon of wealth, the standard rules of financial pragmatism simply evaporate.

For this demographic, casually dropping a thousand dollars is just a standard weekend flex; they might spend it hunting down a vintage Daytona Rolex, chartering a private helicopter in Monaco, or playing at a European nejlepší online casino. If they want to wrap their premium headphones in iconic Italian monogram canvas, they aren’t going to blink at a four-figure price tag.

But I find it jarring. The Gucci brand is strong. The Apple brand is equally strong. But the AirPods Max and the Gucci design clash violently, at least for me. The colors don’t blend together, and any semblance of soft packability is gone.

Maybe this is gorgeous and I’m just too stodgy/stingy to get it?