Which is especially true for consumer electronics. We demand rapid innovation and advancements but complain as it happens. We forget that it costs us both money and regret. Not to mention the guilt of post-cycling waste and nostalgia for older products we hesitate to discard.
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Here's What a Headphone Jack to Lightning Adapter Looks Like
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Which is especially true for consumer electronics. We demand rapid innovation and advancements but complain as it happens. We forget that it costs us both money and regret. Not to mention the guilt of post-cycling waste and nostalgia for older products we hesitate to discard.
I wasn't referring to Lightning-connected phones, but to the fact that you can currently buy your own external DAC, plug it into the Lightning port (possibly with an adapter), and then use whatever phones you want with them, probably something pretty high-end. Strictly speaking, the ability to use an external DAC on the current iPhone has nothing to do with including or excluding the headphone jack.
Bluetooth for sound, which is inferior to a wired connection?
You lost me with all the USB-C discussion. Not sure what that has to do with my original reply.
I think there will be room for both depending on your situation.
The most frustrating thing about this debate is that those who complain about the quality of BT headphones, are doing so based on current technology, which they further assume will remain unchanged when Apple drops the 3.5mm jack.
But nothing could likely be further from the truth. The announcement of BT 5 confirmed that suspicion for me. As Apple sits on the BT SIG, they helped develop and approve the new standards, which would give them an edge over the competition when they release the next iPhone without a headphone jack. And, owning a headphone company allows them to release one of the few compatible products. So depending on what BT 5 brings, you may not hear any difference between the new BT headphones and what's available over the Lightning jack, thought I would expect it to be equal to or better than the output from the 3.5mm jack.
And it doesn't stop there. Apple might introduce something totally unexpected, like a new low power AirPlay technology with BT 4/5 compatibility. Since the wireless headphones are going to have the same benefits as the digital/Lightning compatible headphones -- custom matched DACs/DSPs & Amps -- then the only variable will be quality of the data stream, and wireless reception.
Compared to 3.5mm output, for anyone who prizes sound quality over convenience then Lightning is capable of offering a superior option. 3.5mm output is limited to the quality of the internal DAC/DSP & amp chipset supplying the audio signal. It's also limited by the device's supported formats. The quality of a digital output, by whatever means (Lightning, USB-C, BT, etc.) is therefore determined by whatever equipment the user plugs into it, rather than the device itself, as is currently the case. And that's a huge advantage over what the old analogue signal-over-3.5mm offers.
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The adapter will not work for most people.
Seriously, Apple ? A perfect phone with half a battery and no headphones ? I would say that the bosses at Apple has not only lost contact with reality, they are destroying the new Apple Music App. Sorry guys.
You wont include even normal sounding headphones or excellent ones from Beyer-Dynamic and Audio-Technica, but expensive ones normal people can´t buy.
You are already annoying half the west with your stationary phone - the iChargePhone. Stop ruining it alltogether.
Seriously, Apple ? A perfect phone with half a battery and no headphones ? I would say that the bosses at Apple has not only lost contact with reality, they are destroying the new Apple Music App. Sorry guys.
You wont include even normal sounding headphones or excellent ones from Beyer-Dynamic and Audio-Technica, but expensive ones normal people can´t buy.
You are already annoying half the west with your stationary phone - the iChargePhone. Stop ruining it alltogether.
Can you please elaborate what exactly would technically limit the sound quality of the 3.5 mm jack compared to BT 5 - or any other transmission technology?
Then you should know how nonsensical your statement below is. Getting rid of the jack and replacing it with anything else will have *zero* impact on how sound is delivered to the ears. As you know, no matter what, the signal is analog at the end, right before it gets to your ears.
An argument could be made that without the audio jack, manufacturers may start paying more attention to Bluetooth headphones, because they know that more people are now in the market for one. The end result could be better quality Bluetooth headphones at lower prices as more variety enters the market.
That is indeed the argument. Supply and demand. Right now there's very little supply of wireless headphones, and what there is available is generally expensive, prohibitively so for many, compared to cheap 3.5mm equipment. Good Lightning, and USB headphones are even harder to come by, and are likewise very expensive. Demand will ultimately lower prices as production volume increases. Likewise, demand increases competition, and as a result innovation and quality improvements to attract customers, which ultimately lowers the price.
As long as cheap 3.5mm audio equipment is available, there's no incentive to explore other alternatives, and there's no incentive to spend huge sums on R&D to develop better technology. And that's where Apple comes in. Apple has not been in the Lightning audio market at all. And except for Beats, has not really been invested in the BT headphone market. Now that seems odd considering the rumors. However, it's pretty typical of Apple. Even though 18 months ago they released specifications for Lightning audio, it's also typical of Apple to hold back some of the features they are planning to use themselves, in ways that only iOS can attach. So even Lightning headphone makers are in the dark about how they should be implementing some aspects of the technology. And they know this, which is another reason there haven't been a lot of Lightning audio products rushed to the market. Moreover they are limited to what they have access to within the iPhone can can only do so much to make the experience more user friendly. And this same thing applies to BlueTooth and AirPlay.
Now we know about BT 5, which Apple had a hand in developing. So all signs point to an audio revolution from Apple which will announce new guidelines and features that are going to make digital audio likely much easier to work with and implement for use with iOS 10 -- features that weren't even written into the software under iOS 9. And once that happens, once Apple shows the developers the way, as well as take away the 3.5mm headphone jack to drive demand for the new technology, there will be a surge in digital audio equipment production. A year later Android flagship phones will only add to the push by following Apple's lead. And that's how the consumer benefits, while Apple gets more room inside their phone to add new features and improve old ones.
That may be true, although one is forced to wonder why they are dragging their heels on this. If they produce BT headphones that really are better people will buy them in preference.
Of course, all professionals like graphic designers or architects are now using magic trackpads for work... How stupid is this? Also, you can't compare the floppy disk drive to the 3.5 mm jack. apple will never set a new industry standard here, because there's nothing bad about it, it doesn't NEED to be replaced at all. But this discussion seems to be endless...
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I sometimes wonder this is as far as Bluetooth headphones can go with the current technology we have at our disposal.
That said, seeing what Apple has done with the Apple Pencil and battery case, I can't help but wonder what sort of personal touches they can put on a pair of in-house headphones. Auto-pairing via lightning? More accurate battery stats? Better range and audio quality via some variation of AirPlay?
Not sure if these would be worth whatever premium price tag Apple will eventually put on their headphones though.
Kind of flawed logic here, back then they didn't absolutely need to put the analog audio over the Lightning port, because they still had the 3.5mm headphone port.
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There is no real problem with people trying to use an analog dongle with older iOS devices because you'll get an alert that says "Device not supported." just as you do TODAY when you try to connect a USB device that isn't supported.
If someone buys such a dongle thinking that they can use it with their iPhone 5 then that would be their own fault since the package will undoubtably say "Requires iPhone 7 or later".
Lastly, if Apple really wanted to remove all analog audio output and move strictly to digital then it would make a lot more sense to wait until they make the transition to USB-C, since that will eventually be the standard for ALL mobile audio output. They are going to have to do that within the next 1 to 2 years so why not wait?
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I don't think you understand what the Lightning to 30-pin adapter is intended to do. No flawed logic at all -- most 30-pin devices required analogue audio which was simply passed through from the 30-pin dock's analogue audio output. In order for those devices to work with Lightning Apple chose to convert a digital signal via DAC, rather than dynamically route analogue audio through Lightning. So no, Apple is evidently not interested in sending an analogue signal over Lightning, even though it's technically possible.
And no, Apple has too much invested in Lightning to switch to USB-C after only 4 years. And as long as we're pulling predictions out of thin air -- wireless is the eventual future for mobile devices. By the time USB-C is widespread enough to make a dent on the 3.5mm Jack, Apple will be transitioning to wireless everything. Why put its customers through another complete cable and accessory swap just to use a slightly different port that does the same thing, but is not currently as widely used as Lightning, only to render it unecessary within the next 5 years? And what exactly would be the point? Until everyone buys digital headphones, and replaces all their legacy 3.5mm equipment with USB-C, they're going to need adapters anyway for a very long time. What difference does it make if they're Lightning or USB-C? For a customer who primarily uses Apple products, Lightning would be the preferred choice.
I realize you're being facetious, but I think you're spot on about Apple being out of touch and thinking their customer base will never leave them.
Wireless isn't going to completely replace the wired connection on mobile devices for a VERY long time. As for digital audio, USB-C will be the standard in just a few more years, only a complete Apple fanatic could think otherwise (and I'm saying that as an engineer that worked at Apple for many years and who also owned the very first models of the Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV).
I'm very aware of where the industry has been and I think I have a good idea of where the future lies (and it isn't with the Lightning port). The Lighting port was a good idea when it was first introduced, but that time is now gone given USB-C.
I guess I should add that I'm not predicting that Apple will actually route analog audio over the Lightning port, I'm just saying that they could and that it might happen.
I think the most likely outcome is that Apple will just remove the 3.5mm headphone port and offer only digital audio out, but that's going to make a good number of customers (or former customers) pretty upset (IMO).
I'm very aware of where the industry has been and I think I have a good idea of where the future lies (and it isn't with the Lightning port). The Lighting port was a good idea when it was first introduced, but that time is now gone given USB-C.
I guess I should add that I'm not predicting that Apple will actually route analog audio over the Lightning port, I'm just saying that they could and that it might happen.
I think the most likely outcome is that Apple will just remove the 3.5mm headphone port and offer only digital audio out, but that's going to make a good number of customers (or former customers) pretty upset (IMO).
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Yes, the other Macs will get USB-C but NOT Lightning (you can be absolutely sure of that).