Impacts of removing the headphone jack [MERGED]

[Mac 128]

What is weird is why is the Iphone 7 the only product without the 3.5mm headphone jack, while the Ipad and mac line has the 3.5mm headphone jack?

I mean it makes not sense, I mean look at it this way

The Ipad has both the 3.5mm headphone jack and lightning cable.
The Iphone 7 only has the lightning cable.
The mac line only has 3.5mm headphone jack

Iphone 6s has both 3.5mm headphone jack and lightning cable, too bad that is removed.


The only reason I don't want to use bluetooth is because I don't want to have to worry about the bluetooth headphone running out of battery or recharging it. I don't know the battery life of bluetooth headphone.

If the Iphone 7 doesn't have enough space due to size, then making the phone a bit thicker would of been better than making it thinner and sacrifice features of the phone.

I believe the AirPods show the remaining batty life left on the device they are connected to. The battery life is rated at 5 hours on a 2-hour charge. A 15 minute charge can provide 3 hours of additional use. The charging case can provide up to 24 hours of additional charges.

 

[spookit]

people used to complain about the removal of adobe flash, floppy drive, cd drive, plasma tv etc. i wonder where they are now.

 

[anonymous guy]

The floppy disk drives and CD/DVD drives already had viable storage alternatives hit the market.

Bluetooth is not as reliable and is still catching up in quality compared to a wired connection.

 

[Ffosse]

Decent bluetooth (which is now widely available) is transparent and as good as wired so the audio quality depends on source material and how good the drivers are in 'phones.

Battery life is the only negative of bluetooth (for me, at least). Years from now we'll all laugh at wired audio.

Right now I use a mix of the two but always bluetooth outside (can't stand wires coming out of my phone when I'm walking/running. I still own some pricey wired ear and headphones for which the dongle suffices indoors - although I still prefer my bluetooth ones - but I'll never buy another set. I don't believe apple was courageous regarding this decision; rather, bold comes to mind more and I expect other manufacturers to follow.

 

[nickbarbs]

The battery management is annoying. I'm OCD about keeping my devices charged and the immutable fact that it takes time to charge something makes wirless devices so much less convenient. If the phone can remote power a audio device while streaming music then I would say this is the right time to get rid of the headphone jack. As it stands I can't make it through a long haul flight without recharging my Bluetooth earphones for 1 or two hours every 7 hours. We aren't ready to lose the jack and I hope Samsung doesn't follow Apple on this one.

 

[Mac 128]

The battery management is annoying. I'm OCD about keeping my devices charged and the immutable fact that it takes time to charge something makes wirless devices so much less convenient. If the phone can remote power a audio device while streaming music then I would say this is the right time to get rid of the headphone jack. As it stands I can't make it through a long haul flight without recharging my Bluetooth earphones for 1 or two hours every 7 hours. We aren't ready to lose the jack and I hope Samsung doesn't follow Apple on this one.

You realize the essentially "vapor ware" AirPods work for 5 hours on a single charge, with an additional 3 hours for every 15 minute bathroom break you take to stretch your legs, without even needing a power port to plug them into. So there's 8 hours right there with only one 15 minute interruption. That said they don't exist yet.

Nevertheless, there are BT headphones with 20+ Hours of battery life. If that's what you need for long haul flights, then you're using the wrong headphones. BT Has been viable technology to replace the headphone jack for the last year or two, depending on a persons need. So I disagree, we're totally ready to lose the headphone jack from a technology perspective, it's some customers that aren't ready yet.

 

[nickbarbs]

You realize the essentially "vapor ware" AirPods work for 5 hours on a single charge, with an additional 3 hours for every 15 minute bathroom break you take to stretch your legs, without even needing a power port to plug them into. So there's 8 hours right there with only one 15 minute interruption. That said they don't exist yet.

Nevertheless, there are BT headphones with 20+ Hours of battery life. If that's what you need for long haul flights, then you're using the wrong headphones. BT Has been viable technology to replace the headphone jack for the last year or two, depending on a persons need. So I disagree, we're totally ready to lose the headphone jack from a technology perspective, it's some customers that aren't ready yet.

I am using the westone Bluetooth cable with my w60s to test this out (I've invested 1100$ in this setup). I disagree with you completely, especially the iphone which doesn't have aptx tech, I notice significant difference in sound quality streaming from my 6s plus vs my galaxy s7.

Basically you're fine with an uneven playing field this imposes? Either choose good battery life, or audiophile sound, or maybe ergonomics or something else. We never had to choose before, over ear, in ear, whatever manufacturer varied in style design etc but the simple interface it used gave you confidence it would always work and be reliably there when you need it. Now we are supposed to walk around with more chargers, more battery packs, more cables? What happened to simplifying our life?

Anyway strong disagree we are ready. Losing the headphone jack at this stage is way too early and solves a problem that was never there.

 

[Mac 128]

I am using the westone Bluetooth cable with my w60s to test this out (I've invested 1100$ in this setup). I disagree with you completely, especially the iphone which doesn't have aptx tech, I notice significant difference in sound quality streaming from my 6s plus vs my galaxy s7.

Basically you're fine with an uneven playing field this imposes? Either choose good battery life, or audiophile sound, or maybe ergonomics or something else. We never had to choose before, over ear, in ear, whatever manufacturer varied in style design etc but the simple interface it used gave you confidence it would always work and be reliably there when you need it. Now we are supposed to walk around with more chargers, more battery packs, more cables? What happened to simplifying our life?

Anyway strong disagree we are ready. Losing the headphone jack at this stage is way too early and solves a problem that was never there.

Disagree with you just as strongly. You have spent $1,100 in an audiophile setup for a mobile phone! How many iPhone users do you think fit into your niche world?

There is a problem that's been needed to be solved for a long time, and that's the headphone wire. Since I was a kid dragging a 50' headphone cable around my house, I've been looking for a way to get rid of the wire. Even cheap BT is at that point for a likely majority of mobile phone customers. The AirPods, were they actually available, do simplify the experience -- a handy case for the buds, which provides up to 24 hour charge, and uses the exact same cable the iPhone already uses. Everything with technology is a compromise, and we're at a point where that compromise is at its minimum for most. You still have the option of using wired headphones with the iPhone 7 with a simple adapter, which might be a compromise for you, but not for others who don't want or need it.

But I'm not going to change the mind of someone who spent well over $1,000 on mobile phone audio. The proof will be in Apple's quarterly iPhone reports over the next year. If the 7 continues to sell writhing reasonable margins to the 6s, then the removal of the headphone jack will be proven to have negligible impact.

 

[nickbarbs]

Disagree with you just as strongly. You have spent $1,100 in an audiophile setup for a mobile phone! How many iPhone users do you think fit into your niche world?

There is a problem that's been needed to be solved for a long time, and that's the headphone wire. Since I was a kid dragging a 50' headphone cable around my house, I've been looking for a way to get rid of the wire. Even cheap BT is at that point for a likely majority of mobile phone customers. The AirPods, were they actually available, do simplify the experience -- a handy case for the buds, which provides up to 24 hour charge, and uses the exact same cable the iPhone already uses. Everything with technology is a compromise, and we're at a point where that compromise is at its minimum for most. You still have the option of using wired headphones with the iPhone 7 with a simple adapter, which might be a compromise for you, but not for others who don't want or need it.

But I'm not going to change the mind of someone who spent well over $1,000 on mobile phone audio. The proof will be in Apple's quarterly iPhone reports over the next year. If the 7 continues to sell writhing reasonable margins to the 6s, then the removal of the headphone jack will be proven to have negligible impact.

The great thing is about my westone w60s is they plug into everything with their quality 3.5mm headphone jack cable. So it's not just a setup for mobile phones I use this on my pc and my amp as well. You know, the gear that is set up for universal standards.

But mate you have not given up dragging around a cable because now you need to bring an extra cable along with you, and an extra charger, to keep those Bluetooth headphones going

Are you having trouble seeing how this is not evolution so much as a sidestep, and removal of freedom of choice?

Your iPhone 7 cannot do any more than the rest of the pack. Without the 3.5mm jack it only does less.

 

[Mac 128]

The great thing is about my westone w60s is they plug into everything with their quality 3.5mm headphone jack cable. So it's not just a setup for mobile phones I use this on my pc and my amp as well. You know, the gear that is set up for universal standards.

But mate you have not given up dragging around a cable because now you need to bring an extra cable along with you, and an extra charger, to keep those Bluetooth headphones going

Are you having trouble seeing how this is not evolution so much as a sidestep, and removal of freedom of choice?

Your iPhone 7 cannot do any more than the rest of the pack. Without the 3.5mm jack it only does less.

Off course I don't need an extra cable, the same Lightning cable will charge both the iPhone and the AirPods case (when it becomes available), nor do I need an extra charger. And a tiny adapter allows my iPhone to have all the functionality of a 3.5mm headphone jack should I want to use one. For my PC and home equipment, I likewise connect with BT. We obviously totally disagree. You're spinning a niche narrative on multiple threads now, which likely doesn't apply to many of Apple's iPhone customers, and I'm speaking to Apple's decision based on the broadest market share they service. But again, I'm not going to change your mind on these points. Your arguments are highly biased, and specific to your needs. I don't need any of the things you do from my iPhone. Losing the jack will have zero impact for me, and I suspect that will be true for most of Apple's iPhone customers. For the remainder of those it does affect, I would expect that they will either adapt, learn to live with the compromise, or move away from iPhone.

Apple got a lot wrong with removing the headphone jack. Not being able to charge and listen at the same time with higher quality wired headphones out of the box, not being able to use Lightning headphones with an adapter on anything else, and being able to natively share an audio connection without specialized BT headphones, to say nothing of failing to saturate the market with viable options for moving to wireless. But to say the market isn't ready to drop the headphone jack is entirely subjective.

 

[nickbarbs]

It is hardly niche and I will note you can't respond to the points I raised in the other thread.

I'll also note your justification for this issue which is an issue of having to carry two chargers and two cables seems to rely on "just buy airpods" which are both unavailable and undesirable and restrict choice to.. You guessed it... Apple products only.

I own both an iPhone and an android device. Are you fair and balanced as well? I'm pretty sure I have laid out three strong reasons already why the market isn't ready.

Off course I don't need an extra cable, the same Lightning cable will charge both the iPhone and the AirPods case (when it becomes available), nor do I need an extra charger. And a tiny adapter allows my iPhone to have all the functionality of a 3.5mm headphone jack should I want to use one. For my PC and home equipment, I likewise connect with BT. We obviously totally disagree. You're spinning a niche narrative on multiple threads now, which likely doesn't apply to many of Apple's iPhone customers, and I'm speaking to Apple's decision based on the broadest market share they service. But again, I'm not going to change your mind on these points. Your arguments are highly biased, and specific to your needs. I don't need any of the things you do from my iPhone. Losing the jack will have zero impact for me, and I suspect that will be true for most of Apple's iPhone customers. For the remainder of those it does affect, I would expect that they will either adapt, learn to live with the compromise, or move away from iPhone.

Apple got a lot wrong with removing the headphone jack. Not being able to charge and listen at the same time with higher quality wired headphones out of the box, not being able to use Lightning headphones with an adapter on anything else, and being able to natively share an audio connection without specialized BT headphones, to say nothing of failing to saturate the market with viable options for moving to wireless. But to say the market isn't ready to drop the headphone jack is entirely subjective.

 

[zipur]

What is weird is why is the Iphone 7 the only product without the 3.5mm headphone jack, while the Ipad and mac line has the 3.5mm headphone jack?

I mean it makes not sense, I mean look at it this way

The Ipad has both the 3.5mm headphone jack and lightning cable.
The Iphone 7 only has the lightning cable.
The mac line only has 3.5mm headphone jack

Iphone 6s had both 3.5mm headphone jack and lightning cable, too bad that is removed.


The only reason I don't want to use bluetooth is because I don't want to have to worry about the bluetooth headphone running out of battery or recharging it. I don't know the battery life of bluetooth headphone.

bingo I've had my BT headset die on me a few times. So of course the answer is a Bluetooth headset with two parts, one always charging so you'll always have a headset. $$$ for the headset and most normal people will loose one within a few months.

 

[Mac 128]

bingo I've had my BT headset die on me a few times. So of course the answer is a Bluetooth headset with two parts, one always charging so you'll always have a headset. $$$ for the headset and most normal people will loose one within a few months.

Interesting assumptions. So I take it since you lose your headsets every few months you buy only the cheapest ones you can find, and have no concern for quality audio, or build?

I also find it hard to believe that anyone who uses a Beats Studio 3 with 40 hours of battery life will ever run out of a charge -- all that's required it plugging it in with the phone overnight. The AirPods can be used continuously if the user is OK listening in mono for 30 minutes while charging first the left, then the right by themselves for 15 each, to gain another 3 hours of listening time, repeatable for up to 24 hours! Then again, I guess someone like you would never buy the AirPods because you'd lose them in a few months?

 

[nickbarbs]

Interesting assumptions. So I take it since you lose your headsets every few months you buy only the cheapest ones you can find, and have no concern for quality audio, or build?

I also find it hard to believe that anyone who uses a Beats Studio 3 with 40 hours of battery life will ever run out of a charge -- all that's required it plugging it in with the phone overnight. The AirPods can be used continuously if the user is OK listening in mono for 30 minutes while charging first the left, then the right by themselves for 15 each, to gain another 3 hours of listening time, repeatable for up to 24 hours! Then again, I guess someone like you would never buy the AirPods because you'd lose them in a few months?

As long as you play within the Apple products catalogue, charge every night, this is perfect!

 

[timeconsumer]

Interesting assumptions. So I take it since you lose your headsets every few months you buy only the cheapest ones you can find, and have no concern for quality audio, or build?

I also find it hard to believe that anyone who uses a Beats Studio 3 with 40 hours of battery life will ever run out of a charge -- all that's required it plugging it in with the phone overnight. The AirPods can be used continuously if the user is OK listening in mono for 30 minutes while charging first the left, then the right by themselves for 15 each, to gain another 3 hours of listening time, repeatable for up to 24 hours! Then again, I guess someone like you would never buy the AirPods because you'd lose them in a few months?

While 40 hours is great for Bluetooth, how long until the battery will degrade, a couple of years? A good pair of wired headphones will last a lot longer than that with daily usage. That isn't the fault of Bluetooth but it's something worth considering that you may need to upgrade your headphones more often (due to the battery) than you would with a good wired pair. There's still more negatives to me about switching to Bluetooth headphones than having the benefit of being wireless.

 

[Mac 128]

While 40 hours is great for Bluetooth, how long until the battery will degrade, a couple of years? A good pair of wired headphones will last a lot longer than that with daily usage. That isn't the fault of Bluetooth but it's something worth considering that you may need to upgrade your headphones more often (due to the battery) than you would with a good wired pair. There's still more negatives to me about switching to Bluetooth headphones than having the benefit of being wireless.

It's a good question. But not the one at hand. Obviously it's an issue that needs to be addressed. Will the Airpod's battery be able to be replaced? I'd think that the Beats Solo 3 would be easy to replace. The question is, were they designed to be? The immediate problem, which makes it of lesser concern initially is that the technology is going to steadily improve over the years. Chances are that in two years, someone is going to want to replace the headset with a better one. That doesn't necessarily rule out the original invest though. If it's a good quality pair of headphones, attaching a wire will continue to make them useful without a battery for years to come. Plugging a state of the art BT receiver dongle into them, instead of the wire, will also extend their wireless life indefinitely.

I also just looked on Apple's website and the Solo 3s are eligible for the same battery service that the iPhone and other devices are, which is not particularly expensive. So that's the practical answer. Does it increase the cost of ownership? Yes, but then if someone wants the freedom of wireless headphones, that's the current cost of admission. Over time that will change.

 

[M67v]

The worst thing about wireless headphones is how expensive they are, and how easy they are to lose. Now, maybe someone who buys a 256 GB iPhone 7 Plus doesn't care about this since he apparently has $1,000 to spend on smartphones, but if they make an iPhone SE replacement, it will be an even bigger problem for those who are in the entry-level smartphone market.
Maybe, I would be able to overlook the lack of headphone jack if the iPhone 7 had many new, and useful features, except the iPhone 7 is far too similar to the iPhone 6s. I do like the look on the 7 and the water-resistance, but the camera isn't much better (except for the optical zoom on the 7 plus), the screen isn't much better, and performance isn't noticeably faster. In fact, the phone makes a clicking/hissing noise under heavy load, unlike the 6s; for a phone that expensive, this shouldn't be a problem.
Personally, I've never owned an iPhone (I plan on getting one really soon), but my family has a lot of Apple products, and I have experience with the 6s and 7.

 

[Man on the moon]

Today i just realized that upgrading to the iPhone 7 plus was silly. (iPhone upgrade program)

Although i like my phone very much i really miss the audio jack. This wireless revolution apple tried to pitch is BS when we have no idea when the "AirPods" will arrive.

Not that those will indicate such a revolution.

Just funny that they are still missing.

I personally like the wired beats tour 2.0 headphones and find it silly that if i choose to buy these right now i have to use an adapter with my phone.

Why not update them to Lightning?

The little 3.5 adapter looks really silly on the end of any headphones that are not the "White EarPods"

 

[Mac 128]

Today i just realized that upgrading to the iPhone 7 plus was silly. (iPhone upgrade program)

Although i like my phone very much i really miss the audio jack. This wireless revolution apple tried to pitch is BS when we have no idea when the "AirPods" will arrive.

Not that those will indicate such a revolution.

Just funny that they are still missing.

I personally like the wired beats tour 2.0 headphones and find it silly that if i choose to buy these right now i have to use an adapter with my phone.

Why not update them to Lightning?

The little 3.5 adapter looks really silly on the end of any headphones that are not the "White EarPods"

Because there is no way to use Lightning headphones on anything other than iOS devices, including your Mac.

 

[MrGunny94]

I've bought an additional jack adapter to leave on my girlfriend's car. She doesn't use an iPhone and so far it seems that's the only place where i'm going to be using an adapter.

The other one I'll leave at work just in case I need it

 

[Mike5254]

I've bought an additional jack adapter to leave on my girlfriend's car. She doesn't use an iPhone and so far it seems that's the only place where i'm going to be using an adapter.

The other one I'll leave at work just in case I need it

Simply being prepared. Good for you.

 

[MrGunny94]

Simply being prepared. Good for you.

True I use Jaybird x2 to workout and listen to music outside of home.. at work I use wireless headphones so I don't have any problem what so ever.

I only use my "audiophile" headphones at home on my Windows PC with an AMP.

 

[Mike5254]

True I use Jaybird x2 to workout and listen to music outside of home.. at work I use wireless headphones so I don't have any problem what so ever.

I only use my "audiophile" headphones at home on my Windows PC with an AMP.

Same here. When I'm active, I use my Jabra ROX. When at home and relaxing, I use my QC25.

 

[Vlada011]

I completely support Apple's decision to remove headphone jack.
That's old connector and not fit well with Apple phylosophy for future and
Apple don't like to share same things with other cell phones.
Only problem is quality of wireless connection compare to wired... For me that's only valid obstacle but only if difference is really big. But if people want to become same soon... removing jack is right decision.

On market I saw different expensive wireless headphones from 100 to up 250$...
But somehow with iPhone Apple Airpods are more logic for me. Now I don't have everything Apple in house, I use PC for entertainment but I talk only about cell phones...
Soon and Androids cell phones will be advertised with wireless heaphones more aggressive.

This is my wallpaper at the moment, I don't have iPhone 7 but never mind.

Solution for everyone is iPhone 7/7 Plus + iPhone SE with jack in pocket.
Apple maybe should think to launch Airpods in Black color. Only two colors black/white.

Imagine if Apple launch soon iPhone from Glass without Home Button.
On that gadget really no place for headphone jack old 4 decades.

 

[deany]

I believe the AirPods show the remaining batty life left on the device they are connected to. The battery life is rated at 5 hours on a 2-hour charge. A 15 minute charge can provide 3 hours of additional use. The charging case can provide up to 24 hours of additional charges.

Those airpod, when available the prices are not for the faint hearted: