I'm disapointed to see the newest flagship phones from Sony, Google and Nokia have copied Apple and ditched the 3.5mm headphone jack.
I do not know why they're doing this, but I assume some people want this. Everyone I've asked IRL won't buy a phone without a headphone jack, what do you think (vote in the poll)?
Update: moved reasons for my opinion to the comments as I don't want to influence the poll.
I have a pixel 2XL. I like the phone, but the lack of headphone jack is a nuisance and I'm yet to see it demonstrated how I benefit in any way from its removal. Does it make my phone more waterproof? Nope. Does it give better quality audio? Nope. Is it more convenient? Nope. Does it look better? Nope. Does it make it slimmer? Nope. Can you fit in additional features with the little bit of internal space saved? Well I guess Apple slightly increased the size of the Taptic engine/rumble thing so that's something. Apple removed it so that you'd buy Beats Airpods. No benefit at all for the customer. Let's hope Samsung at least keeps bucking the stupid trend.
So overall, its stupid, but evidently I would buy a phone without the jack.
I have the same phone, paired with the Sony 1000mx2 and never looked back. Although I only listen on my way to and from work on the train so depends on your usage I guess.
I dont see the problem.
Firstly many if not most people dont even use thier phone for music
Secondly its not an issue because adapters are available
Thirdly the "new" alternative "hard wired" headphone connections output better quality music
Fourthly, more and more people are using "wireless" bluetooth headphones
All OP is doing is trying to avoid progress.
Time to move on OP.
i personally believe that they should do away with charging ports, because charging your phone is so 2017
the best iPod is an iphone they say, I kinda agree, the main reason I have an iphone 6s is to listen to music and to sync it with my iTunes library, otherwise, I'd buy a classic iPod with 160gb, also with headphone jack
Late last year I was tossing up between the Oneplus 5 and the Pixel 2 XL, and waited out on buying the OnePlus until the Pixel came out. The lack of a headphone jack was pretty much the deal breaker for me, as my car does not have Bluetooth & to upgrade the head unit wouldn't really be worth it as aux works just fine. Chances are I'll probably end up buying bluetooth headphones by year's end, and the next phone I buy will likely not have a headphone jack but hopefully that's still a few years away.
Couldn't you have gotten one of those blue tooth to Aux devices instead of upgrading the head unit?
I bet you're fun at parties ;)
Considered it, then saw all the reviews from when they get posted on OzB and other websites and my mind was made up haha
I recently bought a cat s61 which has a headphone jack. I have used the port occasionally, but I just find it convenient to have the option if the battery on the qc35 dies
They should be giving the choice to the user and not forcing them into certain products. I have more then a few wired and wireless earphones/headphones. My more expensive and high quality noise cancelling headphones I use for travelling would be useless without spending needlessly on overpriced adapters . I've also managed to lose 2 wireless earphones in a year so will never pay anything close to what Apple tries to sell them for. I always forget to keep charging them so in several occasions taking out the wireless in the gym its discharged even before I finish a session.
In terms of watching movies, creating videos and such I find lag issues so like to be hardwired for those.
For me its simple - take out the jack of the product and I won't even consider it in my product choices when shopping.
All I got from your post was that you’re forgetful and careless.
I don’t have any lag whatsoever with my AirPods nor my Bose QC35.
I have old 2009 Samsung Beat sound phone, that have the option for using the headphone jack for the short included earphones and long cable extension that plug in the data/charging port. You had the two things in one. It suck if you still need to plug the regular 3.5mm jack into adapter cable and then use your headphones. Having free port is always a bonus.
i use bluetooth headsets and love going wirefree as my usage is only restricted around 1-2 hrs a day. however, i feel this may not be the case with younger generation as they are likely to stay tuned for considerable time of the day - just my opinion/observation which could be completely wrong (happy to know the facts)
1) i'm wondering what are the side effects of prolonged exposure to bluetooth. i have seen articles that recommend using bluetooth while speaking on the phone to reduce relatively higher levels of radiation from the phone itself. however, if the phone is being used primarily for music only with several hours of exposure, i wonder if they would recommend using wired headphones over bluetooth ones to reduce exposure.
2) without the 3.5mm jack, users lose the option to buy better (sound) quality headphones for relatively cheaper price as the corresponding bluetooth version is always relatively expensive.
3) requires relatively frequent charging (both phone as well as earphones) which is not that convenient especially if you are on call or listen to music few hours a day.
so personally i'd still prefer if they still retain that port and give users the option to mix and match.
I am excited to get rid of the headphone jack as it will allow for bigger batteries and better ingress protection.
Current Bluetooth earbuds are not a reasonable replacement for 'premium' earbuds. This should be solved with in two years.
This could lead to some amazing products as the DAC and amp only need to support one set of drivers. This has already given us Airpods, but could lead to some extremely accurate devices such as separate drivers fed by separate analogue channels. You could produce extremely cheap, good sounding earbuds tomorrow just with a partner DSP app for a phone as you have complete control of the digital and analogue signal (this is how Bose designed speakers in the 90's). You can not do that with a head phone jack.
This actually pushed me back to Samsung after many years away from it.
I usually destroy a couple of pair of Xiaomi Hybrid's (about $15 headphones) either by putting them through the wash too many times or losing a pair. I do use a pair of bluetooth headphones but only for exercising - 3.5mm are my day to day go to for headphones.
The process of acting like a grumpy grandpa has started soon we will all talk about the good old days just like all our ansestors told us
Even though I still mainly use my Cowon J3 for music, I would still opt for a phone with a headphone jack for the times when I feel like watching videos while commuting. I'm sure the battery life and sound quality of wireless headphones is getting better but I'm sticking to my 8 year old Sennheiser IE8 for now. Technology improves fast though; we'll see how many more years until wireless headphones replace wired headphones completely.
I guess many people are using Bluetooth earpieces perhaps? The professional entrepreneur type that has to talk, dictate, etc everywhere they go whether for real or show.
I have never used the headphone jack on any of my phones as I only use it for phone calls and texts for which the inbuilt speakers suffice.
If I need to play games, watch movies etc I have a computer and TV at home no need for entertainment outside the home for me
I still use the auxiliary input in my car for audio output from my phone.
Seems to be way quicker than Bluetooth, car audio systems do not seem to be set up well for playing audio over Bluetooth.
I think I paid $400ish for my Sennheiser MM550X because the QC35s didn't exist yet, and they were a step above the (wired) QC25s. Only 8 hours battery life, pretty shit BT audio quality, and after 2 years the 3.5mm cable has finally broken and the replacements are a rip off. Admittedly QC35s fixed a lot of these problems, but they've all got a long way to go. Pairing is always a stupid process, but at least AirPods are better here.
I remember when a phone having the 3.5mm jack was considered "fancy" and "high-end".
Now we have gone full circle.
It's a BS move by the phone industry. I don't get why they can't add wireless charging if the headphone jack is going to be removed. How are we supposed to charge and listen to music if we do not use bluetooth?
Samsung or LG for my next phone. If LG can't get their act together with software updates I might have to get into custom ROMs again.
I use wireless headphones all the time and my car has bluetooth BUT when I go to bed I hook up my phone to some small bookshelf speakers via 3.5mm jack (for my alarm because phone speakers aren't loud enough for me). And on the rare occasion I forget my wireless earphones or they're out of battery then I would still want a 3.5mm jack. So no, I would not buy a phone without a headphone jack, there are just so many uses and I'd rather have a phone a bit thicker than sacrifice that.
I prefer a physical jack - mainly because I don't really want another thing that needs charging if I am already on the go.
Never really used Bluetooth in general and rarely use headphones with my phone. Cords do get annoying at times but I have a feeling losing the headphones will be more frustrating than a cord getting in the way. Plus it's yet ANOTHER thing that needs batteries/charging and with corded headphones you don't have that issue. I'm more on the fence.
It's a plus to still have one on my new phone, but it wouldn't have stopped me getting it if the feature was missing.
My iphone (6s) still does both. I listen to audiobooks and podcasts and will often want to listen to these while I am charging my phone (either at home with headphones if others are home or while walking). I have both types of headphones (lightning and headphone jack) and prefer to use the headphone jack ones by far.
I don't care at all about sound quality, I just want to listen to books/podcasts and charge at the same time.
Charging is a big deal as I nearly always have pokemon go running, so that means the battery is always being drained quickly, so I always carry a 20,000IU powerbank with me (charges by lightning port).
I realise we will all have to adjust, but it's going to make my next iphone much less functional for my lifestyle. Just means I'm in no hurry to buy the next iphone.
If all phones get rid of headphone jacks I guess I'll have to go back to carrying an MP3 player around with me…
Absolute shit house. My personal phones have been Sony Xperias for awhile now. First they get rid of the fm radio, then the 3.5mm jack. Bastards!
Currently have an xperia xz1. I don't want to upgrade as I don't want to lose the jack. If say I do upgrade and go wireless headphones, I could imagine the first world problem of forgetting to charge the headphones and being on the train to or from work without being able to listen to anything.
Sony, don't make me buy a Samsung :(
Apples shameless cash grab and the cult members fall for it
I;m anti apple and anyone who uses non standard cables and such
Have had an iPhone 8 for almost a year now, still finding constant annoyance most days.
Wana connect to this stereo, oh, cant. God dammit.
I’m glad someone appreciates the subtlety of my humour.
Was almost too subtle for me to notice it :)
Why do we need thin phones? They're already hard enough to get a grip on.
Partly aesthetics and preference but also because it forces innovation to create smaller and more efficient chips and modules and components which is a good thing.
"Everyone I've asked IRL won't buy a phone without a headphone jack"
Lots of iPhone users said the same thing, yet sales suggest otherwise. I was a skeptic myself. I'm still using an iPhone with a 3.5mm jack, but predominantly use Bluetooth headphones now. Convenient not needing to plug in and sound is fine with APT-X codec. Whilst I own decent headphones, let's be honest, the daily commute is hardly the greatest listening environment.
BTW, all the usual iSheep comments are gold. Doesn't say much for your beloved manufacturers when they're following the exact same trends, does it? :) Sheep indeed. Willing to bet most will grumble about the loss of the headphone jack initially, and like majority of iPhone users, move on with life.
BTW, all the usual iSheep comments are gold. Doesn't say much for your beloved manufacturers when they're following the exact same trends, does it?
I'm no Apple fan at all, but I completely understand why Apple do the things they do.
They have a good business case and their customers usually just lap it up, so they're not too worried.
It's actually a far more stupid what these asian OEMs I usually buy phones from are doing.
Yeah I agree. Apple has a couple of reasons why they can get away with this
- Apple own Beats and thus have a financial incentive to encourage bluetooth headphones
- Most car stereos will play digital audio from an iPhone/iPod/iPad via a lightning charge cable (no bluetooth required).
Most Android manufacturers don't have anything to gain here and USB audio on Android is still stuck in the dark ages.
Thus it is far more stupid that Google didn't have the courage to ignore this stupid trend on their Pixel 2. iSheep indeed.
It really doesn't bother me because I hate wires, so use a Bluetooth headset.
When I have to plug headphones in it makes no difference to me whether there is a headphone jack or not - I just keep the adaptor on the end of my headphones…
Are there any good lightning to 3.5 splitters?
Hard to find a good one.
charging a phone and keeping it alive is a pain in the arse as a heavy user, stuff charging headphone on top of that
LG V30/G7 ftw.
Yep, my next phone is likely to be LG.
That shit little iPhone 7 given to me by work can't even charge and play music at the same time. Which dimwit came up with this idiotic idea to remove the 3.5mm jack!
The other thing with wired headphones vs wireless ones is obsolescence (hint: wired headphones don't have it).
Yep. As long as you don't do something stupid, a good set of wired headphones can last 10 years.
I'm generally in agreeance with the hardliners here.
I lack the Apple 'courage' I'm afraid.
I'm in two minds about this. If I'm buying a big time expensive phone, like $500 plus I feel like I'm entitled to certain qualities that suit me… that is continuing software support, the headphone jack, a decent camera and an SD card.
However if I'm buying a budget phone say sub $300 then I'm willing to make compromises.
eg. I'm using a real cheap Le Eco or Xiaomi phone that has 4gb ram 32gb rom no sd no headphone. At this cheap price I'm willing to make concessions.
What I forgive on say a $200 phone, I wont forgive on a $500 phone.
No I’m an Android user