Motorola's New 'Moto Z' and 'Z Force' Smartphones Have No Headphone Jack

[MacRumors]

Amid rumors suggesting Apple will remove the headphone jack in upcoming the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, Lenovo-owned Motorola today announced the Moto Z and the Z Force, two new smartphones that eschew headphone jacks in favor of an ultra-thin design.

Sans headphone jack, Motorola has managed to shrink the Moto Z down to 5.19mm thick, while the Z Force, Motorola's more powerful smartphone, measures in at 6.9mm thick. Instead of a headphone jack, both devices feature a single USB-C port which will require a USB-C to 3.5mm jack adapter to use with existing headphones with a 3.5mm headphone plug.

Smaller smartphone companies like LeEco have previously eliminated headphone jacks in their devices, but Motorola is the first major manufacturer to do so, signaling the first significant industry shift away from the headphone jack. We're also seeing headphone companies like Audeze and Bose fully embracing both wireless headphones and Lightning-connected headphones as technology abandons the 3.5mm jack.

Apple plans to remove the headphone jack in the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, positioning the Lightning port, rather than a USB-C connector, as an all-in-one solution for both charging and listening to music with wired headphones.

With the iPhone 7 and beyond, users will need wireless headphones, headphones with a Lightning connector, or a Lightning-to-3.5mm jack adapter, which have already begun surfacing. The switch to Lightning looks like nothing more than an inconvenience on the surface, but as we outlined in a recent video, there are benefits in the form of a potential boost to audio quality.

To make the transition easier for customers, Apple is rumored to be working on Lightning-connected EarPods that could perhaps ship with the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, as well as Bluetooth-enabled wire-free earbuds similar to the Bragi Dash.

Curiously, while Lenovo removed the headphone jack from the Moto Z and the Z Force to cut down on thickness, rumors have suggested Apple's iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus will be similar in thickness to the iPhone 6s, so it is not clear what Apple will do with the extra space freed up by the removal of the jack.

Conflicting information points towards the possibility of a second speaker for stereo sound, but rumors are torn on whether or not an additional speaker will be included. A larger battery could also fill the extra space, or new as-of-yet unknown hardware.

Article Link: Motorola's New 'Moto Z' and 'Z Force' Smartphones Have No Headphone Jack

 

[Bbqthis]

That's not a camera bump. That's a camera growth.

 

[yossi]

A larger battery could also fill the extra space, or new as-of-yet unknown hardware.


HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!

 

[peterdevries]

Fine with this, if there is a possibility to simultaneously connect a charger. I wear earbuds in the car and charge at the same time.

edit: on the iPhone, not the monstrosity from this article.

 

[bpeeps]

That's not a camera bump. That's a camera growth.

Yeah that camera tumor is INSANE. Jesus Christ.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

I can't help but think that if Apple removes the headphone jack they really need to standardize with USB-C. Seems annoying to have lighting and USB-C headphones....

 

[SockRolid]

Motorola? Still making iPhone clones?
Wow. Who knew.

 

[Mascots]

Glad Moto broke that ground first, hopefully the choir of hatred towards this decision is not-as-loud when Apple decides to

 

[Hastings101]

Booo

 

[keysofanxiety]

Wait … is … is that a protruding camera?!

"Look at the size of that thing!"

 

[diddl14]

Hope Apple also moves to USB-C on iPhone. Would love to have a single power adapter for my MacBook-(pro) and iPhone.

 

[Benjamin Frost]

The headphone jack is reliable, provides good quality sound and allows the iPhone to be charged whilst listening to music.

Bluetooth is unreliable. Using the Lightning connector doesn't allow for charging. In addition, lightning cables are proprietary and of poor quality compared to 3.5" cables.

There is no good case to be made for removing the headphone jack, and if Apple do, they will see severe falls in iPhone sales and their share price.

 

[djcerla]

Jack is dead. Deal with it.

 

[Benjamin Frost]

Yeah that camera tumor is INSANE. Jesus Christ.

I agree with you that the Motorola camera protrudes in a hideous way.

May I kindly ask you to refrain from blasphemy?

Many thanks.

 

[Michael Scrip]

Both of these new Moto phones are 5.5"

Have companies simply given up trying to make small powerful phones?

 

[djcerla]

The headphone jack is reliable, provides good quality sound and allows the iPhone to be charged whilst listening to music.

Bluetooth is unreliable. Using the Lightning connector doesn't allow for charging. In addition, lightning cables are proprietary and of poor quality compared to 3.5" cables.

There is no good case to be made for removing the headphone jack, and if Apple do, they will see severe falls in iPhone sales and their share price.

Nope.

Just like Mac sales didn't drop after the removal of floppy and cd-rom drives. All phones will ditch the jack in 2 years, maximum.

 

[cmichaelb]

That's not a camera bump. That's a camera growth.

 

[ThisBougieLife]

Another victory for dongle culture, I guess.

 

[Benjamin Frost]

Nope.

Just like Mac sales didn't drop after the removal of floppy and cd-rom drives. All phones will ditch the jack in 2 years, maximum.

I doubt that very much.

Comparing the headphone jack to floppy discs is not a reasonable comparison. Headphone jacks are ubiquitous; they exist on all musical equipment from the cheapest to the most expensive. The only reason Apple want to get rid of it is to make their phone even thinner. No-one wants a thinner iPhone except chubby Ive.

 

[duffman9000]

That's not a camera bump. That's a camera growth.

We used to call these things tumors lol.

 

[cmichaelb]

Another victory for dongle culture, I guess.

Hey this is a classy site, no need to bring up peoples 'dongles' geez.

 

[AJ5790]

Again, companies copying Apple rumors. Lol

 

[DevNull0]

I'm still not going to buy a phone without a 3.5mm pin anytime soon. But those Bose QC35's look very interesting, I love my QC25's.

 

[cmichaelb]

I can't help but think that if Apple removes the headphone jack they really need to standardize with USB-C. Seems annoying to have lighting and USB-C headphones....

I like lightning. I must be in the minority.

 

[djcerla]

I doubt that very much.

Comparing the headphone jack to floppy discs is not a reasonable comparison. Headphone jacks are ubiquitous; they exist on all musical equipment from the cheapest to the most expensive. The only reason Apple want to get rid of it is to make their phone even thinner. No-one wants a thinner iPhone except chubby Ive.

Yeah, it always looks like a unreasonable comparison. Unless, everything else Apple ditched was ubiquitus as well.

And "chubby Ive" does not work for Motorola.

 

[duffman9000]

The headphone jack is reliable, provides good quality sound and allows the iPhone to be charged whilst listening to music.

Bluetooth is unreliable. Using the Lightning connector doesn't allow for charging. In addition, lightning cables are proprietary and of poor quality compared to 3.5" cables.

There is no good case to be made for removing the headphone jack, and if Apple do, they will see severe falls in iPhone sales and their share price.

I bought lightening cables from a highly rated company on Amazon. I'm shocked my wife hasn't destroyed the cables yet. Much more durable than apple's junk cables.

Edit: cables by Anker.