Interesting point, but without the exact specs, it looks to me like the sim hatch is significantly smaller than the 3.5mm port.
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Apple May Replace 3.5mm Headphone Jack on iPhone 7 With All-in-One Lightning Connector
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And I'm guessing you formulated this opinion around the time that he wrote his Apple Watch review, huh?
And you think that making all those billions of 3.5mm devices that have been around since the 70s & 80s, redundant, is a good idea? No, nor do I.
Seriously. 39 pages of this thread and people are still saying the same thing as on page 1?
The 3.5mm port isn't going to be replaced by anything 'digital' because it's not carrying digital data. What you are proposing is the exact same thing as proposing we need a new standard for speaker cables!
I'm thoroughly enjoying everything about this phone. I haven't missed iOS at all either.
I have to say, I've seen the this theme repeated a few times during this thread, and I have to completely disagree. The Lightning port is one of the most solid, reliable connectors I've ever used. I've never had a problem with one and I must insert them into my iPhone over a dozen times a day. Their size make them less susceptible to snapping off, and the ones I have seen broken in that manner actually do little damage to the plug itself, and more to the device -- and I have seen the same damage from headphone connectors far more frequently. The fact that a Lightning plug can support an iPhone on a dock without any other support is a pretty marvelous testimony to the iPhone and the connector. If it were truly so fragile, I think we would have heard of a lot more accidents from the use of such docks.
That philosophy doesn’t work well from a functional point of view.
Take the 12-inch MacBook for example. If its only port fails, the whole computer is useless. More ports are better than less. If my 2011 13”’ MacBook Pro’s headphone jack fails, I can use a USB DAC. If one of the USB ports fails, I have another. If the FireWire port fails, I can just use USB for my external Firewire+USB hard drive. If the Ethernet port fails, I can use a USB to Ethernet adapter. If the mini-displayport connector fails, I can just use the internal screen instead of an external one. If the SD card reader fails, I can get a USB adapter for that. Redundancy is often a good idea.
ive wondered this myself. And I find it really hard to come up with a current idea to replace it without adding unnecessary bulk to the headphone end of it
The benefits of the 3.5mm isn't necessarily the port itself, but that it's pure, raw, analogue audio signal that requires absolutely nothing but unpowered speakers on the other end. its as simple as you can get.
Moving to something with a digital port, would mean that you need to convert that digital signal to analogue any ways, since we only hear analogue. This would required the conversion mechanism to somehow be in-line with the cable, and powered by the port you're plugged into. There's no current way to get this done without adding complexity to the speaker based device thats plugged in. This will no matter what complicate it.
So, if you wanted one universal, new smaller port, you would still need a way to transmit audio, in analogue already. Which means new standards for ports, as USB nor Lightning (AFAIK) contains analogue audio already.
So lets for imagination porpoises say they come up with a new standard analogue port to go forward that can exist ontop of existing USB-C. the simplicity behind the analogue technology can remain. The 3.5MM port, already does exactly that, and has been around for decades, used for generations, and has sold billions of devices that use it.
So utlimately, removing the 3.5MM jack doesn't offer much benefit. Other than forcing you to buy adapters to use your existing technology with a proprietary port that only one company in the world uses. And charges other companies to license into.
Apple can be "forward thinking", but I don't think removing the port is on their roadmap.
I hear that the 6P will crack if you just LOOK at it...
Just like every single iPhone 6/6 Plus bent on its own
There is redundancy in the Retina MacBook -- other than power, you can get data in and out of the rMB via Bluetooth, and Wifi, sound and video via AirPlay. The problem is if that USB-C port breaks, you will have no way to charge the battery, then it doesn't matter about any of that other stuff. And that's always been the case with every Apple product. Who cares if you can still plug your headphones in the dedicated 3.5mm audio jack, as that will only last until the battery dies. The iPhone is exactly the same, multiple ays to get data, video and audio out of the phone without an a dedicated analogue audio port. Just exactly what does the 3.5mm jack give you that you could use if your Lightning connector goes down? Nothing.
Now the rMB is an interesting proposition, if Apple replaces the 3.5mm jack with a Lightning jack, intended for headphones, not only will it serve that purpose, and connect to traditional headphones with a small inline adapter, it can also be used for power, high speed data, and most of the same functions you'd use the USB-C port for. The iPhone is a bit more of a problem, but short of defect that caused the Lightning port to fail, I'd say seems quite a bit more robust than the somewhat fragile USB-C port, not to mention the iPhone weighs significantly less, making the need for a redundant Lightning port mostly moot.
"no need for digital/analog converter for that port"
meaning, there's still a DAC, just not for that port.
You don't think the speaker and headphones share the same DAC and amp? I don't have the luxury of tearing one apart but I doubt it's that modular.
Isn't the camera the limiting factor for thinness? That sticks out as it is.
Apple could just use the Nexus 6P hump for the camera and make the rest of the device thinner...
That thing is gross, and would totally break the symmetry of the device. At least the current bump can be hidden with a case.
I know that is kinda why I said that. Until they make the camera module smaller the thickness of the case of the phone will be more or less dictated by that, not the headphones.So right off the bat that's a negative for anyone still wanting to use their existing analog devices. I'm also skeptical it would be $19 since the 30 pin to lightning adapter is $29, and bulky as well.
Anything to back up the claim of improved quality beyond just your opinion? Sorry to not trust your ears.
Sure, but now that's two things to lose plus wired headphones are bigger than a dongle.
On the flip side, if you use the phone with different kinds of 3.5 gear you're looking at buying multiple adapters or constantly carrying it with the phone.
The same can be argued for wifi or bluetooth or the speaker and mic. "Redundant" or not, a feature is worth leaving on and taking up the space if enough people use it.
And the reason you don't leave off the 3.5 is because the majority of users need it to interact with the phone when they don't have their lightning adapter.
You're argument is Hey, you can use lightning! Without a flash, Hey, you can use lightning and hook up an external flash!
Because they have in the past. Lightning dock is just one example, and you're basing it on your own personal opinion.
The consumer ALREADY has that option. Instead of having decent DAC for everything, now the user would have to pay extra for an adapter just to get what they already have.
You're off topic, the question is why would you need to remove 3.5 to use external DAC. And you never answered that question. The answer is you don't need to remove it.
But they will still have to include incompatible headphones. Putting DAC in that is going to increase their costs, more so if they include one at least as good as what is in the phone (which you seem convinced they'd do). If they really cared about improving quality, a better DAC would probably be cheaper than including lightning headphones with every phone. Not to mention that the headphones need to put the DAC somewhere.
That's not the argument.
How much do you think a 3.5 jack adds to the cost of the phone anyway, considering it already needs a DAC for the speaker?
Arbitrarily, no. Would they make a decision that would make a majority of users unhappy? Based on their track record, absolutely.
You can assert whatever you want but you have no facts to back it up.
You "know" that but somehow you also "know" that hardly anyone is still using 3.5? Your argument is nothing more than "I use a feature, so everyone uses it!" and "I don't use a feature, so hardly any anyone uses it!" Claims pulled out of your ass are pointless.
Anything is possible eventually but we're talking about a product that is scheduled to ship in the next 12 months.
Absolutely they have. But in the vast majority of cases they were dumping standards while replacing them with something superior, which isn't the case here. And even then, not all of those were good decisions.
Funny, aren't plenty of people using third party bluetooth headphones, car stereos, and other devices? Why is apple spending money to support those competitors? Oh wait, could it be because compatibility makes their phone a better and more appealing product? I'm kind of blown away that such a stupid question is even being asked. And no, I'm not convinced that apple has research showing that a minority of users are using 3.5.
You threw out a really low bitrate as an example. I was simply disagreeing that it's a typical example.
You can speak for yourself, but I disagree with that generalization.
So save pennies and then charge the consumer $19-29+ because their phone does less. Great to see that you're only looking out for how Apple can shaft the consumer. Not to mention that they will still include headphones which are now more expensive for them to build. I just don't see how they get a cost savings out of removing 3.5 jack but adding DAC internally to their headphones.
Probably not the majority, how many "pennies" do they have to save by leaving out a jack to make up for each lost sale? Call me crazy but if I can spend a few pennies to make a product better, I'm going to do that.
Again, assumption with nothing to back it up.
Please no, Apple.
I'm a music teacher, and I'm constantly plugging my phone into 1/8" jacks all over the city to play musical examples for classes. I don't want to have to have an adapter with me at all times or be screwed. One of my least favorite iPhone features from earlier generations was the recessed headphone jack of the original iPhone. Having an adapter at all times was a major pain.
iPhones do not need to be thinner than they are now. Our most recent iPhone generation got thicker, and I don't see an overwhelming sense of complaint because of it.
I'm a music teacher, and I'm constantly plugging my phone into 1/8" jacks all over the city to play musical examples for classes. I don't want to have to have an adapter with me at all times or be screwed. One of my least favorite iPhone features from earlier generations was the recessed headphone jack of the original iPhone. Having an adapter at all times was a major pain.
iPhones do not need to be thinner than they are now. Our most recent iPhone generation got thicker, and I don't see an overwhelming sense of complaint because of it.