Lightning to 3.5 mm Headphone Adapter without wire

[otomo]

Is there an alternative to the Apple Lightning to 3.5 mm Headphone Jack Adapter that forgoes the flimsy wire between the Lightning part and the headphone jack part?

Several times a week, playback on my iPhone stops and I hear a faint tick and then I have to click play to resume playback, presumably because the flimsy wire sent a false pause signal to the iPhone. This was not my experience on previous iPhone models with the 3.5 mm headphone jack, just with this flimsy adapter. I would prefer a solid adapter without a flimsy wire badly bridging the Lightning with the 3.5 mm headphone ends.

 

[macTW]

Check kickstarter:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1478028788/auxillite-lightest-2-in-1-dac-converter-for-your-i

 

[otomo]

Check kickstarter:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1478028788/auxillite-lightest-2-in-1-dac-converter-for-your-i

I don't want to invest in a campaign. I want to buy a product. What percentage of these campaigns fail to result in product? What percentage miss their deadlines? They could take my money and string me along forever...

 

[BrianBaughn]

Any stiff adapter that adds distance from the Lightning port to where the wire eventually begins is also adding potential and likely extra stress to the Lightning plug and Lightning port both.

 

[otomo]

Any stiff adapter that adds distance from the Lightning port to where the wire eventually begins is also adding potential and likely extra stress to the Lightning plug and Lightning port both.

This wire is flimsy and causes playback to stop. Every day I have to hit the resume button to continue randomly interrupted playback and I can only attribute this phenomena to this bendy wire. It must be inadvertently sending a pause signal down to the iPhone. If the AirPods were available I'd order them, even though I prefer my Shure in-ear to Apple earbuds. Or Shure could make a lightning cable. But then I would not be able to use it with the MacBook Air. Apple continually derides Android OS phone fragmentation yet their iPhone 7 fragments the headphone port ecosystem amongst its products and they won't make decent in-ear wireless headphones.

 

[BrianBaughn]

This wire is flimsy and causes playback to stop. Every day I have to hit the resume button to continue randomly interrupted playback and I can only attribute this phenomena to this bendy wire. It must be inadvertently sending a pause signal down to the iPhone. If the AirPods were available I'd order them, even though I prefer my Shure in-ear to Apple earbuds. Or Shure could make a lightning cable. But then I would not be able to use it with the MacBook Air. Apple continually derides Android OS phone fragmentation yet their iPhone 7 fragments the headphone port ecosystem amongst its products and they won't make decent in-ear wireless headphones.

I don't doubt any of that.

I wonder if a Lightning extension cord before the adapter would make a new one work better longer.

 

[otomo]

I don't doubt any of that.

I wonder if a Lightning extension cord before the adapter would make a new one work better longer.

I already find the Shure extender cable for Apple devices too long at 145 cm. Adding a lightning extension to that will just lead to a tangled mess.

So Powerbeats3 it is? In-ear and W1 connectivity?

 

[Paco II]

Have you taken it to Apple to replace it, because that sounds faulty. I've been using the adapter for about 3 weeks, and haven't experienced that issue.

This wire is flimsy and causes playback to stop. Every day I have to hit the resume button to continue randomly interrupted playback and I can only attribute this phenomena to this bendy wire. It must be inadvertently sending a pause signal down to the iPhone.

 

[jjk454ss]

Just get the cable and skip,the adapter:

http://www.scosche.com/lightning-to-3-5

I wish they sold just a cable without the inline controls though.

 

[takeshi74]

This wire is flimsy and causes playback to stop. Every day I have to hit the resume button to continue randomly interrupted playback and I can only attribute this phenomena to this bendy wire.

Not saying it's not the cause in your case but what troubleshooting steps have you taken to confirm this or are you just assuming? What's connected to the adapter?

 

[otomo]

Not saying it's not the cause in your case but what troubleshooting steps have you taken to confirm this or are you just assuming? What's connected to the adapter?

I'm just assuming. Pre-September 18th I had my Shure SE215 in-ear headphones connected directly to my iPhone 6s Plus 3.5mm headphone jack with no problems. Post-September 18th I have the same Shure SE215 headphones connected to the Lightning to 3.5mm headphone adapter connected to the iPhone 7 Plus Lightning jack. Maybe it's the iPhone 7 Plus that's at fault and the adapter would work perfectly with another iPhone 7 Plus. Still the adapter looks stupid -- little dangly white thing connecting a black iPhone in its black Apple leather case with black Shure headphones. Apple now makes Lightning docks and cases in different colours, why don't they make a black adapter?

 

[CharlesShaw]

I'm just assuming. Pre-September 18th I had my Shure SE215 in-ear headphones connected directly to my iPhone 6s Plus 3.5mm headphone jack with no problems. Post-September 18th I have the same Shure SE215 headphones connected to the Lightning to 3.5mm headphone adapter connected to the iPhone 7 Plus Lightning jack. Maybe it's the iPhone 7 Plus that's at fault and the adapter would work perfectly with another iPhone 7 Plus. Still the adapter looks stupid -- little dangly white thing connecting a black iPhone in its black Apple leather case with black Shure headphones. Apple now makes Lightning docks and cases in different colours, why don't they make a black adapter?

It's going to cost $100, but Shure recently announced this Lightning cable coming Spring 2017.

http://www.shure.com/americas/products/accessories/earphones/earphone-headphone-cables/rmce-ltg

 

[otomo]

It's going to cost $100, but Shure recently announced this Lightning cable coming Spring 2017.

http://www.shure.com/americas/products/accessories/earphones/earphone-headphone-cables/rmce-ltg

And I won't be able to plug it into my MacBook Air. Unless there's a reverse Lightning to 3.5mm headphone jack. How many years until wireless headphones can support lossless audio?

 

[CharlesShaw]

And I won't be able to plug it into my MacBook Air.

I'm thinking the consumer who is willing to spend $100 for that cable will already have more than one set of Shure headphones.

 

[otomo]

I'm thinking the consumer who is willing to spend $100 for that cable will already have more than one set of Shure headphones.

Carrying and swapping two sets of headphones will be inconvenient. I have enough trouble untangling one set!

Also... How much does a consumer have to spend for the convenience (less clutter, less swapping) of one set that handles everything in Apple's ecosystem? I mean, wasn't that the point of being loyal to an ecosystem -- convenience?

 

[C DM]

Carrying and swapping two sets of headphones will be inconvenient. I have enough trouble untangling one set!

Also... How much does a consumer have to spend for the convenience (less clutter, less swapping) of one set that handles everything in Apple's ecosystem? I mean, wasn't that the point of being loyal to an ecosystem -- convenience?

It's "convenient" if you just go with Apple essentially wants you to go with, which is AirPods (or essentially wireless headphones).

 

[otomo]

Carrying and swapping two sets of headphones will be inconvenient. I have enough trouble untangling one set!

How much does a consumer have to spend for the convenience (less clutter, less swapping) of one set that handles everything in Apple's ecosystem? I mean, wasn't that the point of being loyal to an ecosystem -- convenience?

It's "convenient" if you just go with Apple essentially wants you to go with, which is AirPods (or essentially wireless headphones).

But wireless sacrifices lossless quality. So it's good, convenient, cheap -- pick one?

 

[otomo]

Have you taken it to Apple to replace it, because that sounds faulty. I've been using the adapter for about 3 weeks, and haven't experienced that issue.

I'll whine about it to anyone who'll listen and I'm pretty sure that includes Apple Store employees.

 

[jjdodders]

Carrying and swapping two sets of headphones will be inconvenient. I have enough trouble untangling one set!

Also... How much does a consumer have to spend for the convenience (less clutter, less swapping) of one set that handles everything in Apple's ecosystem? I mean, wasn't that the point of being loyal to an ecosystem -- convenience?

Ok but if you're taking your laptop somewhere surely you have a laptop bag and you can just put the 3.5mm cable in there so you always have it? Otherwise you either have that or your phone so you can just bring whichever cable you need with you.

 

[otomo]

Ok but if you're taking your laptop somewhere surely you have a laptop bag and you can just put the 3.5mm cable in there so you always have it? Otherwise you either have that or your phone so you can just bring whichever cable you need with you.

Yes I have a bag and still consider two cables an extra hassle. The little adapter is easier if only this random pausing wasn't so annoying. The phone is covered by AppleCare so I guess I could book a Genius bar appointment to solve the adapter issue. I don't know how to demonstrate the problem to the Apple Genius (and then recognize that it has been solved) since I am the only earwitness to this random occurrence. Can I connect the iPhone to the MacBook Air and find the unwanted audio pause somewhere in an XCode console log and point at that? "See! See! That's where the unwanted pause happened Genius Person!" It's all just a hassle for something that happens once a day.