Quick Takes: 'Why Hasn't Samsung Ditched the Headphone Jack Yet?'

[SactoGuy18]

Fortunately, there are decent Lightning port headphone options out there. I have the Pioneer Rayz Plus (with built in noise cancelling, too!) and a cheaper New Bee Lightning port headphone (I'm not a fan of needing to get ANOTHER device that needs regular charging).

 

[Bruce Oksol]

In this world of "wireless," I am absolutely amazed there are still folks who prefer a wire between their telephone and their headphones. One would think folks would prefer wireless headphones like AirPods or BeatsX. My wife is not a techie by any means but she loves her AirPods which completely surprised me. As for me, I still use my 2007 Samsung clamshell exclusively and have never used headphones. I find it amazing that the headphone jack, first used back in 1878 or thereabouts, lasted this long in a wireless world.

Having said that I still use a non-wireless 35-mm SLR Canon so I still need a SanDisk port -- and that's why I love the MacBook Air.

 

[itsAgaunt]

I upgraded to an iPhone X from my 6s.

Now I have a Galaxy S9+, and my X is getting ready for Ebay. I hated not having a headphone jack and being limited to face ID. It works most of the time, but the S9 also has a fingerprint scanner. Apple's less is more approach has gone to far. I'd rather have slightly thicker devices with the ports I need and want versus left swimming in a maze of dongles. It's going to take some getting used to Android, but so far I'm not regretting the switch.

Samsung please don't ditch it anytime soon.

And by no means am I an Apple Hater. I stood in line for the original iPhone, the MacPlus was my first computer, and I've been an Apple user most of my life.

 

[Lozza013]

I hate to break it to people but most phone manufacturers (Excluding Samsung at this stage) are ditching the Headphone Jack. The new Sony Xperia XZ2 has no Headphone Jack. It's a matter of time before all preminum phones ditch the headphone jack. I honestly don't care either way. I have a 7 but the lack of a jack didn't bother me. I will admit though I am tossing up between an iPhone or a Sony Xperia for my next phone.

 

[BvizioN]

They haven't abandoned the headphone jack because it's still useful to most people who don't want to go all in on Apple's proprietary jacks or use an adapter.

They have not abandoned because they **** their pants and are terrified of what customers may say, They tried with the removable microsd slot and had to bring it back next year. Typical Samsung! Going by what customers want can only take you so far. Customers are clueless and have no vision of a future.

 

[melchiorsen]

The question should be:
'Why hasn't Apple adopted USB-C in iPhone yet?'

 

[WiseAJ]

The question should be:
'Why hasn't Apple adopted USB-C in iPhone yet?'

Because USB-C is **** compared to Lightning

 

[Playfoot]

Perhaps Samsung realised the world is not yet entirely embracing of BT.

As an example, my wife has refused to move from her iPhone 6S as she really likes the headphone jack. For record, my wife is an ardent Apple fan.

As a mother, she tells me the kids use her phone, as well as their own, and the kids share phones and iPads with other kids. So, she can not deal with lost buds, lost adapters and on and on. Moreover, there will be kids that do not have BT and will feel left out, unable to share.

And finally, while she does have BT and likes the convenience when out and about, the battery always runs down AND the sound quality is not as good. Hence she uses her pro Etymotic most of the time when she can . . .. She also does not know how she would charge her iPhone and listen to music without yet another dongle ....

There will a day when battery life, sound quality and ubiquity allow for BT. However, that day is not yet. . .

 

[tech3475]

In this world of "wireless," I am absolutely amazed there are still folks who prefer a wire between their telephone and their headphones. One would think folks would prefer wireless headphones like AirPods or BeatsX. My wife is not a techie by any means but she loves her AirPods which completely surprised me. As for me, I still use my 2007 Samsung clamshell exclusively and have never used headphones. I find it amazing that the headphone jack, first used back in 1878 or thereabouts, lasted this long in a wireless world.

Having said that I still use a non-wireless 35-mm SLR Canon so I still need a SanDisk port -- and that's why I love the MacBook Air.

If it wasnt for my iphone 8 plus Id still be primarily using wired IEMs because I find it more convenient over bluetooth ones (which I am using).

Its easier to switch between devices, Its one less thing to charge, I dont need a dongle and I can charge my phone and listen at the same time.

 

[44267547]

I think it's more accurate to say that Samsung will do whatever they believe gives them an advantage over Apple. This means copying Apple if necessary or one-upping them where possible. Samsung will keep the headphone jack around for as long as they think it gives their product a meaningful edge over Apple, and I fully expect them to drop it when they realise that the majority of consumers simply don't care.

I think there will always will be customers who care about the 3.5 mm Jack now matter how long it’s in existence. Simply because wired headphones do provide a better listening experience, but Bluetooth headphones are increasingly improving all the time with audio, it’s just a matter of adaptation for those who choose to migraten to Bluetooth over wired headphones for the convenience and freedom without the wire.

 

[mi7chy]

Difference is Samsung is lead by an engineering mindset while Apple is lead by a logistics mindset seeking profit through cost cutting. The benefit to Apple for removing the 3.5mm audio jack is lower manufacturing cost from not having to drill a hole, lower BOM cost from eliminating analog audio circuitry, lower cost to achieve water resistance and more profit from licensing out lightning port accessories while Samsung retains it with higher water resistance.

Removing 3.5mm audio jack is like removing AC from a car and offering a dongle equivalent via a window mounted AC. They're both legacy technology and may not be used year round but indispensable when you need to use them.

 

[The Game 161]

Samsung may drop it if they ever bring out any wireless headphones that they think can compete with air pods.

 

[Michael Scrip]

The benefit to Apple for removing the 3.5mm audio jack is lower manufacturing cost from not having to drill a hole, lower BOM cost, lower cost to get water resistance and more profit from licensing out lightning port accessories.

It's amazing that Apple was able to ship a billion iPhones prior that had holes for a headphone jack.

They must be some sort of wizards...

 

[mrklaw]

I don't get the argument that the W1 chip is any kind of advantage. In my experience with my beatsX, the initial out of box is cute, with it popping up on my phone. But after that it basically behaves like any normal BT device. Standard BT headphones will auto connect to the last device you used. If you want to switch devices its a tiny step more to go into bluetooth settings rather than swipe down on the music widget, but how many people even know you can do that on the music widget?

I had hoped switching devices was easier - like NFC or something, just tap the headphones on my ipad and it'd switch connection. But it doesn't and so I'm not seeing how amazing W1 is vs standard BT. At least as a major differentiator

Regardless, wired headphones will always be cheaper, and therefore the default option. And in that situation USB-C Vs lightning are both not ideal, but will be inevitable as the 3.5mm socket goes away to save space/save cost of production. Even if they aren't ubiquitous, phone manufacturers will ship adapters in box and those should be relatively affordable. I'm not sure if USB-C or lightning headphones will ever be that popular as long as people still want to use their headphones with laptops, tablets or other devices.
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It's amazing that Apple was able to ship a billion iPhones prior that had holes for a headphone jack.

They must be some sort of wizards...

what extra money would they make by saving a billion times the cost of drilling a little hole and adding the port/circuitry? May only be pennies per phone but it all adds up

 

[JGRE]

They haven't abandoned the headphone jack because it's still useful to most people who don't want to go all in on Apple's proprietary jacks or use an adapter.

By the time Bluetooth has sufficient band-wide, all the cords will vanish. It is just a matter of time.

 

[Michael Scrip]

what extra money would they make by saving a billion times the cost of drilling a little hole and adding the port/circuitry? May only be pennies per phone but it all adds up

Money saved by not drilling one hole... while still drilling several other holes. Sure.

Then they include a dongle in the box made of plastic and metal... that is made in some other factory by different sets of workers.

I bet it evens out...

 

[navigates]

I haven't had a headphone jack on my last two phone (Moto z/iPhone 8) and I haven't missed it. I have some BT headphones and the Apple headphone.

You will, without a doubt, lose the adapter though. I laughed at someone losing it and lost mine about a month in. I was able to replace it cheaply though.
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Never knew iPhones only paired with Beats BT headphones. Wow!

To each their own. I have the 6s with iOS 9 because of few reasons.
1. iOS9 has PPTP VPN which works for VoIP in the country I am. Given that is not the ask for the majority of folks, let's move on to point number 2.
2. I use my company provided Lenovo laptop and constantly keep switching between the phone (headphone jack) and the PC's headphone jack.
Now I would have to buy two headphones to cater to this one need.

I see no point in losing the headphone jack for folks that need the ease of switch. Not to mention the charge and headphones natively inside the device without the need for a dongle. The dongle is so 1980's. Remember the Nortel dongles in those days.

Apple in recent years has gotten bullish over listening to its consumers. It clearly has one thing in mind. The profits to itself and to its investors. Look at the example of the HomePod. No external connections? What were they thinking? It's a half-baked product and they know people will flock to buy the next iteration making them even more money.

Apple Fan Boys won't see anything wrong with what they do.

 

[JGRE]

Apple dropped the headphone jack because that's what people are going to want.. except for in macbooks, people are going to want headphone jacks.

Apple dropped the headphone jack because that's what people are going to want.. except for in macbooks, people are going to want headphone jacks.

What a load of crap. Why would you like to have a jack on the macbook and a different one on your iPhone?

 

[diipii]

Headphone sockets put the Kurds and Syrians slaughtering each other into perspective.

 

[himanshumodi]

I am an iPhone 6s user... and an Airpods user. I do not need the headphone jack. Bluetooth of Airpods, with an instant connectivity like plug-n-play of a headphone jack is tremendous. Is a failover of a 3.5mm jack a good thing, yes... but i am ok with lightning connector for earphones as a mere failover. Airpods are fantastic overall... I don't use it as much for music though - mostly calls and audio books. And it's a lot better way of consuming those two services.

That is of course just my usecase. In any situation I don't think 3.5mm jack is actually a better solution, insofar as consuming audio from smartphone is concerned.. It's just more convenient because of availability of headphones without having to use an adapter, and ofcourse cheaper than Airpods.

 

[elvislives]

I am glad they ditched it, the DACs used in mobile devices are not good, Apple stopped using hifi quality DACs many years ago. And the audio reviews for the S9 are not great. I use a hifimediy DAC now and it sounds amazing and its cheap.

 

[Abazigal]

Difference is Samsung is lead by an engineering mindset while Apple is lead by a logistics mindset seeking profit through cost cutting. The benefit to Apple for removing the 3.5mm audio jack is lower manufacturing cost from not having to drill a hole, lower BOM cost from eliminating analog audio circuitry, lower cost to achieve water resistance and more profit from licensing out lightning port accessories while Samsung retains it with higher water resistance.

Removing 3.5mm audio jack is like removing AC from a car and offering a dongle equivalent via a window mounted AC. They're both legacy technology and may not be used year round but indispensable when you need to use them.

The lesson Apple keeps teaching and others keep ignoring is - to create true meaningful change in a market, you need to force change. By taking bold unapologetic stances. Here’s a touchscreen smart phone without the familiarity of a physical Qwerty keyboard. Here’s a large screen tablet without a desktop OS and desktop apps and file system. Here’s a smart phone without a headphone jack.

The whole point of Apple removing the headphone jack is to push for adoption of wireless headphones, which plays to their upcoming wearables line (you are not going to be listening to music from your watch using wired headphones). It’s no surprise why they have released the Airpods and HomePod, and are rumoured to have another pair of wireless headphones in the pipeline.

This is Apple having a long term roadmap. Mark my words. We are going to look back years from today and go “Oh...” once the long term ramifications of what they have done here before clear. And all these criticisms about them removing the headphone jack are going to sound so myopic in comparison.

As for Samsung, I am not even sure they have a plan amounting to anything more than “try to one-up whatever Apple is currently doing. I still remember when they were running commercials touting how their tablets ran flash.

That to me is the fundamental difference between Samsung and Apple. Apple just wants to make the best products possible (based on their own definitions) while Samsung is obsessed with beating Apple, and as such, they can never be true to themselves and will never be free to create the products they want to create.

And that is why if you ask me, Samsung is by far the least significant threat facing Apple.

 

[0837990]

Anyone remember how the original iPhone needed an adapter to use non-Apple headphones? Memories

Yeah, or you could chip away at the plastic on the jack itself with a knife and make it fit. Quite retarded!

 

[eddjedi]

"Apple is more of a figure out what they're going to want company"

Nope sorry Apple, I'm never going to not want a headphone jack. Some things are just better with a cable, headphones is one of them. Better quality, no charging, in-line controls, less latency, cheaper. Literally the only advantage of wireless is not getting the cable tangled, which is not enough to overcome any of the above advantages to a cable. I'm all for progress and have happily adopted USB-C and the touch bar, but this is just something you are not going to ram down my throat.

 

[0837990]

I got rid of my floppy discs years ago, and haven't looked back. I realize a lot of people like their jack security blanket. Start preparing yourselves now for life without it. Samsung will ditch it as well. Join the rest of us in the future.

What connector or wireless technology provides the low latency as the headphone jack does?
Low latency is critical for any work involving audio mixing. Even plugging a guitar into your mac via JamUp connectors or other connectors, and recording via Garage Band or Logic Pro X, requires low latency for playback.

As of right now if I use my JamUp adapter and my guitar connected to my iPhone and play via Garage Band, JamUp Pro or BIAS, with any wireless headphones (Bose QC35 and AirPods as those are the ones I have) means that when I strum a string on my guitar, there is a 200-300 millisecond delay before I hear the sound in my ear. This literally makes it completely hopeless to play or record anything. The headphone jack worked 100% in this regard. No noticeable delay or latency.

Wireless technology isn't good enough to replace cables yet, for people that actually use their devices for CREATING something, and not just consuming music or podcasts.