Removal of iPhone 7 Headphone Jack Was Essential for Water Resistance, New Camera System

[TrueBlou]

Of course, but perhaps you want to compare them like for like.

Listen, I thought you made a decent point, you just lost credibility when you tried to save a 120 quid on the price for the sake of impact, I can walk into any high street phone retailer and buy a 5S over the counter, so that is where you should have started. Reason I know this is that I am looking to buy my Granddaughter one.

I'll grant you I should probably have led off with the current as opposed discontinued product bit, but hey, typing in my bad hand while on the move I thought I'd save myself a paragraph and a lump of pain I didn't need and assume most of us here would default to comparisons being made on current devices.

I don't really see the point in considering discontinued, or old, devices purely because they don't offer a true reflection on the current market value. And silly me, I assumed most reasonably intelligent people on here would realise that. I should have known better considering the sort of posts we often see cropping up.

Sure if we are prepared to shop around and accept something that is not contained within a manufacturers current product lineup, we can save often substantial sums, regardless of what the product is. But then compare that product to the manufacturers "current" models and you will be left with an often not insignificant difference in price. There can of course be some level of advantage to this sort of thing, it would be foolish to suggest otherwise. If you don't mind waiting and/or making compromises of course. You can certainly obtain, objectively better value by purchasing discontinued devices.

However It then doesn't paint an accurate image of the current market when you start to include discontinued products, it's only natural that these items are going to be priced considerably lower than those of a manufacturers current devices. Retailers are doing their best to offload old, discontinued stock to still maximise their profits on devices they have already paid for and have sitting in a warehouse or shop, before said devices become worth even less than they currently are.

So no, it's not to make an impact, it's not for shock value, it's simply to represent the market value of current devices. Try getting such a large discount on an iPhone 7, or for that matter any of the current lineup, as you can on say an iPhone 5s and you soon realise just how different the market value of a device becomes. But for sure, you do have a point, I'll make things more long winded and obvious the next time I post.

 

[BeSweeet]

Yes there was, the problem was it was wired and the physical connector took up a lot of space. The PCB connector for the 3.5mm jack is massive relative to the other components and they're functionality. The current PCB connector in the iPhone 6 takes up 1/50 of the board space. A waterproof connector would take up even more space, at least twice as much space. Furthermore, that doesn't even include the board space dedicated for the analog circuitry for the connector.

Yet the Note 7 has a 3.5mm jack, USB-C port, microphone, speaker (louder and clearer than the 6s and below; haven't used a 7 so can't comment there), and an S-Pen slot -- all while containing a larger battery. Let's not forget that it's all IP68 rated.

Apple has the engineering power to do it all as well, but they chose the cheaper route so that they can capitalize on wireless via adapters and licensing.

 

[itsamacthing]

• dongles for legacy 3.5mm equipment inexpensively available.
• Lightning port is reversible, the micro USB-C is not, a phone can be damaged by putting a micro USB-C in the wrong way.

Dongles are unreliable, get lost, and are not part of my experience wish list
The USB-C port is fully reversible .. I have 1 on my MacBook and an external case.

 

[LegacyH6]

Why else is Android the worlds best selling OS globally?

Fairy straightforward I'd have thought, in excess of 1,000 manufacturers throwing out devices month after month at price points which start at next to nothing.
Here in the UK, cheapest Android phone (sim-free, off contract) £24.99, cheapest iPhone (sim-free, off contract) £379.00.
The fact that a single manufacturer producing only high-end phones holds as much market share as it does is nothing short of astonishing.

Nothing astonishing in the fact people prefer Android, consumers have a choice. Apple have several handsets to chose from (even if they are all over priced, but thats another thing). Recent Samsung Galaxy devices have trounced Apple on specification and that is reflected in sales, I dont expect it to change either as new generation snapdragon devices are out in Q4 2016 and Q1 2017, coupled with even more beefed up specification.

http://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2016/7/13/12171604/galaxy-s7-iphone-6s-plus-sales-data-stats

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technolo...n-strongest-growth-in-two-years-as-apple-shr/
[doublepost=1473965098][/doublepost]

Nope, you can can get an iPhone 5s at Argos sim free for 259 quid, on contact 16.99 at CPW, I suspect, by looking around one could get it even cheaper.

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3311246.htm

The thing with Apple fanboys is exactly this, they assume they are the best, nothing beats an iPhone. They are paying for the privelage. Reality is totally different.
[doublepost=1473965329][/doublepost]

Dongles are unreliable, get lost, and are not part of my experience wish list
The USB-C port is fully reversible .. I have 1 on my MacBook and an external case.

Apple fans clearly showing that they know nothing about technology again, as our Thai friend says USB C is fully reversible and its the latest standard in the USB format which goes back a long long time.
Unlike Lightning (which apple use to hook people into their eco system, line and sinker) the USB has has various meaningful upgrades, faster data, higher current (= faster charging for larger batteries) etc, all this passed to the consumer.

All Apple pass to the consumer with lightning is to buy more Apple products.
[doublepost=1473965479][/doublepost]

Yet the Note 7 has a 3.5mm jack, USB-C port, microphone, speaker (louder and clearer than the 6s and below; haven't used a 7 so can't comment there), and an S-Pen slot -- all while containing a larger battery. Let's not forget that it's all IP68 rated.

Apple has the engineering power to do it all as well, but they chose the cheaper route so that they can capitalize on wireless via adapters and licensing.

And an inductive coil plus a 5.7" QHD AMOLED display.

 

[TrueBlou]

Nothing astonishing in the fact people prefer Android, consumers have a choice. Apple have several handsets to chose from (even if they are all over priced, but thats another thing). Recent Samsung Galaxy devices have trounced Apple on specification and that is reflected in sales, I dont expect it to change either as new generation snapdragon devices are out in Q4 2016 and Q1 2017, coupled with even more beefed up specification.

http://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2016/7/13/12171604/galaxy-s7-iphone-6s-plus-sales-data-stats

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technolo...n-strongest-growth-in-two-years-as-apple-shr/
[doublepost=1473965098][/doublepost]


The thing with Apple fanboys is exactly this, they assume they are the best, nothing beats an iPhone. They are paying for the privelage. Reality is totally different.
[doublepost=1473965329][/doublepost]

Apple fans clearly showing that they know nothing about technology again, as our Thai friend says USB C is fully reversible and its the latest standard in the USB format which goes back a long long time.
Unlike Lightning (which apple use to hook people into their eco system, line and sinker) the USB has has various meaningful upgrades, faster data, higher current (= faster charging for larger batteries) etc, all this passed to the consumer.

All Apple pass to the consumer with lightning is to buy more Apple products.
[doublepost=1473965479][/doublepost]


And an inductive coil plus a 5.7" QHD AMOLED display.

Yeah, yeah, better this something that blah blah, fanboy the other. Nothing that's not been said by the anti-Apple brigade for decades. Surely by your own actions and accusations that would make you an Android fanboy.

If your so anti-Apple why are you here wasting your time. You also seem to be forgetting that specs aren't everything. Despite that Apple have just put out the most powerful processor and phone, again, probably the best cameras, again. You seem to think that Apple devices are over priced, so I guess by proxy the similarly priced Android devices must also be over priced. And so on so on who cares, not the number one reason for buying into an eco-system.

What most Apple customers buy for and what keeps them buying, is the overall experience, the security, the peace of mind, the simplicity of achieving most any task. That alone is why I became an Apple customer after the best part of a couple of decades of being a Windows loyalist.

But thankfully there's a choice for everyone. I tried splitting from Apple on more than one occasion and this is after coming through the ranks of Symbian and Palm and the god awful old Windows mobile. I've tried blackberry, windows phone, several android devices. Some had really nice specs, I did like the camera on the Nokia at the time and indeed the general performance of Windows phone.

I liked the nice big OLED screen on the galaxy device. Hated that I had to jump through hoops and many menus to achieve what I wanted. Hated that despite the supposed class leading specs, the operating system dragged it to a crawl at times. Though that aspect has improved considerably thankfully. Hated that the software took an age to be updated to the latest available version of Android, if it ever was. Hated the absolutely shocking customer service from the manufacturers, yes plural, three different Android manufacturers, three different hardware issues. That's not surprising though, with a couple of exceptions who come close, I've always found Apple customer service to be above and beyond expectations.

When push came to shove, none of them stood up to Apple in the overall daily use category for me. Y'know, the really important bit.
You could and probably will bang on about open standards and limitations, but just maybe that's your experience. Me? I've never been limited or prevented from doing anything I want to with my iOS devices. That may occasionally involve a work around, I use my Kingston mobilelite to shuffle files around from time to time for instance, although that's becoming less and less.

That's why I'm glad there's choices for everyone and unless Apple do something monumentally stupid and completely destroy the user experience, I choose to stick with Apple. Jebus that's enough waffling on for one post

 

[LegacyH6]

Yeah, yeah, better this something that blah blah, fanboy the other. Nothing that's not been said by the anti-Apple brigade for decades. Surely by your own actions and accusations that would make you an Android fanboy.

If your so anti-Apple why are you here wasting your time. You also seem to be forgetting that specs aren't everything. Despite that Apple have just put out the most powerful processor and phone, again, probably the best cameras, again. You seem to think that Apple devices are over priced, so I guess by proxy the similarly priced Android devices must also be over priced. And so on so on who cares, not the number one reason for buying into an eco-system.

What most Apple customers buy for and what keeps them buying, is the overall experience, the security, the peace of mind, the simplicity of achieving most any task. That alone is why I became an Apple customer after the best part of a couple of decades of being a Windows loyalist.

But thankfully there's a choice for everyone. I tried splitting from Apple on more than one occasion and this is after coming through the ranks of Symbian and Palm and the god awful old Windows mobile. I've tried blackberry, windows phone, several android devices. Some had really nice specs, I did like the camera on the Nokia at the time and indeed the general performance of Windows phone.

I liked the nice big OLED screen on the galaxy device. Hated that I had to jump through hoops and many menus to achieve what I wanted. Hated that despite the supposed class leading specs, the operating system dragged it to a crawl at times. Though that aspect has improved considerably thankfully. Hated that the software took an age to be updated to the latest available version of Android, if it ever was. Hated the absolutely shocking customer service from the manufacturers, yes plural, three different Android manufacturers, three different hardware issues. That's not surprising though, with a couple of exceptions who come close, I've always found Apple customer service to be above and beyond expectations.

When push came to shove, none of them stood up to Apple in the overall daily use category for me. Y'know, the really important bit.
You could and probably will bang on about open standards and limitations, but just maybe that's your experience. Me? I've never been limited or prevented from doing anything I want to with my iOS devices. That may occasionally involve a work around, I use my Kingston mobilelite to shuffle files around from time to time for instance, although that's becoming less and less.

That's why I'm glad there's choices for everyone and unless Apple do something monumentally stupid and completely destroy the user experience, I choose to stick with Apple. Jebus that's enough waffling on for one post

when I found out the recent iOS 10 update allowed to delete stock apps, well I was glad I never got involved in Apple...

 

[daveathall]

If your so anti-Apple why are you here wasting your time.

This annoys me, I have a 15" MBP, a 13" MBP, an iPad mini, an iPad Pro, 2 iPod 160gb, I even have an effin Apple battery charger (yeh, I know, 29 quid). I subscribe to Apple music, yet, I don't think that the iPhone is the best out there, not by a long chalk. I do look forward to getting another iPhone, I had them all from 3GS up to the 5, but, tbh, nothing has changed my mind so far, my Motorola Nexus 6 is as good as any iPhone (in my opinion). The trouble is, that here, as soon as someone expresses an opinion that is negative about a product or a system, all hell brakes loose, it's like a mother bear protecting her young.

 

[TrueBlou]

when I found out the recent iOS 10 update allowed to delete stock apps, well I was glad I never got involved in Apple...

Seems odd that giving you choice is a reason to dislike something. You prefer not to have choice?
Personally I think it's about time they did give that option. Not that I'll use it for too many of that apps, I'm far too used to things like my notes seamlessly syncing across all of my devices to stop using that. I do like Notability, but still fing the default notes app is my go-to. But some people will prefer not to use some of the stock apps, so why not remover them.
[doublepost=1473971607][/doublepost]

This annoys me, I have a 15" MBP, a 13" MBP, an iPad mini, an iPad Pro, 2 iPod 160gb, I even have an effin Apple battery charger (yeh, I know, 29 quid). I subscribe to Apple music, yet, I don't think that the iPhone is the best out there, not by a long chalk. I do look forward to getting another iPhone, I had them all from 3GS up to the 5, but, tbh, nothing has changed my mind so far, my Motorola Nexus 6 is as good as any iPhone (in my opinion). The trouble is, that here, as soon as someone expresses an opinion that is negative about a product or a system, all hell brakes loose, it's like a mother bear protecting her young.

No, it's when you use childish phrases like Apple fanboy rather than lay out a sensible argument for or against something.

I for one prefer Apple devices but I wouldn't be so foolish as to consider them the ideal device for everyone, which is why whenever I'm asked for advice I'll often recommend a non-Apple product.
Nor however would I consider someone's preference in the devices they use to constitute a blinded "fanboy" view of the company and their products. Apple has their fare share of faults just like every other company. It's all about finding the balance in the good and bad for any product and choosing that which has the best balance for the individual.

 

[LegacyH6]

Seems odd that giving you choice is a reason to dislike something. You prefer not to have choice?
Personally I think it's about time they did give that option. Not that I'll use it for too many of that apps, I'm far too used to things like my notes seamlessly syncing across all of my devices to stop using that. I do like Notability, but still fing the default notes app is my go-to. But some people will prefer not to use some of the stock apps, so why not remover them.
[doublepost=1473971607][/doublepost]

I think you missed my point entirely, I meant that this sort of thing is common place on Androids since the day dot.

This is another example of how restricting iOS is, or has been.

Anyway, I get it that this is pretty done to the death now, we all have our own choice and preference.

Some like the Android, others the bitten Apple.

 

[TrueBlou]

I think you missed my point entirely, I meant that this sort of thing is common place on Androids since the day dot.

This is another example of how restricting iOS is, or has been.

Anyway, I get it that this is pretty done to the death now, we all have our own choice and preference.

Some like the Android, others the bitten Apple.

Honestly I've never really found it to be an issue, I threw the things I didn't use to their own wee spot and forgot about them.

But you are right, especially as none of this has really anything much to do with the actual subject at hand, shocker for these forums
Still, nothing wrong with the occasional debate.

 

[lysingur]

Your argument completely fails when you realise that Sony state to NOT take its devices swimming! And that Apple offer NO guarantee against water damage to the new iPhones, so nothing Apple has done makes them more waterproof, on fact the iPhone 7 has a lower waterproof rating I believe then Samsung and Sony devices.
Are you going to complain about how bad Sony phones are when you shoot them and they get big holes in them because a reviewer said they are rubbish?

Your argument completely fails when you realise that 1) Apple never claims that iPhone 7 is "waterproof" and 2) you completely misunderstood the point about corrosion.

Why? Because Sony claims their Xperia is "waterproof" when in fact the jack is prone to corrosion. So even though it is "waterproof", the device itself (as the jack is part of the device) degrades after repeated exposure to water.

It's not just one reviewer complaining. I use it merely as an example. I can't possibly cite all the complaints and you should know that. Peace.
[doublepost=1474036653][/doublepost]

clearly the people making these decisions had one thing on their mind, and thats lining up the pockets of shareholders at Apple with more money.

This doesnt surprise me one bit, its just another ploy by them to further constrain people into their ecosystem.

I am a huge fan of tech and gadgets but Apple have shot themselves in the foot and the reality is that their products are not cutting edge, advanced and for the most part far too expensive for what you get.

The Galaxy Note 7 moved to USB C, or USB 3.1 as a matter of progression. It is not a new standard and most new devices will have USB C in the coming year, they wont go chopping off 3.5" audio jacks or making up pretty lame excuses about it.

Don't buy iPhones then. But mark my words: all Android phone makers will follow suit in 2 years' time.
[doublepost=1474037071][/doublepost]

To be honest I don't know what all the fuss is about, I've been using wireless audio exclusively since 2012. Even my stereo receiver has AirPlay, and it was produced in 2011. AirPlay has been a standard since 2004. The fidelity of wireless audio is currently not on par with wired, but the convenience of having the freedom to move around without having to deal with being tethered to a device far outweighs this. Furthermore, the low bitrate of music steamed over the Internet makes audio fidelity a moot point, you would have to go back to compact discs and amplifiers with expensive digital to analog converters, discrete preamp and amplifier circuity, and digital audio connections for high fidelity audio.

Ditto. Just want to add that the removal of 3.5 doesn't mean people can't stay wired. People have the choice of using the adapter that comes with iPhone 7 or go for a DAC/Amplifier setup. I truly don't understand what the fuss is all about.
[doublepost=1474037481][/doublepost]

It remains to be seen whether they have modified the Lightning port to receive an analog signal direct from the iPhone

Could you elaborate? There are already ways to get audio signal directly from the Lightning port and ways to hook iPhone to a portable DAC/amplifier.

 

[zhenya]

Could you elaborate? There are already ways to get audio signal directly from the Lightning port and ways to hook iPhone to a portable DAC/amplifier.

The question is whether the adapter has an integrated dac and amp, which would be tiny and likely sub-par to the one integrated in the phone, or if they have performed some trickery previously not possible to output an analogue signal through the Lightning port which means we still get to use the historically very good dac and amp built into the phone.

 

[lysingur]

iPhones are behind the times with technology. Would you pay about $1000 for a Iphone 7 Plus. That looks pretty identical to the previous model and has a battery much smaller that what competitors have, doesnt have any fast charge, zero wireless charge capability, zero power saving modes, no ability to use a SD card...

Behind the times with technology? I guess the author of this article doesn't know what he's talking about then. And you have a Master degree in Electronics? Fast charge? You mean like the one Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 has? So not having wireless charge capability is behind the times? Maybe it's more like you don't like Apple having chosen to err on the side of prudence? And SD card? I think we're gradually getting a clearer picture as to what demographic misses the 3.5mm jack.

 

[TrueBlou]

Behind the times with technology? I guess the author of this article doesn't know what he's talking about then. And you have a Master degree in Electronics? Fast charge? You mean like the one Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 has? So not having wireless charge capability is behind the times? Maybe it's more like you don't like Apple having chosen to err on the side of prudence? And SD card? I think we're gradually getting a clearer picture as to what demographic misses the 3.5mm jack.

Now now, credit where credits due. Samsung have done well with fast charcoal, err charging in recent times. In daily use it's blisteringly fast

 

[lysingur]

The question is whether the adapter has an integrated dac and amp, which would be tiny and likely sub-par to the one integrated in the phone, or if they have performed some trickery previously not possible to output an analogue signal through the Lightning port which means we still get to use the historically very good dac and amp built into the phone.

I thought the whole point of a DAC/amplifier setup is so one bypasses the built-in audio output mechanism in the device.

 

[TrueBlou]

I thought the whole point of a DAC/amplifier setup is so one bypasses the built-in audio output mechanism in the device.

Precisely, Apple does a better than average job with their audio chips. But bypassing it by using the Lightning port offers up the possibility for far, far better processing. Foolish to suggest otherwise, that's the whole point of external processing.

 

[zhenya]

I thought the whole point of a DAC/amplifier setup is so one bypasses the built-in audio output mechanism in the device.

I don't understand? You have to have a DAC and amp somewhere. The phone obviously still has one. The question we are still waiting on is whether the 3.5mm adapter does as well.
[doublepost=1474038982][/doublepost]

Precisely, Apple does a better than average job with their audio chips. But bypassing it by using the Lightning port offers up the possibility for far, far better processing. Foolish to suggest otherwise, that's the whole point of external processing.

It also offers up the possibility of far, far worse processing, which is what most people will end up with when their sub-$50 headphones now need to include a DAC, amp, and if wireless, a battery and Bluetooth module.

 

[sracer]

Real courage would've been changing the iPhone connector to USB-C.

I'll generalize that...

"True courage is embracing open/universal standards"

Changing from an open standard to a proprietary one when you're the 800lb gorilla is not courageous, it's called "throwing your weight around".

 

[TrueBlou]

I don't understand? You have to have a DAC and amp somewhere. The phone obviously still has one. The question we are still waiting on is whether the 3.5mm adapter does as well.
[doublepost=1474038982][/doublepost]

It also offers up the possibility of far, far worse processing, which is what most people will end up with when their sub-$50 headphones now need to include a DAC, amp, and if wireless, a battery and Bluetooth module.

Well now, that's not really anything new is it. Do $20 analog headphones compare or compete favourably with $300 headphones. Well no, of course they don't, you get what you pay for, that's always been the case and it always will be.

 

[lysingur]

I don't understand? You have to have a DAC and amp somewhere. The phone obviously still has one. The question we are still waiting on is whether the 3.5mm adapter does as well.
[doublepost=1474038982][/doublepost]

If you listen to your music through the iPhone, a DAC/Amp setup would mean that you hook your DAC/Amp to the lightning port, not the 3.5mm jack so the 3.5mm adapter is irrelevant. This is so obvious that I believe I must've misunderstood you somewhere.

 

[zhenya]

Well now, that's not really anything new is it. Do $20 analog headphones compare or compete favourably with $300 headphones. Well no, of course they don't, you get what you pay for, that's always been the case and it always will be.

You miss the point. $20 analogue headphones connected to the really good dac and amp inside the iPhone will sound pretty decent. $20 lightning or Bluetooth headphones, that now also need to include all these other parts - where there is no budget for nor any interest in implementing a good solution - aren't going to be an improvement upon that. So it's far from a blanket statement that putting the processor and amp outboard will make things far better. In my opinion, outside of those $300 (and up) headphones, most people are going to get a downgrade.
[doublepost=1474039706][/doublepost]

If you listen to your music through the iPhone, a DAC/Amp setup would mean that you hook your DAC/Amp to the lightning port, not the 3.5mm jack so the 3.5mm adapter is irrelevant. This is so obvious that I believe I must've misunderstood you somewhere.

I think we have a simple misunderstanding. The speculation is that the tiny included 3.5mm adapter must have a dac and amp in it. The concern, from people who use their iPhones as reasonably high-end listening devices, is that we will be forced to either use something like you post (could be much smaller, but still expensive) in order to get the sound we used to get directly from the iPhone, or we have to listen to a tiny dac and amp in that $9 adapter.

 

[TrueBlou]

You miss the point. $20 analogue headphones connected to the really good dac and amp inside the iPhone will sound pretty decent. $20 lightning or Bluetooth headphones, that now also need to include all these other parts - where there is no budget for nor any interest in implementing a good solution - aren't going to be an improvement upon that. So it's far from a blanket statement that putting the processor and amp outboard will make things far better. In my opinion, outside of those $300 (and up) headphones, most people are going to get a downgrade.
[doublepost=1474039706][/doublepost]

I think we have a simple misunderstanding. The speculation is that the tiny included 3.5mm adapter must have a dac and amp in it. The concern, from people who use their iPhones as reasonably high-end listening devices, is that we will be forced to either use something like you post (could be much smaller, but still expensive) in order to get the sound we used to get directly from the iPhone, or we have to listen to a tiny dac and amp in that $9 adapter.

I'm in little doubt that there will be many different solutions to the issue. I would expect that if Apples included adapter isn't up to scratch, although that remains to be seen (or heard.)

Regardless, there would be nothing preventing a third party from producing a higher quality, low cost adapter of their own. The necessary chips involved aren't particularly expensive as it is, or do you think Apple shells out hundreds of $$ for their audio chipset, no of course not.

Is it going to be a bloody annoyance for some people during this transition phase, of course, transitions always are.
But when push comes to shove, it's happening if we like it or not. By this time next year we'll have moved on and start complaining that we don't like the removal of the home button, or some other nonsense. But in the meantime there's going to be plenty of options to ease people through the transition. Manufacturers aren't going to miss out on a golden egg situation like this, it's the perfect opportunity to make a pile of cash.

 

[chagla]

camera is nowhere near the headphone jack... as ifixit teardown shows.. .just a dummy plastic thingie

 

[TrueBlou]

I'll generalize that...

"True courage is embracing open/universal standards"

Changing from an open standard to a proprietary one when you're the 800lb gorilla is not courageous, it's called "throwing your weight around".

That it is indeed. Quite a bit of weight though, I wouldn't want to be the one who has to try and catch it
[doublepost=1474040912][/doublepost]

camera is nowhere near the headphone jack... as ifixit teardown shows.. .just a dummy plastic thingie

....And the larger Taptic component of course. I'm still not convinced they absolutely had to remove the analog port, but what's done is done I suppose.

 

[lysingur]

I think we have a simple misunderstanding. The speculation is that the tiny included 3.5mm adapter must have a dac and amp in it. The concern, from people who use their iPhones as reasonably high-end listening devices, is that we will be forced to either use something like you post (could be much smaller, but still expensive) in order to get the sound we used to get directly from the iPhone, or we have to listen to a tiny dac and amp in that $9 adapter.

I'm not sure what your definition of high-end is but most audiophiles don't hook their $1,000 plus (Audeze LCD series, Sennheiser 700 or 800, AKG 812, etc.) cans directly to the iPhone. For one thing, iPhone doesn't have enough power to adequately drive high-end headphones. So the removal of the 3.5mm actually impacts this demographic the least.

Really intensive listening sessions usually take place with a desktop or a laptop, not with an iPhone. The reasons being 1) some DAC/Amp don't come with Lightning cable, 2) people don't like to constantly switch output between iPhone (USB to Lightning) and desktop/laptop (USB Type-A to USB), 3) people don't like to shell out money just to buy a DAC/Amp for iPhone.