“Apple VP Greg Joswiak is grinning as he holds up what is easily the smallest iPhone adapter I have ever seen,” John Paczkowski reports for BuzzFeed News. “iPod white and about the length of a matchstick, it’s designed to connect audio headphones with an industry standard 3.5-millimeter analog plug to the Lightning port on Apple’s newest iPhone, which no longer bears the industry standard jack they require to work.”
“‘This time, we’re putting an adapter in every box,’ Joswiak quips, a wry nod to the backlash evoked in 2012 the last time Apple killed a widely used iPhone port — a move that rendered thousands of peripherals designed to interact with it incompatible without a $29 adapter, and pissed off legions of people in the process,” Paczkowski reports. “Apple is arguing that the future of audio is wireless, that the world’s current assumptions about mobile audio are not only antiquated, but worthy of immediate abandonment.”
“But right now that future comes with a price: You’ve got to leave behind the perfectly good headphones you own and you’ve got to purchase the new wireless ones as an iPhone accessory,” Paczkowski reports. “‘The audio connector is more than 100 years old,’ Joswiak says. ‘It had its last big innovation about 50 years ago. You know what that was? They made it smaller. It hasn’t been touched since then. It’s a dinosaur. It’s time to move on.'”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: It’s over. It’s done. You even got a free adapter, so quit yer bitchin’. Stick it on the end of your wired headphones and you’re good to go. It’s past time to move on. Let’s get the damn anachronism off iPads, iPods and Macs, too!
Death is very likely the single best invention of life. It’s life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. — Steve Jobs
SEE ALSO:
Apple kills the headphone jack – September 7, 2016
Apple reinvents the wireless headphone with AirPods – September 7, 2016
Apple’s iPhone reveal: Death of antiquated 3.5mm headphone jack heightens anticipation – September 7, 2016
The adapter is not free… you’re paying for it as part of everything that comes in the box.
Seems to be free since the prices for the iPhone have stayed the same.
Comparable and competitive wireless (i.e. Bluetooth) earbud type headphones cost $300 (Bragi and others) and as such, Apple’s $159 AirPods are very competitively priced.
As for your usual nonsense Cook-Hate – no one is paying any attention to you. At all.
The iPhone comes with an adapter so you can go on using your old earbuds. This is an optional item, no purchase required. We know, you want them bad troll but prefer them to be free being a natural cheapskate. You are in the wrong ecosystem. Head on over to the explosive ShamPC-verse and they’ll take “good care” of you.
You are confused. The movie may have been Air Bud (sucked, I know…), but these are called AirPods.
And they seem to be much cheaper than the competition.
. . . and you don’t need to buy one if you don’t want one, it’s just an option. The iPhone comes with lightning EarPods and an adaptor.
I definitely would take $5 off of the iPhone NOT to have it.
The proof perfect that no matter what you do there will be someone whining about it.
And there is no way to charge and listen to music anymore, something many people do everyday — unless you switch to wireless headphones, a completely unnecessary thing.
Apple jumped the shark.
It’s their spesheeallity, being the leader. And the world follows suit and leaves the inevitable grumblers behind. When WOULD a good time have been for you? After you passed on?
Oh it’s you again. The same troll who goes after unimportant grammatical issues in his straw defense. I thought you had been unceremoniously grabbed by the scruff of your worthless neck and drop-kicked out of here troll? You are the poster child of those who should NEVER post being 10 years old in writing and maturity level.
How many? That’s the question they will have considered. The longer battery life you get in return might make some of the charging while listening less important anyway. And for some of us (again, how many?) who use wireless, it’s a pure gain.
And those that use rechargeable headphones, they will now be able to take power from the phone. Can’t charge at the same time, but only one thing to charge.
There are pros and cons. Some will suffer (kind of, although you wouldn’t think it) and some will be better off. As always, with every decision they ever make.
I just don’t get why some people think they are the centre of everything and Apple is obliged to support them regardless of others. There are advantages to some people and they are as entitled as anyone else.
Apple must make what they want to make, to strike the balance they choose. It is then up to you and me to make our choices from there. If you wish to buy another brand go ahead. But when they dump the jack, not to mention changing the USB socket yet again, you’ll be back in the same old boat.
No headphone jack? No problem: How to listen to music while you sync and charge your new iPhone 7/Plus
You need some cheeeeeez for your whine? Get over it and move on.
Lead, follow, or, get out of the way.
The old iPhone 6’s are still available and are perfectly functional phones (with your beloved antiquated 3.5mm audio jack) JACK!
If you don’t like it,? GTFO. Go get an Android phone. You have that CHOICE. True or False? a: True.
How old are you anyway? You sound like all the other lazy entitlement Millennials who have no other skills than “SOCIAL SELFIE STROKING”.
Not true. I already own an Apple charging stand and they have headphone jacks on them. Not that I’ve ever used the jack because I have Bluetooth headphones. I’m not particularly into dinosaur technology so, I’ve been cordless. It’s SO much easier at the gym. And I can listen to music from AppleWatch and leave my phone in the vehicle.
I can think of three ways to charge and listen to music at the same time. You’re not trying hard enough.
Something very few people do everyday.
While very anecdotal, it is likely indicative: around me (on my office floor), there are about 50 iPhone users (and a few Android). Not one of them charges with headphones plugged in (even though they could, if they wanted). And this is an office where most people spend most of their day at their desk. In fact, almost nobody bothers to charge the phone at their desk — the battery life is just good enough for a whole day after the overnight charge at home.
Your mileage may vary.
me is a little boy – no need to pay any attention
“And there is no way to charge and listen to music anymore, something many people do everyday.”
This is a ridiculous statement, I have never in my life listened with headphones while charging my iPhone, and I don’t know anyone who does.
The hyperbole around this change is pretty awful, it’s a non-issue: I’ve been wireless for several years now and getting rid of the headphone jack is long overdue. People who still want to be tethered can do so with the adapter, it’s not a problem, folks, everybody can still be happy.
Ever been on a 12 h flight? Would actually be nice to be able to charge phone while listening to music with Bose noise cancelling earbuds.
For twelve hours? Jeez. Take a nap while your phone charges.
Yes. Even with the (rather recent) introduction of charging USB ports in economy, I still don’t find it enough of a motivation to exclusively use my phone for entertainment for the entire duration of the flight. I always end up watching a few movies and a TV show or two on the In-flight entertainment system during such long flights. I plug my headphones in my phone only if I decide to take a nap and want the quiet music to mask the cabin noise (and the chronic tinitus…). More often than not, though, I don’t bother even with that; I just switch to the IFE music channel and pick my genre (classical or jazz).
I can see this as a potential issue to those who would use their phone for work (e-mails, documents, presentations), and listen to music at the same time, while charging. In all fairness, I can’t think of any real person who would do that, and my guess is there are extremely few such people.
He is incorrect.
Anyone else feel you look like a knob wearing those new AirPods?
Before the iPhone 4, I didn’t realise that everybody but me held their iPhone in that particular way which
reduces the aerial efficiency.
Before the iPhone 6, I didn’t realise that everybody but me keeps their iPhone in the pocket of their jeans.
Now I’ve just discovered that I’m the only person on the planet who doesn’t listen to music on earbuds while charging my iPhone.
I’m beginning to wonder if I’m some sort of freak.
Ha!
I never understood the whole “You’re holding it wrong” thing either.
I don’t often wear jeans, but mine is normally in my pocket. My *front* pocket. The hip pocket is just stupid. (There, I said it. Quit doing it, and you’ll quit breaking it, people.)
Listening and charging? Like when I’m laying in bed at night? Sure, I’ve done it. Not often enough to be concerned about it, but I’ve done it.
Welcome to the freak club! 🙂
Seriously, has anyone actually listened to their iPhone over headphones while it is charging? Even if you are a chair exerciser, is it really something that is even a thing? Most people listen over a blue tooth speaker if charging, because who wants to be tethered to a wall plug while listening to their portable device?
“You even got a free adapter, so quit yer bitchin’” – this is MDN’s and Apple’s opinion of customer feedback. Stop bitching. I voting with my dollars for companies who listen to customers. -signed a apple fan who is done with this BS. I will join Mac Pro fans and realize this company is treading down the wrong path.
So many whiners and crybabies. It’s a wonder how anything progresses if people are so scared of leaving old stuff behind. It’s difficult to remember the number of computer port changes I’ve seen over the last 40 years. There were quite a few if I recall. Nothing lasts forever and most people forget quickly. It’s hard to imagine most consumers crying over a freaking missing hole on some device.
I honestly believe over the next couple of years, the old headphone jack will disappear from all high-end smartphones. Plenty of wired headphones will surely come with USB-C connectors. Legacy headphones? No freaking way.
More spin from Apple. When you own a headphone company and create a niche, of course you denigrate the old product to promote your own new one.
Get back to me when real headphone companies like Stax, Grado or Sennheiser sell out to the Lightning connector.
Actually, Sennheiser has already announced that they’ll buy into the lightning move. The others are also “exploring their options”. Phillips already has 24-bit Lightning headphones.
As for “denigrating the old product to promote new one”, apparently, most of the presentation focused on the Apple-branded AirPods, and not on Beats. When they did mention Beats, they actually said that Apple’s new W1 wireless chip will also be used in Beats products.
Currently, there are thousands of third-party Bluetooth stereo headphones, starting from $15. Neither Apple nor Beats the only players in town. Vast majority of people who replace the bundled EarPods with something else buy a third-party brand. Apple is getting a very, very small piece of that pie, so greed is definitely NOT among the reasons for removal of the 3.5mm connector.
Just the facts for a moment …
The thunderbolt port is vulnerable to lint and other debris that compromise the integrity of the connection due to the very small contact points. There is no disagreement the connector offers advanced functionality. There is also no disagreement that it fails with frequency.
Every Apple brand 30 pin iDevice cable in use by my entire family still functions and the cable wraps never frayed. Every Apple brand thunderbolt iDevice cable in use by my entire family has failed and the cable wraps on several frayed.
Just facts.
My facts are completely the opposite. Every 30-pin wire I had before had a wire strain problem near the connector and had to be replaced, some multiple times. It didn’t help when my kids wrapped the wire tightly around their iPods…
Since the lightning cable, I only replaced one of them for wire damage, and it was on the USB side of the wire. And we have had those for longer than the old 30-pin cables.
Apparently, different people have different facts.
The only fact that matters is that there is no THUNDERBOLT connector on iPhones.