“Apple has filed a patent for a new, slimmer headphone jack,” Kirk McElhearn writes for Kirkville.
“It is very similar to the current 3.5 mm jack that we currently use to plug headphones into portable devices, with one exception: one side is shaved off,” McElhearn writes. “On the surface, the reason for this is obvious. It saves a bit of space, allowing Apple to make thinner iOS devices that still accept a standard headphone jack.”
McElhearn writes, “Once again, Apple is overly obsessed with thinness. I, and many iPhone users, would prefer more battery life over slimmer devices.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: We’ll take both: Unmatched thinness and unmatched battery life. Apple exists to push the envelope, not to complacently perpetuate the status quo.
Mophie…………….
You mean the ugly black thing you can put around your phone negating the design of the phone itself as well as adding an amazing amount of bulk and that also doesn’t even support the lighting connector so you have to use a micro USB plug while you’re phone is in it? If you mean that thing then yeah no thanks. Adding a battery case adds and insane amount of bulk compared to adding a larger battery inside the phone itself of equal capacity, and you don’t have to shroud your nicely designed phone in this ugly black box.
Colostomy bag……………………
Douchebag.
This doesn’t seem like an Apple/Jony Ive thing to do , but they could also have a headphone length opening on the outside of the phone to allow part of the jack to actually be slightly external to the phone itself so regular 3.5mm jacks would work.
I know, it’s stupid, and I’d rather that the width of a standard 3.5mm jack be a limiting factor.
The quest for thinner devices will also push development of a even thinner and more power dense battery.
Well it’s been 8 years (almost a decade) since the modern smartphone and phones getting progressively thinner year over year with still no thinner, power dense batteries. So… how about Apple operate in the real world with what’s available now until a breakthrough in battery is here.
Until someone develops a subatomic fusion reactor….
Or more efficient inductive charging. And better batteries.
I can understand the quest for thinness when you’re talking about a tiny iPod that clips onto your clothing, but when you’ve got a 5.5″ screen on an iPhone, I simply don’t understand why it’s advantageous for it to be super thin.
All the better to fit into my pocket and not be intrusive, my dear.
I don’t think they need to get much thinner with iPhones, but up until now it has been needed.
Again… a patent doesn’t mean that this slim jack will ever be deployed. This guy is like so many others (including me a times) that don’t fully understand the design issues. A larger battery comes with more than a bit more weight and thickness. It affects the temperature control and radio antenna effectiveness as well, as more knowledgeable people have pointed out. Beyond that, have you seen the reviews for the 6S? The 6S is about 2 grams heavier, and in many reviews it’s left at that, almost as a downside. The reality is that in a pocket or in your hand “Lighter” is generally better than heavier, and unless you are one of the relatively few that regularly run out of juice in a day’s use, the iPhone’s battery is not a limitation. Tomorrow, my 6S arrives and I will be in a better position to judge the current battery situation. Maybe I’ll eat my words.
McElhearn is obsessed with battery life. My iPhone 6Plus regularly has 50% charge left at the end of each day. I love the sleek thin profile of it. Love it.
Seems that Samsung are rather more obsessed with thinness at present.
Samsung is just obsessed with copying Apple.
If they make the fonts any thinner and lighter in color we soon won’t be able to ready anything. (The SF font in the El Capitan menu bar is getting to be unreadable.)
“read” not “ready”.
Well said MDN.
People who want Apple to fail usually try to moan them into doing the crappy thing. As this case well illustrates.
You would only complain about Apple pushing the thin boundary if you actually wanted them to fail. Moan all you like dummies. Battery life is not an issue and thinness will be perseued till it’s thin enough to be virtually undetectable.
Go Apple!!!
Uh, the crappy thing is doing what they did last time? Logic fail. It’s not crappy to keep using a 3.5″ jack, and it wasn’t crappy to use one in the first place. I’m not a fan of thin for thinness sake, so I don’t understand the obsession either. If anything, Apple should focus more on usability and less upon fashion.
Who uses an iPhone without a protective case ?
Thickness get only go so far, the ultimate thinness would be razor thin leaving us with bloody hands 🙂
The iPhones I loved best were the 4GS and 4. They had the right feeling in hand. Too light and the feeling is not as good.
Love my iPhone6, looks real sexy without the protective case, have to be careful not to have it slide out of my hand, so it always has the protective case. So the thinness means little for me in the end.
“Who uses an iPhone without a protective case ?”
I do. I’ve NEVER used a protective case, and I’ve had almost every model since the 3GS. Never needed to do so. And, I’ve never had to get one replaced due to damage.
Hmmm…
Apple is obsessed with thinness with regard to the iPhones.
OK, then under that premise please explain why the current iPhone 6s is *thicker* than the iPhone 6.
Nobody seems to remember the other audio jack patent.
I wish they’d release a bigger phone with a bigger battery.
Agreed that in the trade-off of utility and thinness (not just in the iPhone but the iMac as well) Apple seems to lean way too far on the thinness end. I think the iMac should have remained thick enough for an optical drive. And I think an extra hour or two of battery life would be worth a millimeter more in thickness.
There is the possibility Apple is simply trying to save money on raw materials. With as many iPhones as Apple makes, there may be a savings on aluminum. Is Apple actually leading the thinness charge or is Apple just pacing itself with the rest of the industry? I’d always prefer more battery life than having an ultra-thin smartphone but do most consumers? It’s possible the majority of consumers who buy iPhones actually like thin iPhones. Apple must have a reason for doing what it is doing. However, I wish Apple would spend more money on improving battery technology in terms of the battery itself. I’m sure it’s not easy to improve battery life and also be able to charge it faster. Apple is so heavily into mobile they need to get some advantage in battery technology.
The iPhone 6 particularly irked me. Much as I love it. I would personally have been fine with having it a little thicker (in turn getting rid of the camera bump) and a little heavier (perhaps as much heavier as they’ve not been afraid of making the 6s) in exchange for a battery that lasted well into a second day. At the moment, and more so with iOS 9, when I unplug at 8am I can easily get through to 7pm when I get home and have 20-30% left. If I go out after work then I need to charge it up during the day, to the extent that I have a small battery I carry with me (which admittedly I occasionally use to charge other bits and bobs). I don’t need a bigger battery all the time, but it would be nice to know that I could forget to charge it overnight and still get well into the next day before having to charge it, or be able to use it heavily all day and into the night.
In previous generations I think the size reductions were noticeable, but it’s not getting to the point that unless you jump to credit card type sizes (and do away with buttons and connectors) I’m really not going to be bothered. It is not a problem having it in my pocket (the increased screen dimensions are more of an issue in that regard), so I’d rather they keep it as is, get rid of the camera bump, and make it a true 24 hour device.
So am i… Love the thinner design form factor !
Apple won’t stop until their phones are as thin as credit cards.