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Rumor w/pics: lighting EarPods - Break out your audio interface!
RIP 3.5mm?
After all that conversation about headphones!
Comments
Look like Chinese knockoff quality no? Does not look like my apple lightning connector
I hope not...
If iPhone 7 ships like that Apple better give us a 'split-cable' with at least 2 lightning ports (listen to music and charge at the same time, hello???) and a 3.5mm adaptor for free as bluetooth audio is still a big joke.
AppleInsider podcast downplayed it, because they are not musicians.
"Hey, phone comes with LightningBuds™, so who cares?!"
Wow I don't consider those pics credible. I mean, I can take a pic right now that'd look similar
The connector would have to be big like that, to house a D/A converter and headphone amp.
The rumored schematics suggest no jack:
"The drawings reiterate the point that Apple will remove the headphone jack, re-using the space as a second speaker grille." - New iPhone 7 schematics suggest similar dimensions, unlikely front changes on iPhone 7 Plus
I think it's likely Apple will go this route as they've been preparing for it since iOS 7 with their MFi program. I think for musicians it may not be such a big issue with the exception of having to use extra equipment which will sound better than listening straight through the headphone jack on current devices.
I can currently achieve the required connections for a standard headphone in a portable form via a small USB headphone DAC/Amp. The Apple USB 3 CCK is plugged into the device, a USB battery powered hub for power into the CCK, the headphone DAC/Amp connected to the powered USB hub, and a USB battery charging the iOS device connected to the CCK lightning power input. My setup is not very convenient for travel as I didn't acquire the components for this purpose.
It may definitely be worthwhile to see what compact integrated solutions the market comes up with for this sort of setup when the jackless iPhone comes out. Verify with people actually using such a product on iOS before purchase or better yet; take your phone, older iOS devices, and headphones to the store with you for a test.
The setup works without the batteries and USB hub if the headphone DAC/Amp is connected directly to the CCK and the CCK is receiving power from a lightning cable connected to the iPad wall power adapter for charging.
The iPad itself can't supply enough power to operate the headphone DAC/Amp so it's clear that non-powered solutions must use a much smaller amp and therefore much lower impedance headphones which is another compromise in terms of how lightning headphones without their own power source must be designed.
My particular headphone DAC/Amp has a digital coaxial out which I suspect maybe interfering with my ability to use it with any app that requires access to the device's mic which is far from ideal to say the least. I've been able to exploit a system glitch to fool iOS into routing the audio out to the USB DAC/Amp a few times. I'll be spending time to track the exploit down as I can hear a significant improvement in the sound even in my very low impedance headphones designed for use with devices like iPhones and iPads which produce relatively weak signals through their headphone jacks.
I can't imagine lightning headphones being a better performance value than some sort of USB headphone DAC/AMP solution especially if you've already got conventional headphones you're using with existing equipment.
I hope they keep the 3.5 because I have a couple of expensive headphones/ear buds. . If forced to change @InfoCheck brings up a good point about using a headphone amp. I listen to headphones on my iPad when sitting or laying down. Instead of buying expensive lightining headphones spend the money on a good headphone amp to plugin your existing headphones for a true audiophile experience.
If the 'iPhone 7' comes without 3.5" jack it's safer to get the 6S+ (unless Apple does a 'stupid-move' and removes all but the 16GB model from the line-up) with will most likely be dropped in price and see how the situation develops.
Heck Apple might even be forced to 'make a Samsung' regarding the 3.5" jack...
In Samsungs case they removed the microSD card-slot and then had to crawl back due to customer demand and put it back in the next years model. Same with water-resistance, the Galaxy S5 was 'water resistant' and had 'microSD' then came the Galaxy 6 that had no microSD ad was note 'water resistant' then came Galaxy S7 and it has both microSD and is 'water resistant'. And both still have the 3.5mm jack
Maybe they’ll make a headphone-resistant model.
personally i love spending money on utility-type purchases instead of fun-and-artful-type purchases. lets get this economy moving, yea!
I think @Samu has a good point that Apple may backtrack due to public pressure or they might go for this new headphone jack design with an adapter.
I just recently purchased another lightning 'Gadget' (a 64GB Sandisk iExpand 2 USB-Memory for backups etc).
Now how am I supposed to use the Lightning-Headphones at the same time?
Sure optional lightning headphones with audiophile DAC would be a cool way to boost the quality a bit but since we're still taking about AAC compressed Audio it's weird and until Apple starts to push out lossless AAC it makes no sense to remove the 3.5mm jack or make a 'stupid' adapter just to make the device a bit thinner, make it thicker and put a higher-capacity battery in it...
Now if the Lightning-Port was also USB3.1 class-compliant for mass-storage, audio-device etc. the market would be already flooded with third-party accessories, splitters and hubs etc.
And I know it's rant-time but please why do we need to use 'Lightning USB-Memory' with custom apps when the Lightning to USB-Adapter and Lightning->SD can already do all this an more if it wasn't for silly iOS restrictions...
(iFiles is the app I really miss the most from the Jailbreak times, complete mass-storage support with full access to SD and Memory sticks using standard Apple accessories).
I think they'll drop the jack and not look back. Oh and sell millions of 3.5 to lightning converters
I remember starting a thread on this months ago, and I'm sure it had been rumored here long before that:
https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/11121/rumor-iphone-7-may-ditch-headphone-jack#latest
It's one of those rumors that is terrifying because it seems to line up with some of the worst things we all know Apple is prone to do. (That goes along with the laundry list of great things Apple does, which is why we are all here in the first place). It's a chance to sell a new proprietary accessory that we don't really need, but allows them to charge money to allow people to use their iDevice the way they should have been able to in the first place.
Headphones and audio interfacing are the one area where we still have some universality. Think about what Sony and different brands tried to do by making their own SD card...at least with headphones, you have one sized jack and it works for all kinds of 1st party and 3rd party products. I don't like the Apple earbuds - they don't even stay in my (giant) ears! Absolutely hate the idea of having to think of which of my headphones have a lighting connection versus a 3.5mm plug. Yes, they'll make a $40 adapter that offers the 3.5mm jack on a dongle, but who wants to deal with that to listen to a podcast or music?! And if you need an accessory to be able to charge and listen to music at the same time - that's just dumb.
Still not believing they will actually do this, but I can't rule it out, either.
And I think the headphones with integrated DAC will drain the iOS devices battery quite fast...
Just saw a 'review' of Lightning cans where the 3.5mm jack was not able to supply enough juice to do to cans justice but the DAC in the cable had an amp the could drive them thus drains the battery...
And not being able to charge at the same time, well, DOH! Buy an extra iPhone and sync the content
So far the iPhone is not my main music-making device. I do that on the Air 2 and MacBook Air...
But yeah, I'd still like to attach a Midi-Controller like iRig Keys or iRig Pads even to an iPhone and listen to the output at the same time thru the headphones...
I think Apple puts a lot of stock in creating new markets via introducing new technology to replace or do things differently than we have in the past. If the headphone jack does go away that means all input/output to the devices will be digital. They may tout them as not only the world's thinnest but the world's first all digital iPhones.
It shouldn't be too hard for them to improve the sound quality of the lightning headphones that come with the phone versus the current earbuds. They could also be grooming people to adopt the idea of being totally wireless when using devices as they replace traditional wired headphones with wireless Bluetooth ones. There will be people stuck in wired world with inferior analog connections tethered to wires and progressives who demand better sound without wire leashes.
As others have eluded to, Apple likes to leverage their proprietary products via their accessories to encourage people to invest in and stick to an all Apple environment. All digital devices can facilitate this wheras there's really no way to create Apple approved analog devices or accessories. With digital devices there can be advantages to using them directly linked to using them with iOS that won't be available in other non-MFi products.
I suspect Apple's long term goal is to expand people's desire to go all in with Apple as they offer a wider range of products linked to iOS and MacOS as more people will abandon the use of mixed solutions in favor of Apple ones. Manufacturers of products will turn to Apple for MFi certification of their products. Yes, in the future iMicrowave will respond via thought commands to cook and deliver popcorn to you via iDrone all from the comfort of your iLazyBoy recliner adjusted to your body via sensors accessed with your iAm (the universal implantable, neural control system the iPhone evolves into).
Soon we'll all need a mobile 'iNuclear-Plant' to charge all the iF*ckdevices and implant a iSolar-panel to our fore-head to charge the iAm-implant in case the iNuclear-Plant fails to charge it properly...
Sometimes i wish that iOS was fully open-source so we could choose the hardware to run it on...
I think Apple has made some efforts to use less energy and to recycle their aged products; there's certainly room for significant improvement. iDevices use less energy than a laptop performing many of the same tasks. I think Apple is willing to work with and is dependent upon open source technologies; however, giving up on their proprietary hardware/software approach seems like a no go for Apple as I see it.
The extra power musicians needed to accommodate our current equipment and work flows is more of a side effect of the rapid technology development for iOS devices.
Separating out digital from analog functions in iOS environments is a more modular approach so would theoretically result in more efficient systems. However the modular efficiency savings can also be quickly overtaken by the consumable and short functional life of iOS devices relative to traditional consumer technologies. iOS will also be increasingly linked to other consumer products resulting in a shorter functional life for them or perhaps just the opposite where the base product is built to last longer and just the control/firmware elements of the product experience rapid turnover.
Apple may seek to transcend traditional consumer models by focusing on becoming involved in more aspects of people's lives with their products and could conceivably result in more durable goods which are revitalized with software type approaches. These products may have a higher initial cost or overall payments but they're designed to increase their value and usefulness along with developments in the iOS environment. It'd be a way of maximizing physical resources by extending their ability to remain cutting edge products versus inferior, cheap, throw away products. It would also build upon Apple's history and brand of creating premium integrated hardware/software solutions.
Apple has shown that even if their products don't have the most powerful processors or hardware, that tight consistent hardware/software integration along with the brand loyalty arising from that can give them a competive edge primarily because they're developing their own market where they're perceived as offering a user experience not available elsewhere.
I think there are enough people with an interest in both more sustainable resource usage and that are also attracted to a better life through technology; that given Apple's resources, they'll be able to capture a significant proportion of this emerging market.
In some aspects I'm a 'bad customer' to Apple since I've not fallen for the "Must always get latest and greatest model of all Apple Gadgets" 'Zombification' as I'm still using older hardware (iPhone 5 and iPad Air 2) and not replacing them on yearly basis with up-to-date models because I simply don't see or have the 'need'.
Even with a removed 3'5mm port I suppose there will be at least a few options available to cover the loss...
What about an update version of the CCK3 but dub it 'Lightning Port Hub' with 'Lightning Charge', 'Lightning Applience'(Enable usage of 'Lightning Gadgets'), USB2/3.1 port(s) and integrated AD/DA with 3.5mm In/out for an extra $49.99 or so... And for the love of #!?# Add mass-storage support to iOS for backups and file-exchange...
You are the most funniest person ever.
Ditching a connection compatible with 99% of existing headphones for a new standard forcing the userbase to buy new, can hardly be described as "sustainable ressource usage".
Since I'm not using my iPhone only for music I'm also interested in other aspects like improved Camera & Batterylife as Photography is one of my other hobbies...
Imagine if the built-in Mic of the iPhone would be in the same league as say the 'iRig Mic Field'?
That alone would 'buy me over' to get the new iPhone 7+ or what ever it will be called because I would be able to record quite high-quality ambient audio and monitor thru a lightning headset
This assumes a shorter term perspective, the longer term perspective is quite a different matter. With a digital signal, the design of the headphones becomes independent from the design of how the headphones process sound currently. With a custom DAC and amp optimized for a particular headphone, the headphone's performance will be optimized and won't need to rely upon changes in the iOS device so long as it is being sent a digital signal it can process. In current iOS devices, the small amp and poor quality of the DAC due to squeezing them into the small space allocated to them inside the phone makes them far from optimal and therefore less efficient. By not providing an easy way to connect traditional headphones and the inability to charge your phone while using lightning headphones which will either suck down the battery more rapidly as has been reported or will require an independent power source of their own. These practical issues will lead people to use wireless headphones. Since these headphones must also be charged and more will be sold, there will be increasingly more competition to develop more efficient headphone designs and the power for them to reduce their size and increase their efficiency. Custom fit smart in ear headphones will be the option of choice for more and more users rather than clunky, low quality, generic mass produced and wasteful ones. iOS devices will no longer be focused on powering other devices but rather on supplying them with digital data which requires less energy and materials. Over time, devices which optimize how they provide output to our other senses will also be developed based upon the successful transformation of sound from inefficient and wasteful generic analog setups to efficient custom setups tailored to the needs of the user rather than the needs of the device. We will no longer need screens for example as there will be glasses or contacts that will perform these functions. This will lead to products requiring fewer resources, being more efficient, and an ability to focus on other aspects of efficient resource use such as recycling more efficiently. Eventually integrated technologies capable of interfacing and augmenting our neural networks will be developed further reducing the need for wasteful DAC methods by working with our biology rather than constraining our biology to the economics of mass produced machines.
Yes in the immediate future consumers will face technological displacement and discontent, but this is not the first time nor the last time Apple has been able to develop our future before we were able to envision it. Future generations may not thank us but at least they'll have a better chance of survival if other companies and organizations follow Apple's lead by seeking to anticipate our needs rather than catering to our destructive habits because they're too afraid of rocking the boat of the comfortably numb public locked into routine and resentful of change. Trust Apple, trust life, thin is in, and we can all stop jacking around-- truly words to live by.
If it comes with a selector for the type of line noise when charging (buzz, humm, hiss, etc.) I'm in.
I once even used mine to make a phone call.
Video. No 3.5mm jack:
Well, if they do it then I won't be upgrading my devices for a long time. Apple won't care what I do though. For most people they wouldn't notice a difference if they're not using their device to produce something, just consuming.
As it is, with El Crapitan making my mac mini slower than my netbook (even after going to 16gb of ram), I'm losing faith in Apple pretty fast. I got into apple a few years ago to have stuff "that just works." That's becoming less true every day. The engineer that I worked with all week was using his white Macbook, as was the drummer, both running snow Leopard, and they were quite fast. I guess it's time to fix the power button on my Macbook.
Great post but I think it's worth noting that Apple has never replaced a technology as long established as the analog headphone jack. Shit 'just works' already. What's to solve for?
The only thing we can do when or if it turns out that the 3.5mm is in deed gone is to either boycott the product or see what clever workarounds pop up...
I'm personally not yet owner of iRig Field Mic but noticed it has a 3.5mm jack for monitoring...
Does this monitor jack also act as a 'regular' headphone output for apps that produce sound?
(Can't find anything about this on the internet, or I'm really bad at Googling...).
I think this one is a bit different to the floppy disc/CD ROM drive moves in the past. I think that it will really hurt iPhone sales. Glad I recently got a 6S.