Alternatively, if your current phone doesn’t have a headphone jack, do you wish it did?
Why wouldn’t you prefer a headphone jack in your phone? It is yet another option for headphones that worst case you don’t use. The only reason it has been removed is because it saves companies a few cents on the cost to build the product.
They remove it to push people to use bluetooth, on iOS this means you wont disable it permanently and keep Apples tracking network alive. Not that nasty on Android but I suppose the same reasoning
I should have added, that for companies that sell Bluetooth headphones it also helps drive sales for those devices, particularly that is why Apple did it.
Yeah, Apple even bought Beats and immediately let the brand stagnate literally just so they wouldn’t have any competition in the marketing space. That kind of move basically confirms that other moves they did likely had similar rationale.
It’s possible that Apple is actually aiming towards their “portless phone” dream, and this death of the jack was just a step. But I’ll take it for the “we must employ the closest practice to profiteering as we can in the wireless audio space” aspect it appears to have.
I am curious when they want to buy Bose, as they are pretty much the most common headphones people wear around me
Eh… I’m not sure it has anything to do with AirTags and the find my network. They weren’t a thing until a couple of years after the 3.5mm jack was removed. It’s probably a benefit now, but I suspect most people don’t bother turning off Bluetooth anyway.
Interesting, I always keep Bluetooth off unless I’m using my BT headphones. Saves battery. I never took privacy into consideration
Disabling things like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi has had a negligible affect on battery life for years
For sure, but I don’t think the average non-technical person messes with that at all. Privacy is technically a concern with wifi and Bluetooth on because your phone basically acts as a beacon, but there are some mitigations in place to switch mac addresses and stuff fairly regularly.
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It’s naaaaaaaasty.
More importantly it removes the expectation to include earbuds with the phone as well as allows them to sell you Bluetooth ones
This is the real reason. The cost savings is negligible. But as soon as Apple got rid of the headphone jack, they introduced the AirPods.
Then Google did it, Samsung did it, and every other phone manufacturer followed suit. They all have their own wireless earbuds.
Fairphone did it too, of all the companies. Shows that the margins on these things are pretty big for Fairphone to do such a thing.
It’s why I’m getting a Zenfone to replace my ~6 year old phone now instead of a Fairphone. It even has a far better IP rating than the fairphone despite the “horrible” water intrusion supposedly caused by 3.5mm jacks.
Fairphones lying BS about why they removed the port convinced me to never buy one of their phones, even if I didn’t care about it.
Sony listened to their customers complaints and brought back the headphone jack for the 2nd generation Xperia 1.
Their phones continue to feature some of the best waterproofing (real world performance, and not just the rating they slap on it) in the entire industry.
That has never been a justifiable argument against the headphone jack, despite being an all-too-frequent one.
I really doubt this is the primary reason. I think it was multifaceted, but really the people in the business of designing phones were already using Bluetooth exclusively and felt that it was good enough. Some designs probably rushed it as a means to sell more premium headsets (Apple, Samsung), other saw it as removing an unnecessary redundant feature that was more prone to breakage and a waterproofing difficulty (Google). I think it really just came down to the personal preferences of the (affluent) people who were doing the designing, not necessarily a purposeful cash grab. It really was not great since wired headphones were way cheaper than their Bluetooth counterparts. Luckily Bluetooth has gotten much better and less expensive. I think there should be options for both.
That’s why I buy the $20 straight from the Chinese factory ones, because fuck 'em
Or they can include $20 wireless earbuds and say “Early preorder bonus earbuds, a $200 value if you ORDER NOW NOW NOW”
So many times I’ve forgotten my Bluetooth headphones or they’ve died and I always find some wired ones but can’t use them, or I can even go into a gas station and just buy some for $1.
Also my Sony headphones have an optional aux port to plug in, nice to use when they die because it doesn’t need battery, or if I want to plug into another device without having to pair everytime.
That sounds nifty, headphones that let you run BT and port as you choose? I didn’t know this existed, will keep in mind!
These are the one I have https://www.sony.com/ug/electronics/headband-headphones/wh-ch700n
I have very similar ones. Love em.
I had a pair of Sony headphones that could do the same thing!
Sadly, they were bad on both choices, BT’s battery didin’t last sh*t, and the wired input somehow reduced the volume (like, by a lot).
Why wouldn’t you prefer a headphone jack in your phone?
I’ve seen some people literally say that they don’t want a phone with a useless hole in it (in fact, it was said right here on Lemmy not long ago), whereas others claim that not having a headphone jack == bigger battery. Some, like Fairphone fanboys in particular, have gone as far as claiming that removing the headphone jack reduces e-waste…
Some, like Fairphone fanboys in particular, have gone as far as claiming that removing the headphone jack reduces e-waste…
That is a terrible argument for someone to make. There is no way to argue that removing the headphone jack does anything but create more e-waste. First from all the perfectly good wired headphones that are now forced to be replaced, secondly from the fact that Bluetooth headphones all have a shelf life due to the li-ion battery after which they become e-waste. Even with the Fairphone headphones the battery becomes e-waste that wouldn’t exist with wired headphones, cables do wear out too, but replacing that part will have a smaller energy footprint to replace than a battery.
All valid arguments
None of those are valid arguments, especially e-waste. It’s literally the opposite, fairphone is gaslighting.
Just another thing I don’t use that takes up space and can go wrong. Same reason i don’t need it to have a cassette deck or 8-track player.
Oh, cassettes were just designed to go wrong altogether 😆
But while wired headphones are indeed “analog devices” they do not have any mechanical parts moving, so really if you take good care of them they can last a lifetime. (Unlike BT headphones with batteries with approximate estimations of life). 🤒🤕
I never said anything about the headphones. I was referring to the port, which can get gunked up, damaged by water, or all sorts of other stuff. in my many many years of using Bluetooth headphones of all types, I’ve never had a single thing go wrong— and because I am a responsible adult, I’m capable of recharging my batteries.
The era of annoying snags painfully pulling out wired headphones from my ears is a headache I’m very glad to have left behind long ago.
I think the point is more that in seeking to satisfy people like you, they’ve made everyone who likes the more reliable tech SOL.
Personally I love my bt headphones, but I also liked having a wired set for backup in case my battery ran out. If I had a choice between a jack and no jack on an otherwise feature-identical phone I’d choose the jack
I’m capable of keeping my batteries charged and haven’t really run into that problem. I also appreciate having my phone be water resistant and having one last thing to go wrong like getting the port get gunked up from stuff in my pocket. 
As far as reliability goes, I suggest you try some better headphones, because I’ve never had a reliability problem either. 
Credit where it’s due, Bluetooth headphones have come a long way. I like the ones I have now. That said, removing the jack and micro SD slots was extremely anti consumer and they should come back.
My issue with BT isn’t quality it’s the cost and the battery. I do have a very nice pair that I enjoy on occasion but I have another set of wired headphones that I use sometimes 12 hours a day at work. BT headphones would quickly wind up in the garbage under those circumstances since batteries are wear items with limited charge cycles and once they go bad, they render the rest of the device useless.
I also don’t like having another device that needs charging or that’ll leave me ‘stranded’ because I wasn’t monitoring the charge close enough and it died.
I don’t think we should be forced to choose one or the other. Both have advantages and we should get a real choice as consumers. Currently I’m limited to low spec’ed phones if I want 3.5mm or high spec’ed with no 3.5mm (and no SD card and no replaceable battery). It’s a shitty choice all around.
Cheap knock off ear pods are getting a lot better. I can get a pair of 20 dollar ear pods that are actually better than name brand wireless ear buds I got a few years ago. When it comes to audio quality they’re better than the audio jack earbuds I have for my tablet and I don’t have ti worry about pulling the cable. Also usbc ear buds never seem to break no matter how much they’re pulled on or chewed on by the cat.
Yeah, I mostly use bluetooth with my phone but not always. Sometimes it’s not possible and you just need to use an aux cable or wired headset.
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This is my first phone without a headphone jack.
I miss it dearly.
I got one like that in 2018. Since then I had 2 phones, and I paid attention to make sure there is a headphone jack.
I feel you there. I had to get a new phone ASAP after breaking mine on vacation a few months ago. Didn’t even think to check the specs because I was in a pinch and completely forgot some android manufacturers started dropping them since my last phone purchase.
Some manufacturer dropped them? I think at this time you can count on the fingers the smartphone models that still have a headphone jack. I miss it so much
Pretty much all Android manufacturers… :(
Same. I had to choose between jack and sd card slot and storage space won out.
Same, I wouldn’t mind as much if Apple’s lightning-to-aux adapter wasn’t so flimsy and had better build quality, while at the same time preventing you from charging.
nope, actually never used it. i’ve had and will continue having Bluetooth headphones
Same here. I have a charger at home and work. If I travel, I bring a charger. I’m a responsible adult who knows when to charge Bluetooth headphones. I personally don’t have a need for a 3.5mm jack.
Buuuut, I’ll fight for fucking ever to keep them on phones. I should not be the only demographic on phone construction.
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How long do you travel? I have In Ears and Over Ears with BT and both have battery time over 20hours. And i can also charge them in their cases.
“VPN user voting is not allowed”
Lol.
Guess I don’t count
I mean it makes sense, I could just vote 200 times with my VPN
The headphone jack would be less painful of a loss if phone manufacturers started adding a second USB-C port on top of the device. That way you wouldn’t have to choose between charging your phone, listening to your game without lag and in privacy, or carry a dongle to try doing both things at the same time.
I hate that I now have to use wireless earbuds that I now have to worry about charging, or that go flat at the most inopertune times…
Having something plugged into the usb-c port all day sounds like a recipe for a broken port.
“Having something plugged into the usb-c port all day sounds like a recipe for a broken port.”
And having something plugged into a 1/8th inch jack all day isn’t?
The longer jack makes it less likely to break. It also spins freely so doesn’t suffer from rotation stress.
If my aux port breaks, that’s annoying, if my usb port breaks it’s e-waste.
Not as big a deal, the headphone jack is simple built better.
Actually on my palm it broke very quickly. It would often not switch audio over to the headphones and had to use an app to switch it manually.
Nah, once I made the switch to Bluetooth 8 years ago or something. I have never gone back.
Actually I did once between Bluetooth headsets and the first time the cords got tangled I was like oh right that’s why.
They’re fine if you’re just listening to music or watching videos but they’re totally unusable for gaming. The latency is just too high.
A jack is an absolute must have for me and if a phone doesn’t have one I’ll use a USB-C dongle.
Hm, that’s a good point, although I don’t play games on my phone so I haven’t experienced that.
I guess if you’re a heavy phone gamer and you have the worst bt, the latency could become a pain.
That makes me think of a guy pretending to surf on the roof of his car complaining about the traction. Like that’s not what cars are for, but the roof of a car undeniably has poor grip.
I use USB headphones for gaming on my pc.
Yes, because fuck having to charge and monitor another battery and the way they are trying to push higher price and disposable device.
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Does it connect in an instant? Sometimes when calls comes in I prefer dongle because it is instant
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oh you are using headphone, it will make me headache. i can only wear apple earpod kinda design
A good set will come with wireless charging as well. I can charge my headphones on the back of my phone if I get desperate. Even better, each earbud has its own battery, and the case has its own battery, so if I ever get the low battery warning on my case, I just charge it while still using my earbuds without any issues.
My last set of wireless headphones still work, and I used them for 10 years. I’ve never had a wired set last more than two, usually because the cable gets damaged.
Drag your preferred option to the top wtf is this UX…
Yes. It’s my way of voting with my wallet. I already have a few nice headphones and I’m not replacing them just because phone manufacturers are cheap and lazy.
Besides, I hate batteries. They always die at the most inconvenient time. And USB-c just for audio is way overkill.
I hate to say but the poll is biased because you asked two questions that are not the same.
I currently have a phone without a jack, so the first question is obviously no. But the second question, would I prefer it, is a yes.
So there’s a group of people who would prefer it, but it’s not a deal breaker for them in your data, but they answered a different question than the headline.
This poll kind of sucks for data gathering. You ask two different questions but there’s only one set of answers. Even the first question alone asks if we use and/or require, which should be separate.
To answer though: I use my headphone adapter whenever I travel but don’t have a regular headphone jack. A jack is not absolutely required for me to purchase a phone but the adapter is.
I exclusively use wired earbuds because I fucking hate bluetooth as a technology
I like the simplicity of wired headphones
