4 ms·

I have an iPhone SE right now. I was going to upgrade to a Pixel at the next opportunity, but knowing now that the Pixel 2 has no jack, I won't. I will not buy

I have an iPhone SE right now. I was going to upgrade to a Pixel at the next opportunity, but knowing now that the Pixel 2 has no jack, I won't. I will not buy a phone that does not have a headphone jack. Here's the thing: I don't want to listen to music from my phone most of the time (except in my car, which already has Bluetooth). When I do, though, I want a high quality experience, so I use the same (relatively nice) headphones I use with my desktop most of the time. I cannot not justify buying a pair of expensive Bluetooth headphones just for the less-common case of wanting music from my phones; Bluetooth monitors are generally worse than non-Bluetooth counterparts in the same price range. Now, I could certainly get one of the adapters others have mentioned here - but I don't want to do that, because I don't want to send the message that I'm OK with paying for more redundant dongles so that phones can be 4% thinner. I won't buy any phone that has lacks a jack.

Eridrus 9y ago
USB-C will actually be better for audio quality since you can have a DAC in your headphones, rather than the phone, so I would expect high end phones to get on this trend first. I do wonder if Apple will stick to the Lightning standard while the rest of the industry (and even Apple's laptops) move to USB-C.
- ivraatiems 9y ago
  Even if they do, the device will still likely only have one USB-C port - so I would only be able to both listen to music and charge wirelessly, and we're back to square one, unless I get yet another overpriced dongle. It's still a non-starter. (Though if wireless charging becomes a big thing, maybe that'll change things.)
  - Eridrus 9y ago
    I don't see why Charging cables won't just start coming with an adapter that lets you plug in headphones. It's either stationary, so the extra bit doesn't really matter, or you're already carrying the cable + battery, and you probably don't care about the extra piece too much.
scarface74 9y ago
You're not "paying more for the adapter". It comes with the phone.
- ivraatiems 9y ago
  Until I lose it, or it breaks. Or I need a different adapter to support something else (which I will). Or I need more than one so I don't have to carry it with me everywhere. Or, most likely, until Apple decides they don't need to include it and start charging for it. Why should I pay more, or even the same, for something less convenient?
  - scarface74 9y ago
    You don't mind paying for a $700 phone but you have a problem paying for a second $9.99 adapter?
    - ivraatiems 9y ago
      The phone will work for as long as I don't break it, and I can find it any time. Adapters break, get lost, and are extra clutter to carry around. The point is not that I can't pay for it. It's that there's no good reason I should have to except some marketing goon thinking people want thin phones, and some execs wanting to sell expensive headphones. If I'm paying $700 for a phone, it had better damn well be the phone I want to have. A phone without a headphone jack is not a phone I want to have.
      - scarface74 9y ago
        How does removing the headphone jack help Apple sell more headphones? The iPhone can work with any Bluetooth headset, any wired headset with the included adapter or third party headset with a lightning end. Do you really think that people are going to run out and buy $150 AirPods just because of the lack of a headset? How is losing the adapter any different than losing or breaking the lightning cable? How is buying extra adapters any different than buying extra lightning cables. I remember when the iMac came out and people were complaining that Apple got rid of the floppy drive and the big uproar when Apple got rid of the optical drive years later.

Eridrus 9y ago

USB-C will actually be better for audio quality since you can have a DAC in your headphones, rather than the phone, so I would expect high end phones to get on this trend first. I do wonder if Apple will stick to the Lightning standard while the rest of the industry (and even Apple's laptops) move to USB-C.

ivraatiems 9y ago
Even if they do, the device will still likely only have one USB-C port - so I would only be able to both listen to music and charge wirelessly, and we're back to square one, unless I get yet another overpriced dongle. It's still a non-starter. (Though if wireless charging becomes a big thing, maybe that'll change things.)
- Eridrus 9y ago
  I don't see why Charging cables won't just start coming with an adapter that lets you plug in headphones. It's either stationary, so the extra bit doesn't really matter, or you're already carrying the cable + battery, and you probably don't care about the extra piece too much.

scarface74 9y ago

You're not "paying more for the adapter". It comes with the phone.

ivraatiems 9y ago
Until I lose it, or it breaks. Or I need a different adapter to support something else (which I will). Or I need more than one so I don't have to carry it with me everywhere. Or, most likely, until Apple decides they don't need to include it and start charging for it. Why should I pay more, or even the same, for something less convenient?
- scarface74 9y ago
  You don't mind paying for a $700 phone but you have a problem paying for a second $9.99 adapter?
  - ivraatiems 9y ago
    The phone will work for as long as I don't break it, and I can find it any time. Adapters break, get lost, and are extra clutter to carry around. The point is not that I can't pay for it. It's that there's no good reason I should have to except some marketing goon thinking people want thin phones, and some execs wanting to sell expensive headphones. If I'm paying $700 for a phone, it had better damn well be the phone I want to have. A phone without a headphone jack is not a phone I want to have.
    - scarface74 9y ago
      How does removing the headphone jack help Apple sell more headphones? The iPhone can work with any Bluetooth headset, any wired headset with the included adapter or third party headset with a lightning end. Do you really think that people are going to run out and buy $150 AirPods just because of the lack of a headset? How is losing the adapter any different than losing or breaking the lightning cable? How is buying extra adapters any different than buying extra lightning cables. I remember when the iMac came out and people were complaining that Apple got rid of the floppy drive and the big uproar when Apple got rid of the optical drive years later.