8 ms·

I'm a single-issue voter when it comes to cell phones - if it doesn't have a headphone jack, I won't be buying it.

bigredhdl 7y ago
I'm not single-issue, but its definitely at the top of my requirements list. Just bought a pixel 3a to replace my galaxy s8 that broke. The headphone jack was probably the single biggest influence on what I bought. That along with price, camera and iFixit repair score made the 3a hard to pass up.
goda90 7y ago
My single-issue is replaceable battery, but no new candidates are being fielded. I still have an LG V20. They're now on V50 I believe but haven't had replaceable batteries since the V20.
- magduf 7y ago
  Yep, me too, I have the same phone. I'm probably going to upgrade to a newer model in this range eventually because the cameras are fantastic, but I'm annoyed they axed the removable battery.
- staz 7y ago
  fair phone 3? it has a replaceable battery
  - goda90 7y ago
    I'm still on one of the few CDMA carriers out there, so that's not an option right now.
- zknz 7y ago
  Curious why you want this? Are you replacing the battery multiple times per day, rather than charging?
  - zeta0134 7y ago
    Not OP, but for me it's a longevity thing. With a user-replacable battery, about 2 years after purchase I can simply order a compatible battery, pop it in the phone in a one-minute procedure, and carry on for another 2+ years. The battery will wear out, there's just no getting around that, but today's phones are so powerful that the rest of it isn't necessarily obsolete by that point. Especially not on Android, and especially if you aren't using your phone to do heavy tasks like gaming and media constantly. It's not impossible to get by without one, but personally I don't have the soldering skills to replace a modern battery (parts are just a bit smaller than I trust myself with) so that's going to be a repair charge when my current phone's battery wears down in a year or so. No reason to replace the whole phone at that point, it still runs great and does everything I need it to do. Why waste the money?
  - goda90 7y ago
    I swap it out once a day, and charge the extra batteries in a charger. This way I can carry backup power that's relatively small compared to most general battery packs. Also I'm putting less strain on my USB-C port, which I've had fail on other phones. Lastly, some people advocate doing it this way because fast charging tends to create a lot of heat, and that heat might damage the phone.
wilsonnb3 7y ago
but, why? I sincerely don't understand why the headphone jack is the hill that so many people choose to die on. The $9 lightning to 3.5mm dongle has worked perfectly for me, as has my USB-c to 3.5mm dongle.
- magduf 7y ago
  Because people don't want to fuck around with a stupid dongle to have a feature that the phone should have had in the first place. Dongles get lost, and you also can't charge the phone and use the dongle at the same time. Maybe you don't think it's a big deal, but when the asking price of the device is $1k, any little annoyance like that is a legitimate deal-breaker: for that much money, it should have everything, instead of stripping features out to save money.
  - Kerrick 7y ago
    I have pretty much never charged my phone and used it at the same time. The cord is too short, and cords that are long enough are unwieldy. Plus, the cord sticks out right where my hand wants to hold the phone. Is this something people actually do in any situation except low-power emergencies?
    - shkkmo 7y ago
      Yes, many people do it all the time.
    - astine 7y ago
      I do this all the time, especially while driving. I plug an aux cord into my phone to listen to podcasts or audiobooks and plug the usb connection into power supply in my car. I wouldn't be able to do a long road trip if I had to switch between these.
      - bradlys 7y ago
        This is a decent amount of people but I think this is increasingly rare as more and more cars have Bluetooth. And it's not hard to update many older cars to newer headunits that have Bluetooth in them. (as I did for some of my cars) or just get a headunit that does power+transmission over USB too.
ryandrake 7y ago
I sometimes can’t believe that after 3 years people are still feeling hurt about this thing. I mean, go ahead and vote with your wallet but wow, what a hill to choose to die on! I’ve been through the obsolescence of floppy disks, cassette tapes, optical media/drives, DB9 serial ports, parallel printer ports, composite video, RCA audio jacks, VGA and countless other display output jacks, yet this silly 3.5mm headphone jack is the one that’s turned people so ridiculously mad! So unbelievable. Just based on iPhone sales it doesn’t look like many people actually care, but those who do, boy are they vocal about it. Why is this such a burning issue? Just use the adapter or invest in a decent pair of BT headphones and never worry about it again. It’s been probably 4 years since I’ve even used a device with a 3.5mm plug.
- JohnFen 7y ago
  > I’ve been through the obsolescence of[...] The difference is that those things had replacements available that were at least adequate.
  - stuff4ben 7y ago
    Your bluetooth experiences don't mimic the majority. You've just had some shitty headphones and/or Android phones. Never a problem on my iphones 4, 6, 8 Plus and I'm sure my soon to be 11 Pro with 10s of bluetooth enabled devices (cars, headphones, speakers, etc).
    - JohnFen 7y ago
      I never claimed that my experiences reflected the majority. However, my experience is shared by a lot of other people nonetheless. Also, I've tried a wide variety of different bluetooth earphones on a variety of different smartphones. If the problem is just that I haven't found the right combination, then I'd say that is an argument against bluetooth for this purpose. I shouldn't have to do a deep research dive just to find the combination that works. We're talking about listening to music here, not something tricky where a large research effort is justified.
    - kirstenbirgit 7y ago
JohnFen 7y ago
I'm triple-issue. If the phone doesn't have a headphone jack, doesn't have a user-replaceable battery, and doesn't have an SD card slot, then I'm not buying it.
- brokenmachine 7y ago
  I feel the same but it's getting harder and harder to fulfil those requirements. I want a really large screen as well. The Galaxy Note 10 has everything I want, except the damn headphone jack!!!
jpindar 7y ago
Same here. #nojacknobuy Wireless charging is also essential, because I've had too many worn out or damaged USB jacks.
phil248 7y ago
I used to be like that about physical keyboards on smartphones, but I gave up that battle years ago. Same with headphone jacks. All I want now is more than one USB input! That works as headphone jack anyway.
- metaphor 7y ago
  No one likes a quitter. ;-) They'll have to pry the QWERTY keypad and headphone jack[1] from my cold, dead hands...or stop Android security updates. [1] https://blackberrymobile.com/us/product/blackberry-key2/ https://blackberrymobile.com/us/product/blackberry-key2/
- mackrevinack 7y ago
  I used to be one of those keyboard fanatics until i realised swipe typing was much faster, so it was an actual improvement overall. with bluetooth it's not a great comparison since the only improvement is that you don't have to deal with annoying cables anymore but everything else is a step back: they cost more. you have to charge them. the battery will degrade over time to a point where they will be unuseable while headphones from 20 years ago will work just fine. even if the battery lasts you might run into compatability issues at some point in the future (different bt versions etc). they drain more battery from your phone. they have connection issues. they are awkward to pair to new devices. you cant share your music with someone sitting next to you.
DanTheManPR 7y ago
What I don't get is: it's not an either/or proposition, it's not like you have to choose between having wired and wireless headphones. I use my Airpods on my android phone, and they're pretty nice for when I'm doing housework and working around the shop. When I'm at work, I plug in my plantronics headset for conference calls, and my regular cans when I'm listening to music. Airpods don't have the stamina to keep up with a long day of work, nor the sound quality I want - they are a compromise device. I don't really care about this debate too much anymore, since it seems that a few good manufacturers are still clued in that this is an actual need that a lot of people have (I've been using a Moto G5, and now I'm using an S9). But it is odd to still pushing the claim that "everyone got over it" with regards to headphone jacks - I never got over it, and I continue to vote with my wallet.
- baddox 7y ago
  But your dichotomy isn't a hard and fast rule either. I use AirPods for everyday commuting and phone/video calls. I also do a lot of wilderness backpacking, and then I carry EarPods with a Lightning connector for when I want to listen to music before I sleep (because they're lighter, cheaper, simpler, probably more durable, and it's one less thing to charge). If you find it such a hassle to use compatible headphones are carry an adapter, of course there's nothing wrong with you choosing for phone purchases accordingly. But I think it's pretty clear that most people either never run into the hassle at all, or aren't bothered by the fact that they need to choose compatible headphones or carry an adapter.

I'm not single-issue, but its definitely at the top of my requirements list. Just bought a pixel 3a to replace my galaxy s8 that broke. The headphone jack was probably the single biggest influence on what I bought. That along with price, camera and iFixit repair score made the 3a hard to pass up.

goda90 7y ago

My single-issue is replaceable battery, but no new candidates are being fielded. I still have an LG V20. They're now on V50 I believe but haven't had replaceable batteries since the V20.

magduf 7y ago
Yep, me too, I have the same phone. I'm probably going to upgrade to a newer model in this range eventually because the cameras are fantastic, but I'm annoyed they axed the removable battery.
staz 7y ago
fair phone 3? it has a replaceable battery
- goda90 7y ago
  I'm still on one of the few CDMA carriers out there, so that's not an option right now.
zknz 7y ago
Curious why you want this? Are you replacing the battery multiple times per day, rather than charging?
- zeta0134 7y ago
  Not OP, but for me it's a longevity thing. With a user-replacable battery, about 2 years after purchase I can simply order a compatible battery, pop it in the phone in a one-minute procedure, and carry on for another 2+ years. The battery will wear out, there's just no getting around that, but today's phones are so powerful that the rest of it isn't necessarily obsolete by that point. Especially not on Android, and especially if you aren't using your phone to do heavy tasks like gaming and media constantly. It's not impossible to get by without one, but personally I don't have the soldering skills to replace a modern battery (parts are just a bit smaller than I trust myself with) so that's going to be a repair charge when my current phone's battery wears down in a year or so. No reason to replace the whole phone at that point, it still runs great and does everything I need it to do. Why waste the money?
- goda90 7y ago
  I swap it out once a day, and charge the extra batteries in a charger. This way I can carry backup power that's relatively small compared to most general battery packs. Also I'm putting less strain on my USB-C port, which I've had fail on other phones. Lastly, some people advocate doing it this way because fast charging tends to create a lot of heat, and that heat might damage the phone.

wilsonnb3 7y ago

but, why? I sincerely don't understand why the headphone jack is the hill that so many people choose to die on. The $9 lightning to 3.5mm dongle has worked perfectly for me, as has my USB-c to 3.5mm dongle.

magduf 7y ago
Because people don't want to fuck around with a stupid dongle to have a feature that the phone should have had in the first place. Dongles get lost, and you also can't charge the phone and use the dongle at the same time. Maybe you don't think it's a big deal, but when the asking price of the device is $1k, any little annoyance like that is a legitimate deal-breaker: for that much money, it should have everything, instead of stripping features out to save money.
- Kerrick 7y ago
  I have pretty much never charged my phone and used it at the same time. The cord is too short, and cords that are long enough are unwieldy. Plus, the cord sticks out right where my hand wants to hold the phone. Is this something people actually do in any situation except low-power emergencies?
  - shkkmo 7y ago
    Yes, many people do it all the time.
  - astine 7y ago
    I do this all the time, especially while driving. I plug an aux cord into my phone to listen to podcasts or audiobooks and plug the usb connection into power supply in my car. I wouldn't be able to do a long road trip if I had to switch between these.
    - bradlys 7y ago
      This is a decent amount of people but I think this is increasingly rare as more and more cars have Bluetooth. And it's not hard to update many older cars to newer headunits that have Bluetooth in them. (as I did for some of my cars) or just get a headunit that does power+transmission over USB too.

ryandrake 7y ago

I sometimes can’t believe that after 3 years people are still feeling hurt about this thing. I mean, go ahead and vote with your wallet but wow, what a hill to choose to die on! I’ve been through the obsolescence of floppy disks, cassette tapes, optical media/drives, DB9 serial ports, parallel printer ports, composite video, RCA audio jacks, VGA and countless other display output jacks, yet this silly 3.5mm headphone jack is the one that’s turned people so ridiculously mad! So unbelievable. Just based on iPhone sales it doesn’t look like many people actually care, but those who do, boy are they vocal about it. Why is this such a burning issue? Just use the adapter or invest in a decent pair of BT headphones and never worry about it again. It’s been probably 4 years since I’ve even used a device with a 3.5mm plug.

JohnFen 7y ago
> I’ve been through the obsolescence of[...] The difference is that those things had replacements available that were at least adequate.
- stuff4ben 7y ago
  Your bluetooth experiences don't mimic the majority. You've just had some shitty headphones and/or Android phones. Never a problem on my iphones 4, 6, 8 Plus and I'm sure my soon to be 11 Pro with 10s of bluetooth enabled devices (cars, headphones, speakers, etc).
  - JohnFen 7y ago
    I never claimed that my experiences reflected the majority. However, my experience is shared by a lot of other people nonetheless. Also, I've tried a wide variety of different bluetooth earphones on a variety of different smartphones. If the problem is just that I haven't found the right combination, then I'd say that is an argument against bluetooth for this purpose. I shouldn't have to do a deep research dive just to find the combination that works. We're talking about listening to music here, not something tricky where a large research effort is justified.
  - kirstenbirgit 7y ago

JohnFen 7y ago

I'm triple-issue. If the phone doesn't have a headphone jack, doesn't have a user-replaceable battery, and doesn't have an SD card slot, then I'm not buying it.

brokenmachine 7y ago
I feel the same but it's getting harder and harder to fulfil those requirements. I want a really large screen as well. The Galaxy Note 10 has everything I want, except the damn headphone jack!!!

jpindar 7y ago

Same here. #nojacknobuy Wireless charging is also essential, because I've had too many worn out or damaged USB jacks.

phil248 7y ago

I used to be like that about physical keyboards on smartphones, but I gave up that battle years ago. Same with headphone jacks. All I want now is more than one USB input! That works as headphone jack anyway.

metaphor 7y ago
No one likes a quitter. ;-) They'll have to pry the QWERTY keypad and headphone jack[1] from my cold, dead hands...or stop Android security updates. [1] https://blackberrymobile.com/us/product/blackberry-key2/ https://blackberrymobile.com/us/product/blackberry-key2/
mackrevinack 7y ago
I used to be one of those keyboard fanatics until i realised swipe typing was much faster, so it was an actual improvement overall. with bluetooth it's not a great comparison since the only improvement is that you don't have to deal with annoying cables anymore but everything else is a step back: they cost more. you have to charge them. the battery will degrade over time to a point where they will be unuseable while headphones from 20 years ago will work just fine. even if the battery lasts you might run into compatability issues at some point in the future (different bt versions etc). they drain more battery from your phone. they have connection issues. they are awkward to pair to new devices. you cant share your music with someone sitting next to you.

DanTheManPR 7y ago

What I don't get is: it's not an either/or proposition, it's not like you have to choose between having wired and wireless headphones. I use my Airpods on my android phone, and they're pretty nice for when I'm doing housework and working around the shop. When I'm at work, I plug in my plantronics headset for conference calls, and my regular cans when I'm listening to music. Airpods don't have the stamina to keep up with a long day of work, nor the sound quality I want - they are a compromise device. I don't really care about this debate too much anymore, since it seems that a few good manufacturers are still clued in that this is an actual need that a lot of people have (I've been using a Moto G5, and now I'm using an S9). But it is odd to still pushing the claim that "everyone got over it" with regards to headphone jacks - I never got over it, and I continue to vote with my wallet.

baddox 7y ago
But your dichotomy isn't a hard and fast rule either. I use AirPods for everyday commuting and phone/video calls. I also do a lot of wilderness backpacking, and then I carry EarPods with a Lightning connector for when I want to listen to music before I sleep (because they're lighter, cheaper, simpler, probably more durable, and it's one less thing to charge). If you find it such a hassle to use compatible headphones are carry an adapter, of course there's nothing wrong with you choosing for phone purchases accordingly. But I think it's pretty clear that most people either never run into the hassle at all, or aren't bothered by the fact that they need to choose compatible headphones or carry an adapter.