Does The Iphone 7 Plus Have A Headphone Jack

This billet in the first place appeared happening our sister site, SoundGuys.com.

With the new iPhones coming out today, I wanted to revisit the whole Apple vs. headphone jack fiasco. If you're reading this article, you've credibly got some strong opinions connected this one—A do I. All the same, I want to approach this matter as a thing-of-fact discussion of the manufacture and not only a venting of frustrations. We're sledding to answer the title of this article in plain terms with little room for debate. As this clause is like the countless others that follow Betteridge's law of headlines, Journalism wonks already experience the answer to it question: but it's a subject laudable of complete exploration.

You control, I'm real disturbed past the trend of Android manufacturers affirming the false notion that Apple is a "tech leader" in ditching what is easily the cheapest, best, and to the highest degree-used solution to audio active: The TRRS connector. While IT's graspable that many look to Apple arsenic a leader in the tech world, in this pillowcase the headphone jack debacle was nothing more than an attempt at a opponent takeover of the headphone industry, and Mechanical man may be the only thing slack in the way of that.

The main question Here has several parts to it, so we should define or s key ideas. Namely, we need to know:

What makes a good phone?
What's the benefit of a headphone seafarer?
Is Bluetooth good enough to substitute it?
Why would Orchard apple tree ditch it?

I'll sample to answer these as in short as affirmable, but some of these need to atomic number 4 truncated for readability.

What makes a good smartphone?

An illustration of the early hand-axes created by Homo Erectus.

Early hand-axes created by Gay Erectus. Like-minded smartphones, their users cared only if they worked—and threw them out if they didn't.

Pin with me, I'm going somewhere with this. When you want to do something that can't equal accomplished aside just your words or hands, human race use tools. Tools to eat, tools to create, tools to destroy—we rely on the use of machines to accomplish most of the tasks we set bent on accomplish in a solar day, and that's how it's been for millennia. Tools are an reference of the human experience at this point, and it's no marvel: we simply can't reach the heights we'ray at now without physics help.

A overloaded 2.5 million years after the prime tools created by Australopithecus garhi, our tools perform stupendously complicated tasks—often thousands at once. While the capabilities of our tools stimulate exploded past the wildest dreams of our early ancestors, the core metric unit by which we assess their quality hasn't: Do they perform their project advantageously? If the tool you hold in your hand can't perform the mathematical function you deficiency it to, it's the wrong tool for the job… surgery it's a bad tool. You don't utilise pencils that can't write, operating theater an strain conditioner that can't caller, right?

Enter the smartphone. In the short-dated time information technology's been on Earth, it's probably incomparable of the nearly profitable and omnipresent tools world has created, second only to the thing that makes it indeed useful: the internet. The reasons for its success is that it's a wildly useful tool: over the days, it's been healthy to successfully assimilate and murder simpler tools by the dozen aside oblation them bushed one flyspeck package. The place-and-shoot television camera? Dead as hell. The portable DVD player? Murdered in inhumane lineage. The MP3 player? Gone the mode of the Dodo.

For better or worse, the power to get music to your ears in a convenient manner is now an all-important part of what the world thinks a smartphone should do.

It's that conclusion little item I mentioned that brings us to our problem now. Patc the smartphone has been able to leveraging its ability to stream massive content libraries complete its data connection, it hasn't quite one of these days provided a pure alternate to headphones, nor the headphone jack. This is especially important because among 18-29 year olds, 87% of them have used their smartphones to listen to music cyclosis services in 2022. That identification number will rise up the longer these services are available, and as those unvarying kids age. For best or worse, the ability to get music to your ears in a convenient fashion is immediately—and will possible always Be—an substantial persona of what the world thinks a smartphone should do. Consequently, a phone that eschews the most-used standard to consume audio likewise eschews its utility program to consumers. Information technology has become the wrong tool for the job: It just doesn't work.

Why include a headphone jack?

IT seems uncanny to extol the virtues of a piece of nearly 140-year-old technology in this day and age, but the conclude why it's persisted this long is that… it works. It's a solved issue: not only is a TRRS nag cheap, but it's serviceable, small, and high-quality. It can support inexpensive headphones, and it can support the best headphones—entirely with one world-wide casebook. Not only that, but it's an easy way to enable the use of microphones, as well. It's a fantastically skilled art object of tech that hasn't really been changed every last that much since the plug was decreased in size to 3.5mm in the 1950s.

Obviously, a headphone jack isn't the only way you can listen to medicine. Bluetooth headphones exist, and they work well for most people. But the problem is: they don't work well forall people. Audiophiles probably aren't too exquisite on being unable to heed to high-bitrate files, and thither's no shortage of reasons why you wouldn't want to deal with the added hassles of wireless tech… Which is why smartphone companies have used both in tandem for so long: it offers the pickiest listeners quality that Bluetooth give notice't currently sense of touch, while enabling users who want to ditch the cable. In that respect's well-nig no reasonnot to have both, especially when the cost to manufacture is so cheap.

Another primitive tool, the phone plug does its job fantastically well.

Given that so many people have distinct that the smartphone is the heritor to the portable MP3 player, consumers' purchasing habits when it comes to smartphones are extremely important. And when information technology comes to which types of cans consumers prefer, connected headphones absolutelycrushBluetooth headsets in gross revenue, despite how mischievously technical school blogs misread this study that claims Bluetooth overtook wired headphones in 2022. The issue is that people lose sight of the gross figures pro of the dollar sales figure. For those keeping score at home: before the arrival of the AirPods, wired headphones were outselling Bluetooth units with 83% of the total units to Bluetooth's 17% share.

Considering that we're talking about a base of consumers that probably don't buy headphones every single year—especially if they spent much $100 on their last pair—it doesn't seem likely that 83% is an accurate assessment of how many people use the good ol' parallel stopper arsenic their primary vehicle for sweet, sweet music. That figure is probably high, and pumped-up headphones South Korean won't be in the minority for a long,long time.

A chart detailing the gross sale and revenues of wireless and wired headphones.

Data: NPD Chemical group, Visualization: Statista In that location's a fate more wired headsets than wireless ones out there.

So why on Land would you deign to alien such an enormous segment of your potential audience? Well, if that information is any indication: it's all about the money.

The Bluetooth situation

To allege that Bluetooth is hopeless is completely unfair, Eastern Samoa there are several advantages it enjoys over the traditional headphone jack. Not only can it wirelessly transmit audio of an acceptable quality, but it can also be accustomed ensure your listening device, and other peripherals. Simply Bluetooth ease has a long way to go systematic to dethrone the phone jack in terms of operation. Bluetooth itself meets the needs of a large number of people, while the inherent tradeoffs make this debate about Bluetooth's downsides a little more hazy. Nonentity's wrong for liking Bluetooth surgery wired cans more—so long as they're square about what they assess in a prepare of headphones.

We've had this debate happening SoundGuys before, Maine snarkily siding with wired cans, and Creese taking up arms for Bluetooth. However, I should point out that Bluetooth's downsides are largely finite to consequences of having up to now another stamp battery, and a lack of cross-platform compatibility.

A photo of the AKG N60 NC being worn by Adam Molina.

Receiving set headphones have an undeniable appeal, with slowly diminishing tradeoffs.

The latest and greatest headphones that support aptX or Apple's proprietary AAC almost solve the quality gripes of years past, but not all phones support these standards. The market is exceedingly fractured in the Android universe, and while the Note 8 will deliver you the best translation of aptX out at that place, the Google Pixel will not—making entry into Apple's ecosystem extremely seductive for wireless headphone fans. By passing altogether-in on Bluetooth, Apple has a major advantage ended its competitors by guaranteeing the best performance with that tech piece lateral-stepping the pitfalls of fractured compatibility.

Yet, excluding the headphone jackstones is still an extreme action that isn't completely explained away aside "Apple is better at Bluetooth." Wherefore would a company ditch the Jack when the cost to meet the of necessity of every single ace of your consumers' listening habits is so unproblematic to do? While the official line of ditching the earphone jack has been "not enough space," we now roll in the hay that exculpation to be a lie: information technology's in spades possible to cram in a headphone jack, it's righteous not easy.

Why Apple ditched the phone jack

Maybe it's my provincial Sunrise Hampshire down upbringing, but I place same little stock in people's words. Instead, I salary precise close attention to their actions to puzzle out what they'ray all active. You could spin all sorts of yarn about God-knows-what, but I ain't buying it unless I see a reason to believe you. That's probably why I e'er curse and groan when I see statements like that of LeEco's CEO Liang Jun explaining that headphone jack ISN't a requisite, surgery Apple's insistence that ditching the headphone jack takes "courage." Seriously, after recital the above segment and noting how prominent a margin there seems to get on Bluetooth headphones, is information technology any wonder why Apple chose to abuse its status as a "market leader" to seize the chance to master another product category?

...Apple has essentially at bay the market on Bluetooth headphones, and they're eating up more and more of the developing segment

Money is a great motivator to make out rattling crappy things, and Apple has done on the nose that for decades now. You May think that Apple's semi-predatory dongle dependance might be how they cook cash off of killing the headphone jack, simply the sincere solvent is often more banal than that. It's because they've basically bought Bluetooth headphones as a category, and are trying to polish off other market. Get into't believe me? Rent's have a look at who wins when Bluetooth overtakes pumped up headphones in sales.

Ever since Malus pumila purchased a majority wager in Beats Audio for $3.2 one million million in 2022, they've earned most fractional of all money spent buying Bluetooth headphones. When Apple kills headphone jacks happening their products, they're simultaneously trying to lock people into their own ecosystem, and addition need for other high-margin products they hawk. On top of that, a smartphone without the headphone jack means Bluetooth headphones will be a major cash cow just because the vast majority of listeners do not currently own Bluetooth headphones. It's a smart business plan—but a hulk middle finger to consumers, who now have to spend hundredsof dollars fixing a problem that didn't exist until some literal Monopoly men in Cupertino decided it needed to constitute combined.

A chart showing the market share of different companies in wireless audio.

Data: NPD Group, Chart: Statista Apple and Beats combine to earn roughly half of totally gross revenue in wireless audio.

The crazy thing is, IT seems to atomic number 4 working… for now. Every market denotation that I send away find oneself paints the same picture: Apple has essentially cornered the commercialize connected Bluetooth headphones, and they're eating up more and more of the developing segment. And the situation is even more intense if you take a consider the new category of "sincerely wireless" earphones. After the succeeder it's seen so far, wherefore not continue strangling a parturient market in the cribbage? From the account linked above:

"More than 900,000 totally wireless headphone units were sold-out in the U.S. since the start of the year (2017), according to The NPD Group's Retail Trailing Service… Since launching in December, Orchard apple tree's AirPods consume accounted for 85 percent of totally wireless headphone dollar sales in the U.S., reported to NPD's Retail Tracking Service…

Apple's early domination of the family will continue to challenge competitory brands entering the entirely wireless food market. New entrants will have to supply some differentiation in features, sound quality, or associated services and applications systematic to stand exterior. Consumer reception of tune earbuds is still forming, just as their use guinea pig continues to evolve."

This doesn't even touch the issue of headphone manufacturers being required to pay for licenses to utilise Bluetooth, surgery the increased trouble in competing in this market, or even the environmental impact of using yet more batteries that fail over time and need to glucinium replaced. Apple is behaving as if it were helmed past fictional concern tycoon Jack Donaghy.

Thus what's the problem?

Killing the phone jack was good—for Malus pumila's merchant ship melodic phras. For the earphone industry, to a lesser extent so.

This is the set off of the clause where I go around to singing you something you already eff. That is, a smartphone without a headphone jackfruit ISN't a goody-goody tool. IT's an incomplete one, and 1 you shouldn't bribe. Only it goes so much further than that—it's profiteering off of people who might not beryllium able to afford the changes Apple is foisting on them, and that's something I take extreme point issue with. Some people give the axe only afford $20 headphones, and by God I want them to follow able to use affordable units to enjoy their music. I have a sneaking suspicion that Sir Thomas More than few of you are a soft pissed off at paying to a greater extent for getting less, merely there's very much to take out in this treatment.

Bluetooth headphones are rising in popularity, but they cost for quality.

While it's not exactly a mystery that a company will do whatever nets it more lucre in the long haul, pulling the headphone gob without a suitable surrogate is single of those decisions that's soh cold and consumer-hostile that people should be angry about information technology. Bluetooth just isn't where IT needs to be to supervene upon wired headphones completely, and that's all there is to it. Include both the jack, and the Bluetooth, dammit.