Buying Headphones in 2018 is Going To Be a Fragmented Mess (theverge.com) 276
Vlad Savov, writing for The Verge: At CES this year, I saw the future of headphones, and it was messy. Where we once had the solid reliability of a 3.5mm analog connector working with any jack shaped to receive it, there's now a divergence of digital alternatives -- Lightning or USB-C, depending on your choice of jack-less phone -- and a bunch of wireless codecs and standards to keep track of. Oh, and Sony's working hard on promoting a new 4.4mm Pentaconn connector as the next wired standard for dedicated audio lovers. It's all with the intent of making things better, but before we get to the better place, we're going to spend an uncomfortable few months (or longer) in a fragmented market where you'll have to do diligent research to make sure your next pair of headphones works with all the devices you already own.
Don't buy... (Score:5, Insightful)
Don't buy hardware that doesn't adhere to established, working standards, like USB, USB-C, or 3.5mm jack.
The Pentaconn thing seems interesting, as it's still an analog connection.
Five headphone connectors (Score:5, Funny)
Would someone tell me how this happened? We were the fucking vanguard of headphones in this country. We made the headphones to own.
Then the other guy came out with a three-connector headphone. Were we scared? Hell, no. Because we hit back with a little thing called the Turbo Headphones.. That's three connectors and an aloe strip. For moisture. But you know what happened next? Shut up, I'm telling you what happenedâ"the bastards went to four connectors. Now we're standing around with our cocks in our hands, selling three connectors and a strip. Moisture or no, suddenly we're the chumps. Well, fuck it. We're going to five connectors.
Re:Five headphone connectors (Score:5, Funny)
But I bet you didn't see them taking the connectors off completely! Not even an aloe strip to heal your wounds. You need to go to -1 connectors. That's right, people are going to have to plug their headphones into something else, to listen to your music.
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That's right, people are going to have to plug their headphones into something else, to listen to your music.
And I think we all know what they can plug.
Re:Five headphone connectors (Score:5, Insightful)
Apple had the courage to remove a decades old, industry standard headphone jack.
But industry standard is an understatement. This jack was used by much more than smartphones and tablets. It was the standard on PCs. Old stereo equipment back to the early 1980's had this jack. Walkman cassette players. Car entertainment systems use this jack. MP3 players and personal video pod type players. I can just barely describe how widely used this jack was and for how long. This jack was used everywhere on the entire planet. It was way more standard than electrical outlets which vary by country.
But . . . Apple!
The king of ever changing non standard connectors that have "premium priced" cables, dongles, etc. Do you see a pattern yet?
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The king of ever changing non standard connectors that have "premium priced" cables, dongles, etc. Do you see a pattern yet?
Yes, I get the bit about how they want to make money, but seriously? Who in the industry thinks the population is dumb enough to buy it.
I can't see a point in changing it, there's no technical benefit. Anything that goes wireless is going to need batteries, fair enough, you have me there, improvements in latency and databus can happen, but in the cabled variety, really?
Can't the public push back and choose to not buy? What can top a set of Sennheiser HD 206's? Anything above that price range isn't going to
Re:Five headphone connectors (Score:4, Insightful)
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Can't the public push back and choose to not buy?
Some can. For example, my wife is an iPhone person - Has been for many years - But when it comes time to upgrade her iPhone 6 she'll be leaving Apple and buying a replacement phone with a headphone jack.
However, she's in what appears to be a small minority.
People are brand-loyal and seem incapable of 'choosing not to buy.'
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People are brand-loyal and seem incapable of 'choosing not to buy.'
Me too! I /am/ brand-loyal. Loyal to the trusty 3.5mm I know so well. The little connector I've soldered many times to splitters, converters, and sometimes to weird things.
There is no argument for this, the manufacturers are in cahoots, they've formed a racket
Re:Five headphone connectors (Score:4)
Old stereo equipment back to the early 1980's had this jack.
Mmmmh, no. In the 1980's, stereo equipment had a 6.35 mm jack connector, as had my Revox headphones. During the transition to the new 3.5 mm jack, we had to use dongles. Just like an recent iPhone needs a lightning dongle for the audio jack.
The problem today is not that a new standard is coming, but that I can't figure yet what is the safe choice for the next 5-10 years. Until then, I will stick to the 3.5 mm jack and dongles.
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But industry standard is an understatement. This jack was used by much more than smartphones and tablets. It was the standard on PCs. Old stereo equipment back to the early 1980's had this jack. Walkman cassette players. Car entertainment systems use this jack. MP3 players and personal video pod type players. I can just barely describe how widely used this jack was and for how long. This jack was used everywhere on the entire planet. It was way more standard than electrical outlets which vary by country.
So in the 50th century, we will have to use this same shitty little plug and jack? I had 1980's stereo equipment. It had 1/4 inch plugs and jacks. I still have professional radio and audio equipment. Not a 3.5 mm to be found. 1/4 inch and XLR connectors abound. I have cheap stuff with has those 3.5 mm plugs and jacks. My Studio headsets are 1/4 inch. I do have a headset that has 3.5 mm, So if I use it on the good stuff, I use an adapter, and don't suffer apoplexy for using it.
My iPhone came with an adap
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We're going to five connectors.
And two aloe strips.
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That is assuming that you buy such hardware with the initial intent of using such ports.
While it is ironic that the iPhone was just a phone added to a mobile music player the iPod. However listening to music off the device isn't my main purpose of it. And wireless standards such a bluetooth are good enough for my usages.
The problem is we are taking ports away from multi-purpose products. So the need for any one of the ports can be removed from the devices without hurting sales in any major way, and they c
Re:Don't buy... (Score:5, Insightful)
If a phone is thinner than 3.5mm, it's difficult to hold anyway. What's the obsession with making phones paper-thin at the expense of durability and utility anyway? A few mm of thickness isn't a portability issue. OTOH, it being hard to find a screen smaller than 5.5 inches is a real issue -- footprint detracts from portability much more than thickness.
Errr-merrr-gerd, my phone is 5-6mm thick, but I can replace the battery in 15 seconds, add storage using an SD card, and use any set of headphones made in the last few decades.
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I have a CAT S60 and it satisfies my needs.
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I use a fleshlight for that, and it only costs a fraction of the CAT S60.
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I mean, Samsung gave up the replaceable battery but otherwise...uSD card? Check. Headphones jack? Check. Stylus with storage? Check(Note). Standards-based connector? Check.
I've learned to do without the replaceable battery ... and TBH I very, very rarely replaced them even in the BB days when they were. I'd gladly give up an extra 1-2mm for another 20-30% of battery life though.
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Some Samsungs (mostly focused on developing/prepaid markets) like the J3 and J7 still have removable batteries. Why? Because the target demographic is poorer, and not having to buy a new phone every 12 months is important to them.
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Errr-merrr-gerd, my phone is 5-6mm thick, but I can replace the battery in 15 seconds, add storage using an SD card, and use any set of headphones made in the last few decades.
Not without a converter, you can't. It won't take a quarter inch plug, which is still the standard for better than average cans. Nor a dual 3.5mm airplane/theatre plug, I'm sure.
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Quality headphones frequently come with 3.5mm jack as standard with a screw on 1/4" adaptor.
That depends on your definition of "quality headphones".
High ends intended for plugging into a pre-amp have 1/4" plugs because that's what the pre-amps have.
They may or may not come with an adapter, depending on whether most 3.5mm devices can drive them or not. It saves on support calls to not deliver an adapter and get calls from people who can't drive them with their phones or other underpowered devices.
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Errr-merrr-gerd, my phone is 5-6mm thick, but I can replace the battery in 15 seconds, add storage using an SD card, and use any set of headphones made in the last few decades.
Not without a converter, you can't. It won't take a quarter inch plug, which is still the standard for better than average cans. Nor a dual 3.5mm airplane/theatre plug, I'm sure.
You you are ruining the party with your geegaws, velocipedes and unvarnished truth.
Not the truth. Some people still assume that high impedance headphones are better, they are wrong..
Protip: If a person makes a comment starting with "GeeGaws, velocipedes and unvarnished ttruth", they are almost certainly not being serious, and you missed several other chances along the way to pick that up.
So dear sir, you win the whoosh of the week
Re:Don't buy... (Score:5, Informative)
If a phone is thinner than 3.5mm, it's difficult to hold anyway.
According to hardware designers I've talked to, the thickness of the 3.5mm plug isn't the issue. The problem is its volume and placement. It consumes 240 mm^3 on an outer edge, on one end of the phone, which is incredibly valuable real estate in a modern phone, because that's pretty much where the antennas have to be -- and phones have a lot of antennas, because they have a lot of radios (e.g. LTE requires 8 radios, and most phones support 5+ bands, plus Wifi, bluetooth, GPSr and NFC). It's also where speakers have to be, and they also require some depth, so significant volume. And where the charging/data port has to be.
So from their perspective, being able to shift audio output functions to the data port and wireless frees up important volume and makes it easier to fit ever more stuff into an ever-smaller space (yes, phone thickness does come into play here).
What's the obsession with making phones paper-thin at the expense of durability and utility anyway?
Dunno. But it's undeniably what consumers want. Thick phones don't sell. Maybe it's not what you want, but the market focuses on volume.
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Fortunately, there are still countries where not having to pay an additional $50 for a set of proprietary headphones is important, and phones focused on developing markets can be (relatively) easily used and imported to the US..
USB-C and Bluetooth are not proprietary.
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According to hardware designers I've talked to, the thickness of the 3.5mm plug isn't the issue. The problem is its volume and placement. It consumes 240 mm^3 on an outer edge, on one end of the phone, which is incredibly valuable real estate in a modern phone
I know right! We need that space to put in a huge frigging vibrator for your pleasure.
Mind you it's amazing that Apple couldn't figure it out when this guy here managed to do it without removing any Apple components including the incredibly useful taptic engine that Apple claims was the reason they *needed* to remove the jack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
Re: Don't buy... (Score:2)
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If a phone is thinner than 3.5mm, it's difficult to hold anyway.
According to hardware designers I've talked to, the thickness of the 3.5mm plug isn't the issue. The problem is its volume and placement. It consumes 240 mm^3 on an outer edge, on one end of the phone, which is incredibly valuable real estate in a modern phone, because that's pretty much where the antennas have to be -- and phones have a lot of antennas, because they have a lot of radios (e.g. LTE requires 8 radios, and most phones support 5+ bands, plus Wifi, bluetooth, GPSr and NFC). It's also where speakers have to be, and they also require some depth, so significant volume. And where the charging/data port has to be.
If any of that were true, how was it a hobbyist (Scotty Allen) was able to retrofit a 3.5mm jack into his iPhone 7?
No really, tell me.
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The Pentaconn connector is basically five-pin stereo XLR for a five-foot run.
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Don't buy hardware that doesn't adhere to established, working standards, like USB, USB-C, or 3.5mm jack.
"The nice thing about standards is that there are so many to choose from." - Adm. Grace Hopper or Prof. Andrew Tanenbaum (depending on who you ask)
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1/4" headphone jack! :)
only two connectors count (Score:5, Insightful)
3.5mm stereo and 1/4-inch. everything else is a gimmick that will be crap in several years. stand your ground!
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The headphones I want are US$345 and they have Bluetooth and a built-in FM radio.
Re:Don't buy... (Score:5, Insightful)
Fixed that a bit for you. For audio, especially audio on consumer playback devices, USB and Lightning are NOT "established working standards." 1/8-inch jacks have been the only standard for these things for many decades while 1/4-inch has been standard for headphones on hi-fi decks for longer than that. There is no need to reinvent this wheel. Wired headphones for portable use should have a 1/8-inch (3.5mm) jack, end of story. Any wired headphones that don't should be disregarded. Vote with your wallet against this crap.
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Vote with your wallet against this crap.
You are certainly free to not buy anything that doesn't have the specs you want. Unfortunately, there are millions of people who don't care about those specs, and will still buy the phone anyway. Once the manufacturers see that people are buying them, they will never go back to putting the ports in. The success of the headphone-jack-less phone has cemented their decision to remove it, and never put it back in.
Re:Don't buy... (Score:4, Insightful)
I can buy a great sounding pair of headphones for ~$20 with a 3.5mm jack
Which is why they're being pushed out by the big players. Bose can't charge $1,000 for a decent set of ear buds, so they have no incentive to make them. The market has been sufficiently covered by Chinese manufacturing. The only answer is to make something proprietary that you can charge ridiculous dollars to license.
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Don't buy hardware that doesn't adhere to established, working standard: 3.5mm jack.
Fixed that for you. USB and USB-C are not fucking standard audio connectors and manufacturers can screw off trying to make them become one.
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I only buy phones that have standard 1/4 inch jacks for headphone connections.
None of this wimpy 3.5 mm stuff.
And it's also easier to connect my guitar to it...
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Especially, don't reward Sony for yet another attempt to foist their own proprietary standard on the world.
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Except that Bluetooth headphones require batteries, both for the transceiver and for powering the drivers. And you cannot play analogue music through Bluetooth.
So they're essentially only for short term portable listening.
You can have my Grado RS-1 cans when you pry them from my cold dead ears...
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Bluetooth is a pain in the rear if you have more than one source. I can plug a cheap pair of headphones in and sit back and relax. I turn on my 5.1 sound system and try to play bluetooth across it, but it is already connected to a tablet that is stashed somewhere or maybe my wife's phone. Or, maybe my phone connects to a different device that I wasn't expecting. Or, I connect to the bluetooth earbuds, but the battery runs out 20 minutes later.
If I rip the cables, I get another cheap pair.
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I need help (Score:2, Insightful)
I don't know how to complain about companies ditching the 3.5mm jack without sounding like a Luddite.
Re:I need help (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't know how to complain about companies ditching the 3.5mm jack without sounding like a Luddite.
I'm listening to your comment with my $350 Bose noise cancelling, wireless headphones, using the 3.5mm jack because farting around with Bluetooth audio is not how I like to spend my time.
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I have those headphones. I use them to listen to background crap when I don't want to listen to real high quality music. Unfortunately (fortunately?) my nice Sennheisers don't come in Bluetooth, or Lightning, and neither do most top quality headphones.
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Well, Iâ(TM)m reading your comment on an iPhone while sitting on the shitter and jacking my 35 centimeter dong.
A metric dong? Does it have a square cross section too?
Re:I need help (Score:5, Insightful)
What's wrong with being a Luddite?
Not that this is really Luddism -- interchangeable parts were a big part of the Industrial Revolution.
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Sort of like the "notch". Let rant about that for a sec . . . how about instead of a notch just have a little bit of bezel gap at the top AND bottom of the phone, and place fantastic stereo speakers there! (Oh, like some Android phones do.)
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How about "you think it's stupid to give up a standard connector that's more broadly accepted and ubiquitous than the mains socket"?
Until apple had a stupid, it was literally THE standard for lower power consumer audio connection (i.e. headphones and similar) worldwide. Every-freaking-where. For decades and through multiple complete generations of technology across every audio product.
The changes to USB-C or lightning or whatever the F else some idiot wants to dream up don't even improve on the connector.
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Because I don't want batteries in my god damned headphones.
Especially not for on-ear headphones, where you really don't want weight causing them to slide off if you move. But any tolerable weight is better spent on better drivers than batteries.
Yup. It's already a mess. (Score:2)
Yup, we're already seeing the mess. My daughter's phone needs one connector. The laptop another. And the Nintendo switch a 3rd. (the switch is still using 3.1mm jack)
Its beyond irritating, she used to just go from one device to antoher without even thinking... her old phone, her old laptop, and her old 3DS... now its a chore, carrying different headphones, little adapters...
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Yup, we're already seeing the mess. My daughter's phone needs one connector. The laptop another. And the Nintendo switch a 3rd. (the switch is still using 3.1mm jack)
Its beyond irritating, she used to just go from one device to antoher without even thinking... her old phone, her old laptop, and her old 3DS... now its a chore, carrying different headphones, little adapters...
Her laptop doesn't have a 3.5mm jack?
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Ah yes, you're right that it does. The reality is a bit more complicated.
The issue is that she has 2 sets of headphones. A wired 3.5mm pair, and a wireless pair. The wired pair doesn't work with her phone. The wireless pair doesn't work with the switch.
Re:Yup. It's already a mess. (Score:4, Informative)
Even the "standard" 3.5 mm jack is fucked now.
There's TS (mono), TRS (stereo), TRRS (stereo+mic), and now TRRRS (fucking bullshit). TRRS has been abused a lot in the past, with people using one connector for video, moving ground around, etc. The most recent disaster with TRSS was the confusion between the OMTP and CTIA standards. One has left, right, ground, mic, the other has left, right mic, ground. Depending on what your device has and what your headset (or TRS headphones) have, you can have issues ranging from added noise, the mic not being detected or usable, or even the voltage being fucked to the point you can't drive your headphones.
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Then back to the tried-and-true 1/4", balanced TRS with XLR used for the microphone port.
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The Switch uses a standard headphone jack.
Re:Yup. It's already a mess. (Score:4, Informative)
The Switch uses a standard headphone jack.
No, it doesn't. A standard headphone jack takes a 1/4" plug. The Switch has a standard mini jack taking a 3.5mm plug.
And it's not a standard headphone jack either, because it is TRRS headset jack and not a TRS headphone jack. Depending on where the connectors are, it may not work. It's a "works with most", not "works with all".
4.4mm? (Score:3)
I imagine this is true, but why are we getting 4.4mm jack, when so many phones are going super thin and they dropped 3.5mm because it was too big? Only thing I can imagine is if that's 4.4mm wide, and pretty flat. But if that's the case everyone (including Apple) should switch to just using USB-C. Sticking with Bluetooth for now.
Re:4.4mm? (Score:4, Insightful)
>they dropped 3.5mm because it was too big?
No, they dropped the 3.5mm jack because the phone was too thin. Battery life suffers also. Thicker phone -> Thicker battery and 3.5mm jack. It's a win, win.
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Thanks for the insight from a decade ago.
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Only thing I can imagine is if that's 4.4mm wide, and pretty flat.
This whole debacle is all about Digital Restrictions Management, and nothing else. None of these new jacks are analog, but rather are all digital. Remember the musical mafiaa's complaining about the "Analog Hole" for decades? They convinced Apple to fill it, and then everyone else dutifully followed along.
This has nothing to do with aesthetics, size, production costs, and any of the other nonsensical explanations. This is solely to set the stage so you can't easily record what you hear.
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Unless they drop CDs entirely, they're just wasting their efforts. Attempting to plug the analog hole, while shipping easily ripped digital media? Makes no sense.
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Unless they drop CDs entirely, they're just wasting their efforts. Attempting to plug the analog hole, while shipping easily ripped digital media? Makes no sense.
Moreover, until we get digital audio inputs wired into our brains the analog hole is forever un-pluggable.
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I've never had more copied music than today. I can copy my collection in about 12 hours, would have taken about 10 years, dubbing, 5 with a late 80s high speed dubbing deck.
It only takes one person to buy the CD. Then it's off to pirate bay.
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Only thing I can imagine is if that's 4.4mm wide, and pretty flat.
It's not. It looks just like the old 3.5mm one but fatter.
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and they dropped 3.5mm because it was too big
Wow, someone fell for that marketing garbage?
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No one actually likes phones being that thin, so I'll never understand the move.
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Because this is Sony, who are the all time champs at pointless bullshit proprietary components to lock you into their shit.
I thought that was Apple as the lock-in champs, but I am willing to be corrected.
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Sounds like ATRAC, not mp3.
Better? (Score:2, Informative)
Unless there is a single wireless standard and codec, nothing will be better than the old trusty 3.5mm connector, and even then it will still be questionable. Guess what, the analog, wired connection works, 100% of the time. If for some reason you find it's not working, you simply plug the cable back in and your working again. No wireless standard can state that fact, nor will they ever be able to.
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What makes it inferior? It is more than enough contact space to transfer sufficient electrons to give more than enough volume for even the deaf to hear it (by feeling the vibration in their skulls).
Is it? (Score:2)
Stand your ground (Score:2)
If it has no 3.5mm jack, don't buy it. 'But there's an adapter' - NO. DON'T BUY IT, PERIOD.
Re:Stand your ground (Score:5, Insightful)
You did have a choice, but you made the wrong one.
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What's wrong with the existing 3.5mm jacks? (Score:2)
With all this wheel reinvention, what is fundamentally wrong with the 3.5mm jack, or the 1/4" one used in audio equipment? The Sony connector may be better with its balanced TRRRS architecture, but is it worth a new standard? Sony does have good formats, but they tend to be esoteric at best, or wind up on the wayside at worse (like memory sticks.)
For digital output, USB-C should be what people use.
Re:What's wrong with the existing 3.5mm jacks? (Score:5, Insightful)
It lacks a very important feature: vendor lock-in.
vendor LOCKOUT (Score:2)
I have great headphones. the best. bigly perfect. and no time for gimmick lock-in connectors for junk products that will migrate to something else in two years.
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It lacks a very important feature: vendor lock-in.
So does USB-C audio. And Bluetooth.
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The newest Sony phone, has a waterproof 3.5 mm jack.
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The newest Sony phone, has a waterproof 3.5 mm jack.
There have been waterproof 3.5mm jacks for years. I had a Casio Gzone roughly 10 years ago that had one.
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Sure, but one theoretical advantage of bluetooth is one less opening in the case. I mentioned 'water proof' because it removes this advantage.
No new connectors on their current generation flagship phones. Though I'm not sure about the insane large, uncarriable 'premium' version of the phone.
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The Sony connector may be better with its balanced TRRRS architecture
Short answer: Yes[1]
[1] Long note to the short answer: One of the benefits of the TRRS setup is that it allows for balanced audio signals. These days with modern DACs having balanced outputs for virtually nothing it's a shame to see them unused as there are some real benefits including noise immunity, interference immunity and rejection of distortion. However that takes space and you won't see that inside a phone.
Now if you're talking about TRRRS then you have a very different purpose but not related to hea
What's so confusing? (Score:2)
It's called, "making a buck."
3.5mm is ubiquitous and there's no future in that.
When manufacturers stop innovating, they simply fuck stuff up and change shit so you'll be forced to buy accessories.
Bluetooth makes sense for cases where a wire is inconvenient.
There's no cleverness in designing a device that will not accept a 3.5mm wire, forcing consumers to buy something else, except, "making a buck."
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Thank you for taking the time to read my post and I'm honoured that my observations motivated you to bother commenting.
Simple for me (Score:2)
Simple:
If a device doesn't have a 3.5mm (aka "1/8 inch") connector, I'm not purchasing it.
Call me a luddite, call me an old man, etc. That won't change my mind: it's a standard that works and is not in need of change.
To those that argue digital audio is so much cleaner/clearer/crisper, I remind you that no humans have digital hearing.
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Bluetooth has enough bandwidth to transfer a good lossy codec, such as Opus, which is audibly transparent above 96kbps for the majority of music, and definitely above 160kbps.
The problem is that the bastards implementing Bluetooth audio cannot decide on a goddamn format, so a lot of stuff still has to fall back to the old SBC codec, which is just junk. I know it's fast and doesn't require much power, but it's junk. AptX is a shitty proprietary codec, as is Sony's LDAC. You can also push AAC over Bluetooth,
The market will figure it out (Score:2)
I have studio headphones (Audio Technica) with 1/4 inch jack that I convert to 3.5mm for travel. I will always have a computer (Alienware 17, sucks for travel but my only computer) and phone that supports this. I don't mind the excessively long cord either (16 feet, 5+ meteres).
The market will provide, or I'll just go back to Nexus 5 phones (we've had 7 so far as they break rather easily). Swappa FTW!
The actual story here is around products people will or will not purchase. As long as it's not Sony, I'm
My el-cheapo LG phone (Score:2)
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idiocracy in action (Score:3)
yet another bloody format war, and this time the established standard is being replaced with something inferior.
Even the Pentaconn supposedly high-end connector is a single-pin design with 5 contact patches in a row, guaranteeing massive pops and hum when it's inserted. Has the entire industry lost its head?
Oh look, a trap for idiots (Score:2)
3.5mm and Bluetooth are all you need. Just don't buy stuff that doesn't have one or both of those. Works for me.
So buy a phone that *does* have a jack (Score:3)
So buy a phone that does have a standard headphone jack. Like a Moto.
Bonus: it won't be so thin that breathing on it snaps it.
Sigh. (Score:2)
Sigh.
Do what always turns out best.
Wait six months. Buy some cheap Chinese knockoff that has / supports them all.
A guy in my workplace came to me last year with some stupendously expensive headphones his wife had bought him. I didn't know what they were but, as I took them, I mentioned that I'd just bought a couple of pairs of something similar.
Over-the-ear headphones.
Large amounts of sound insulation on the ear-cushions, so you were deaf to the world when they were on.
Rechargeable wireless (with plain US
grrr. audio snobs ... (Score:5, Interesting)
My brother is an audiophile. I can't imagine he'll ever use Bluetooth headphones. But I, OTOH, can accept reasonable sound quality. Bluetooth works with all my devices effortlessly and the quality of sound is better than any of the speakers on those devices.
Most nights I'll watch a TV show or movie with my headphones, especially if they are from the UK in accents that I struggle to understand- they are much more clear on the 'phones. When I'm on a bus or train or waiting for someone at the county jail, the BT 'phones are a blessing, giving me quality content while filtering external noise. The obvious headphones discourage people from trying to talk to me too. Perhaps the biggest blessing is NO WIRES pulling and getting tangled everywhere. And I'm not an audio snob who has to hear the latest pop music with super high quality electrostatic headphones. So brother- take your ancient 3.5mm jack and shove it!
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No it wont. (Score:5, Insightful)
The inventor of modern headphones still is quite conservative about their lineup and they still build some of the best in the industy. [beyerdynamic.com] If you only look for expensive fidgety mainstream junk, you're in for trouble. Don't.
For best cost/performance ratio I recommend the Custom 1 Pro +. ... Yeah, admitted, that name does suck. Then again they are genuises at headphones and a little low profile on marketing - who cares? And, yes, it's a regular headphone with a nice and neat 3.5mm jack, as it should be. Made in Germany, btw., not some chinese sweatshop. If that should mean something to you.
You're welcome.