What a feeling! Using an iPhone without a headphone jack? There are speculations that Apple might abandon the standard 3.5mm headphone jack and replace it with Lightning connector headphones that would allow for 48kHz digital sound for the first time. With a screen shape and radius remaining the same, the device will once again become Apple’s thinnest iPhone ever. This is a move to achieve a ‘more than 1mm’ reduction in thickness compared to the iPhone 6S. It was also noted that Apple will bundle EarPods which use the Lightning connector with the next iPhone and that they will incorporate a small digital to analog converter into the connector. This will require Apple to use third-party wired headphone makers to bundle Lightning adaptors with its 3.5mm headphones or make them Lightning port only to gain Apple MFi certification.
This move will definitely affect high priced headphone makers who record substantial sales because of high sales of iphone. This is another reason not to buy an iphone since carrying around an extra set of headphones in addition to the ones for your phone might be a great burden. This might probably create a shift towards Android whose open source nature has many who benefit from it.
From Apple’s perspective, This move can gain control over the last industry standard port on the iPhone for increased revenue and licensing potential. It can potentially create ‘smart earphones/headphones’ thanks to the direct digital connection to the phone which could tie into apps, notifications and more creating another differentiator from the competition.
For diehard Apple fans, headphone jack or not doesn’t really affect their purchase pattern. A new product requires new adaptation, so what’s the big deal? This is another strategy for Apple to lock users into the ecosystem.
