Leave it to Apple to do something no one really asked for. For years, Apple has lived to innovate, being the frontrunners in handheld tech. The iPod and its multiple iterations dominated the early 2000s, and the iPhone has been a standard in the smartphone industry. However, the last few endeavors have been a little less successful. Apple Watch was far from mold-breaking in the smartwatch market, and sales have been going down as of late. Samsung is a fierce competitor against the iPhone, and what was once a dominated sector for Apple is now peppered with competition. But despite all of that, Apple has always found a way step up. However, their newest model, the iPhone 7, may have taken a step back.
The new iPhone 7 does not have a headphone jack. A decision explained by marketing chief, Pete Schiller, as "courage" has caused quite a stir. Instead of utilizing the standard 3.5mm headphone jack, Apple will supply users with a pair of earbuds that connect through its Lightning charging port. They will also have the option to connect an adaptor to their phone; one end connects to the Lightning port, while the other end supplies a headphone jack. Lastly, users will eventually be able to purchase a pair of AirPods, wireless, Bluetooth ear buds that were made to complement the new iPhone. They don't come cheap, costing $159, but the price is in the ballpark for other wireless headsets.
There are plenty of options to supplement the removal of the headphone jack, but they seem to break away from what the Apple brand stands for. The company has always been known for its innovative, simple designs. What they've come up with just seems to be a bit messy. What was once just one wire, will now be two for the majority of headphone users. And for those who are prone to losing small objects, the idea of using a short, $9 cord to help you listen to music may be concerning to you (don't even bother spending money on the AirPods either).
If you like listening to music while you charge your phone, good luck. The new iPhone forces you to make a choice, as you'll be using the charging port for your music. Wireless charging could have circumvented this, but alas Apple has opted against it. You could, of course, purchase a pair of wireless headphones, but a $100 option is not the cheapest and may not be something you want.
And that is the real issue with the new iPhone. By eliminating the headphone jack, Apple has forced some users to make a decision they didn't want to make. Why make users choose between one type of earbuds, a $9 cord to connect your other cord, or spend ten times more for a wireless option you didn't ask for? There are no better options that come out of this; the best option would have been to just keep the jack.
What it has really done is cornered the market once again in Apple's favor. I doubt many of the large headphone brands will switch their cords to connect to Lightning ports, so the importance of adaptors will rise up, and Apple will be there to profit from it. With no jack, there will be more interest in wireless options, and the Air Pods will sell on their name alone. In fact, consumers will only benefit from the removal of the headphone jack through the small amount of space freed up from the jack. We'll find out soon enough if the tech they managed to squeeze in will be worth it, but if it isn't, Apple will have achieved jack squat.
