Apple really can get rid of the 3.5mm headphone jack

Rumour has it that Apple will be ditching the 3.5mm audio jack in favour of Lightning connected headphones in the iPhone 7.

This particular rumour has been running across the web for a few years now. So far, Apple has failed to follow through. After all, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Why would you risk alienating millions of music fans, arguably their core audience, just to make a thinner device?

They can and will, eventually. In fact, Apple is probably the only company that could pull off such a major tech coup.

First a bit of history. The 3.5mm audio jack is one of the oldest electronic standards still in use today. In industry jargon, it’s referred to as a Tip-Ring-Sleeve (TRS) Connector, after how electric current travels down the plug. It was invented in the late 1800’s as a quick connect for trunk lines on telephone switchboards, back when those systems were still manually operated.

The TRS is still widely used for consumer and professional audio equipment: headphones, guitar amps, aircraft headsets, pro mixers. Anything that has an analogue signal. They’ve stuck around so long because they’re simple, compact, and durable while still delivering a high quality signal. If it ain’t broke, why fix it?

Of course Apple is no stranger to fixing things that aren’t broken. Or rather pushing ahead new standards while simultaneously cutting off old ones.

The best recent example was the replacement of the venerable 30-pin dock connector. When Apple announced the iPhone 5 would use the new Lightning connector, it seemed like madness. Millions of peripherals were rendered obsolete in one swift stroke.

Three years later and nobody bats an eye at it. Fanboys went and bought new gear to replace the old, and everyone carried on with their lives. It was the price to pay for a thinner and lighter device.

So it’s not much of a stretch to think that Apple could get away with eliminating the 3.5mm headphone jack.

What benefit would doing so actually have though?

It’s not so much the external appearance of the phone. It’s the inside that counts. The jacks take up a considerable amount of internal space. Especially compared to the Lightning connector.

You’re not only taking away the jack, but also all the supporting electronics. All that stuff would now be inside the headphones. That would make the logic board simpler and more compact. You could either make the phone thinner, or have room for a larger battery. Or if you’re a cynic, it would sell headphones; Beats headphones.

When people question removing the 3.5mm jack, they all seem to forget that Apple now owns the company behind Dr. Dre’s popular cans. You want headphones for your iPhone, buy Beats. Have another brand with the old fashioned connector? Here’s a Beats branded adaptor you can buy. And people will.

Apple doesn’t really care what audiophiles think, because they’re targeting the trendy market. For the average ham and egger, all they need to do is toss in a pair of cheap lightning buds and call it a day. Despite what some tech pundits are saying, it’s not going to be a rocky transition. Nor will it alienate anybody that matters.

The question now is not if Apple can remove the TRS, but whether they should. Proprietary connectors are always bad for consumers. But that’s never stopped the lads in Cupertino before.