Headphones

Food for thought: is 3.5mm audio plug the new floppy drive?

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 22, 2016

Responding to Nilay Patel's controversial article on The Verge, titled “Taking the Headphone Jack Off Phones Is User-Hostile and Stupid”, Daring Fireball's John Gruber pulls out the floppy drive analogy.

As you know, the next iPhone is rumored to ditch the industry-standard 3.5mm jack in favor of Bluetooth and Lightning-based headphones.

Gruber goes on to compare Nilay's arguments against removing the century-old analog jack from mobile devices to the similar arguments that had been made in response to Apple's decision to ditch the good ol' floppy drive from the iMac in 1998 for USB.

New iPhone 7 rumor: dual-SIM trays, headphone jack not going anywhere, 256GB model

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 20, 2016

Apple's next-generation handset may include dual-SIM trays allowing it to be used with multiple carriers more easily, if photos of alleged iPhone 7 components posted on Chinese microblogging service Weibo are anything to go by.

The ability to use two SIM cards at the same time, a first for iPhone, would let users send and receive cellular phone calls and text messages from two phone numbers, via two carriers. The iPhone 7 may also keep the headphone jack and include a 256-gigabyte model, a leakster said.

Bose’s new wireless headphones come with its premium noise-cancelling tech

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 6, 2016

Audio equipment company Bose today launched a few new wireless headphones that use its premium noise-cancelling technology. The new Bose products are arriving ahead of the iPhone 7, which is said to lose the century-old 3.5mm audio jack in favor of wireless headsets and Lightning-enabled ones.

The new QuietComfort 35 model is a successor to Bose's popular QuietComfort 25 headphones. The QuietComfort 35 uses both Bluetooth and NFC pairing and includes Bose's noise-cancelling tech.

First Lightning-to-headphone adapter surfaces, offering a sign of things to come

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated August 9, 2016

Apple is widely believe to remove the more than century-old 3.5mm analog audio jack from the iPhone 7 in favor of Lightning-enabled headphones and wireless Bluetooth headsets. Chinese vendor Tama Electric is advertising at Computex 2016 in Taipei the first Lightning-to-headphone that would let folks connect their existing analog headphones based on the 3.5mm audio jack to the iPhone 7.

The listing was first discovered by the oft-reliable Japanese blog Mac Otakara.

Alleged iPhone 7 part has 3.5mm headphone jack we thought would be going away

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 3, 2016

An image of a purported component for Apple's unannounced next-generation iPhone has leaked out yesterday courtesy of French blog NowhereElse.fr and—surprise, surprise—it depicts a 3.5mm headphone jack. Remember, the rumor-mill has been cognizant for months that the century-old analog audio jack will be removed from an 'iPhone 7' in favor of Lightning-powered or wireless headphones.

The image appears to show a Lightning cable assembly, supposedly for an iPhone device, and it looks a tad different compared to the same part found in the current-generation iPhone 6s.

iPhone stuck in headphone mode? Here’s a fix

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated November 9, 2023

Is your iPhone stuck in headphone mode? In this piece, we'll discuss why it happens and the troubleshooting steps for fixing it.

Apple patents hybrid wireless/wired earbuds for iPhone that are magnetically detachable

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 1, 2016

The United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) on Tuesday awarded Apple a patent for magnetically detachable earbuds for an iPhone that could work in both wired and wireless mode. The invention is of particular interest in light of the rumor that the next iPhone will ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack in favor of Lightning-enabled and wireless Bluetooth headphones.

The proposed device would use two cables, one to connect the headphones together in wireless mode (like the connecting cable found on the Beats Solo2 wireless headphones) and the other to connect the headphones to a host device in wired mode.

iPhone 7 may ship with wired EarPods after all

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 12, 2016

Apple's upcoming iPhone 7 will include an all-digital, wired edition of the EarPods headphones that will connect to the handset's Lightning port, not the wireless edition as previously rumored.

According to an analyst note from Barclays, a copy of which was obtained by Business Insider, Apple has not yet purchased a license from its supplier Cirrus Logic that would permit the company to use Cirrus' active noise-canceling software.

Cirrus technology would be needed to filter out background noise during phone calls were Apple to ditch the traditional 3.5mm headphone jack in favor of wireless Bluetooth headphones.

Back to School promo goes live in New Zealand and Australia with free Beats Solo2 headphones

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 3, 2016

Apple’s annual Back to School promotion is back with a new deal launching today in Australia and New Zealand. University students, students accepted to a university and parents buying for a university student are being tempted with a free Beats Solo2 on-ear headphones, a $199.95 value, with an eligible Mac purchase.

When purchasing a new MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac or iMac with Retina 5K display, customers shall receive an instant credit for the purchase of a pair of Beats Solo2 wired headphones in Gloss Black, Gloss White, Gloss Red or Gloss Blue or wired Beats Solo2 headphones in Space Gray, Silver, Gold or Rose Gold.

Several House of Marley Bluetooth speakers and headphones are on sale right now

Cody Lee ∙ January 15, 2016

We are big fans of House of Marley gear here at iDB. I recently reviewed the Chant Mini Bluetooth speaker, praising it for its sound and portability, and we have highlighted several of their other products over the years. So naturally, when we found out that many of their Bluetooth speakers and headphones were on sale, we just had to share it with you.

In my Chant Mini review, I noted that House of Marley products are unique in that they are built using earth-friendly materials like Hemp, bamboo and recycled plastic, and thus look very different than other consumer electronics. But, if you can get past the unorthodox aesthetics, my experience with HoM gear is that it sounds great and is very well made.

Apple is reportedly building wireless earphones that will fit inside your ear and come with charging case

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 8, 2016

Apple is reportedly building brand new, completely wireless earphones that will fit inside of a user’s ear, along with a charging case, as per 9to5Mac.

The in-house designed hardware is similar in concept to the Motorola Hint headset and Bragi’s new Dash and said to include a noise-cancelling microphone system. The accessory will be “a premium alternative” to a Lightning-enabled version of the EarPods headset that's also in the works (EarPods are the wired in-ear headphones that came with your iPhone).

Three days ago, Japanese blog Macotakara first reported on Apple's plans to bundle the iPhone 7 with a wireless headset. The following day, Fast Company said Apple is working with a supplier on a new noise-canceling technology to be used both in the iPhone 7 and the new earphones to help remove background noise in music playback and in phone calls.

Misfit debuts stylish new activity tracker and its first wireless in-ear headphones

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 3, 2016

Wearable devices maker Misfit at CES 2016 announced new products that build on its expertise in health and fitness tracking. A new activity tracker from the company, called the Ray, tracks your movement and sleep and resembles a bracelet with a cylindrical aluminum body.

Another new product from Misfit, a first for the company: the Specter in-ear wireless headphones with dual driver technology and a built-in accelerometer sensor for tracking your activity and sleep when worn.