Quote:
Originally Posted by Solitaire1
One thing I find irritating is how people have been pushed to Bluetooth (BT) for their headphones due to the removal of the headphone jack. The standard headphone jack (3.5mm) is a proven connector that just works. I doubt that it was due to waterproofing issues because I think there should be a way to deal with the issue such as a cap when it's not in use.
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When Apple announced their "revolutionary" change, they were pushing how much thinner the new generation iPhones were. Waterproofing a 3.5mm jack is no more technically difficult than waterproofing a Lightning connector, but that waterproofing incurs bulk. I think the technical difficulty was with reliably waterproofing within the available space between the top and bottom shell layers.
They also had just finished acquiring Beats which at the time was the largest seller of wireless headphones in the world (might still be for all I know). I'm not saying that the change was to promote Beats sales, but follow the money suggests a
very happy coincidence.