iPhone 7 may retain 3.5mm headphone jack

We’ve been hearing that the iPhone 7 would ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack, and have even gone so far as to see it in Apple’s iOS code. Apple’s patent filing for wireless headphones seems to have sealed the deal, but a new report says that Apple may ditch the idea of the wireless  headphone jack and retain the 3.5mm port for wired headphones in the iPhone 7.

That’s the word from China’s Ganzhou province, where a smartphone repair shop called Rock Fix has been uploading photos of the iPhone 7, showing that the 3.5mm headphone jack still remains.

Of course, nothing can be verified at this point, as Apple has not yet commented on the matter either way, but it’s interesting to see that due to the outpouring of leaks and discussion around the traditional feature, Apple could backtrack on its decision and stick with it anyway. These leaks of the iPhone 7 could be earlier leaks (Apple could’ve changed course by now), and Apple still has 3 months to go before the announcement. The iPhone 7 has entered production by now, or will enter production soon, but these photo leaks at least indicate that Apple may be thinking hard about whether or not to do away with it.

Regardless of consumer preferences toward maintaining it, I’d like to see wired headphones and the 3.5mm jack go the way of the dinosaur. Apple has been considering the possibility of adding a second audio speaker in its place, and this is a decision I’d heartily prefer over the wired headphone jack. With the current wireless generation we live in, and with the freedom to take Bluetooth headphones and travel without worrying about your headphones disconnecting from your smartphone, it’s about time we get with current tech trends and stop living in the 1990s when Sony headphones were the ones to beat. Of course, I am not all customers, but I don’t see a point in going wireless with our smartphones but retaining wired headphones and the headphone jack. The 3.5mm headphone jack’s continued existence is a reminder that we haven’t gone quite wireless enough.

Via