Dear Apple What in the name of Ashton Kutcher did we ever do to you? I mean COME ON. That time that you made the iPhone 6s that was in no way different from the 6, and sold it at full price was bad enough, but this? This is too far. Or that time that your phones gained the ability to bend. Or that time you switched the chargers out for no good reason and still managed to jew the sweet dollars from blind sheep. But now, removing the headphone jack, the one thing that allows anybody in the car to drop that hot bass and fire on the Aux cord, to use any set of headphones or earbuds, you've goofed. You've really goofed it. Even if it doesn't matter how bad you've goofed it. But let's slow it down. Ignoring the fact that removing the headphone jack was for no reason other than sheer greed. Ignoring the fact that you call your fancy new attachment a 'dongle' (My inner ten year old is bursting at the seams right now, you're making this too easy for me Apple), ignoring the fact that the AirPods or AirBuds or whatever the actual hell they are cost more than a cheap quickie at the redlight district in Shanghai, the real issue here is that you are going to get away with it, you sons of motherless guinea hens, and you will make money. The simple reason being, you have successfully made it too god damn hard and too much of a hassle to switch from my shiny iPhone 6s, to a shiny explod-o-matic Samsung. Congratulations Apple users. We all played ourselves. Pat yourselves on the back. Apple has become to phones what Windows is to PC's (Even as I type this on a Macbook Air), you know people cannot make that switch without great time and expense, and you use that difficulty every time you roll out a shiny new piece of hardware to squeeze your customers harder and harder. And it's worked every time. It worked with the 5 and it's new charger. It worked with the 6s and it's lack of anything new at all. And it will work again. Because switching to another OS (Which includes rebutting all of the apps, setting up new accounts, etc) is an iPad Pro sized hassle. This jack thing removes sweet capability from the device while giving nothing in return, like my girlfriend did to my pen- nevermind. And the amazing replacement tech, Bluetooth, is an improvement in the same way my new girlfriend was an improvement over the old one -- Doesn't look as good, is more expensive, and has to be charged every night. But thanks to this difficulty, and the great scare of the Samsung Boom, you, Apple, will make a killing regardless, and we, the too lazy to be bother public will sigh, complain on some forums, and take it up the rear again. I expect the next iPhone to have a new charger and no texting app. Everything will need to be voice text. Stay tuned for the next innovation after that: "Everyone send us $150, preferably through Apple Pay." Apple, I expected so much more from you when you put out a revolutionary piece of technology like the Steve Jobs, but now, my confidence fades. I won't do anything about it though, I'm part of the problem. Sincerely, Zeth (Ashamed Owner of a MacBook Pro, iPad Air, iPhone 6, iWatch*, and many lightning chargers.) P.S. Be sure and change the Mac charger again. Thanks *Apple Watch
I used to collect Apple devices and put them in a display case at home. Beautiful and useless creations they are. Well 95% of the time useless. Apple's only wants to appeal to a certain type of people. If you do not find their products appealing or useful anymore, then I suggest you move on.
They removed the headphone jack to make it slimmer. Think about it, that jack is huge, like a well hung ...... Yes it sucks, I feel ya, as I use my iPhone 5 to plug into my SUV audio system to bump some tunes. But, get with the times. Most stuff is now Bluetooth. BAM. Morale of this- ug your crap to the real world bro
To move toward a truly wireless future, we must first entirely alienate our entire wire using consumer group, because screw those guys, give us some money.
:grin: Really though, Apple does these things because they know their consumer base. They know their customers will buy into it regardless. Even people who are annoyed will either use the wireless buds (probably lose em in 5 mins and pay whatever price for a new one) or fork out the money for the adapter. Either way they win. And they know that. Personally I have no issue with iPhones. This though, seems unfair. What if someone prefers other headphones? Well bad luck. It's not difficult at all to switch to Android btw. There's little to manage account wise.
I have four people on my Apple family plan, countless apps, countless dollars put into said apps, contacts, emails, notes, etc, on up to maybe fifteen total devices throughout the family. I'd rather shoot myself in the toe than make that switch right now.
Your contacts, messages, notes etc. won't be lost. It's easy to move everything over with one app. As for your apps, they'll still run on an android phone. Off whatever account you use. Just download it and sign in. You'll need to make a Gmail account for the play store. It's all rather straight forward though, if you choose to make the switch.
Well gee, nothing can be simple, so what's the catch? I personally loathe the Android operating system. If I ever do make a switch, it'll be to a Windows phone.
The difficult part is probably that it takes a little bit of getting used to. Otherwise it's not that hard tbh. I'd suggest picking the phone you'd prefer and familiarising yourself with it and how to transfer everything before switching. The Smart Switch app is good for moving everything over. Edit: That's for Samsung only from memory. Though I could have sworn it was Android and iPhone based when I used it. Hmm.
This is the first Time I will not buy the latest Apple iPhone. My 6S is great and I plan on waiting till 2017 for the newest version. That's all.
Ive upgraded every 2 years since the iphone 3g, except this year. 3.5mm audio standard removal was the deal breaker. Not saying apple shouldnt cater to the water-resistance crowd, but until Bluetooth doesnt sound like crap compared to my Sennhieser's, i'll pass I have the ability to listen via lightning usb in my car, but that doesnt help when i listen to audiobooks on my phone or itunes for hours with headphones at work while keeping the battery charged at 100% When I got the iPhone 5, it was a month before I could get a second lightning charge cable. I'd expect it to take a year or so before headphone makers get up to par with digital audio that sounds decent Or the price drops. Im not paying 500$ for Bluetooth headphones, when my 150$ Sennheisers sound great
You only need one lightning charger because they come with warranty. And the earphone change with the 7 IS actually warranted, but it is still ****** up a bit. I have a 5 but I'll just upgrade to a 6 or 6plus when the prices drop along with the 7's release. Just stick with the 6.
I sunk a healthy 250 bucks into my Beats Studio Product Placement Special, which aren't Bluetooth. Not willing to pay the same for another pair with Bluetooth capability. Nor am I willing to pay another bundle of cash for a downgrade from the phone I already have. My family have been loyal Apple users since the first iPhone graced us with it's beauty, but this is pushing it.
Zeth, you hit the nail on the head. As an electronic engineer, specifically dealing with user interface issues and morphing technology around the consumer, I think this latest upgrade was horrid, to put it mildly. I would never have dreamed that they would remove the headphone jack, in return for waterproof ability. Not a fair trade. Everyone uses headphones , whereas not everyone takes pictures in less than 3 ft of water. They should have made 2 models, one with standard headphone jack, and a new model which allows waterproof ability at the cost of the headphone jack. Wife and I are keeping out iPhone 6 and 6 plus for quite a while. I just installed brand new batteries in our phones and they operate and look as new, so no reason to switch. Airpods are a horrid idea. I won't even wear ear plugs at the shooting range. I'm not gonna switch over to stuffing them in my ear just to have headphones. It's just one more stupid thing to charge and one more thing to keep track of. Technology is supposed to make our lives simpler, not add to the daily grind of more stuff to carry around or worry about losing . Great post, spot on