I like attaching a superior microphone to the lighting port for easy yet higher-quality recordings. A lot of what people are complaining about above could eventually be accomplished wirelessly, including my preferred use case, but while I'm normally a fan of innovation I think this one may be an idea that needs to percolate for another few years. On the other hand, the Smart Connector is technically a wireless connector, so ... maybe we're just interpreting this incorrectly.
I pretty much agree with this article. My read is that, yes, they talked about it... maybe even experimented a bit. But, they have no intention of doing so for a while. Apple has made some questionable decisions in recent times... but even they aren't THAT daft.
I enjoyed this article. I only wish we had more, similar articles that support us, the Apple products buyer, rather than just support Apple. We need more hard hitting articles about things like the missing SD card slot in MacBooks falsely named "Pro," and about how Apple deliberately buys the cheapest and most inferior thermal paste in China to keep their CPU and GPUs "cool," and about how Apple still hasn't create a robust MacBook Pro display that is 100% impervious to the anti-glare coating coming off.
Look, I still love Apple and have since my 128k in 1984, but that doesn't mean I worship them. When they screw up royally or are thinking about allowing Johnny Ive's over-zealous minimalism to yet again screw up royally in the future (e.g., but removing all ports on iPhones in the near future), the pro-Apple and pro-Mac and pro-iOS device MEDIA needs to call them out for it in a major way.
I don't mind a little signing to the choir in the pro-Apple articles I read, but I also know that we consumers need the media to help Apple find their way. It used to be that Steve Jobs did that. When his people started going off and doing things he didn't like, he kicked serious fanny until they got back in line. Jobs all so often knew what we wanted before we knew we wanted it. I don't hate Tim Cook, but honestly, his hands-off approach to product design and development has led Apple to the state its in now. I wish he would change and get more involved like Steve once did. Now days though, most of us stick with the Mac not because we necessarily get our money's worth in terms of product quality and features, but rather because we still love MacOS and would never defect to Windows or Linux. But if we're all honest, we want more to our Macs than just MacOS. Some find joy in getting that through building a hackintosh, but I would prefer to get that joy when buying from Apple. They only joy we get these days is seeing Apple release a new Mac (currently, only the iMac) with our beloved ports still intact.
I agree, wired connections should stick around for a while longer. Due to the ubiquity of USB-C (for phones at least) I would prefer they shift to that, but definitely have *some* kind of wired connector. Entering some kind of emergency restore-state is really a software issue and could be done just as easily over wireless (by allowing a credential-less login with a low powered, close range signal) as wired, but its too soon for that.
You can’t charge your phone while using it without a Lightning or other connector. My wife has an iPhone X with wireless charging and at least twice a week her phone isn’t charged. It’s dumb. It requires a flat surface. It falls off. You can’t send high-res video or multi-channel audio... it would be assinine to remove it. Work on giving us complete wireless functionality first, and then when we no longer need wires, remove it.
I like attaching a superior microphone to the lighting port for easy yet higher-quality recordings. A lot of what people are complaining about above could eventually be accomplished wirelessly, including my preferred use case, but while I'm normally a fan of innovation I think this one may be an idea that needs to percolate for another few years. On the other hand, the Smart Connector is technically a wireless connector, so ... maybe we're just interpreting this incorrectly.
While I agree, one major thing that wireless won’t be able to address for a while is how you use it. A wireless microphone is bad for any critical applications like multi track recording, or syncing to video. Another major use is powering external peripherals. That goes away immediately. There will likely always need to be some kind of physical connection or risk losing functionality of the device.
You can’t charge your phone while using it without a Lightning or other connector. My wife has an iPhone X with wireless charging and at least twice a week her phone isn’t charged. It’s dumb. It requires a flat surface. It falls off. You can’t send high-res video or multi-channel audio... it would be assinine to remove it. Work on giving us complete wireless functionality first, and then when we no longer need wires, remove it.
This is a first generation kind of thing in my opinion. There’s probably a way to attach a pad with magnets now, but nobody’s bothered to design one. Short of that, there are iPhone cases which put a built-in pad in contact with a puck, but the ones I’ve seen are proprietary. Apple hasn’t managed to even get an OEM pad to market a year after they offered the technology. My guess is they have a few cool options up their sleeves, which will show up when the Lightning jack is removed, if not before.
I have an HDMI adapter for my iPhone, but I rarely use it anymore. I can Cast HD video to almost any Smart TV, or via AirPlay to any Apple TV, and prefer that method. But you raise a good point ... while likely fast enough for USB 2.0 data, I’m not sure whether something like a SmartConnector would be enough to handle HD video.
Apple’s Lightning & Thunderbolt ports are platform agnostic so all a person needs to do is buy a USB-C to Lightning adapter to fulfill their USC-C dreams. Apple simply wants to have a thin port that doesn’t get in the way of their designs. This is why the analog mini-phono port was ditched. Since their ports transmit USB-C at narive speeds the only drawback is the 2 inch adapter like on my headphones. Apple has plenty of experience developing connection technologies & launching standards such as FireWire. Problem is that consortiums ruin good products like FireWire which had a faster tech but was uninterested in that direction. With its own ports Apple can deliver faster data rates with their tech & comparability with any standard at no-speed penalty. FireWire on my old iPod left USB in the dust for years. This is why when Apple developed Thunderbolt, they brought in Intel as a partner because Intel will drive implementation once Intel can roll out the fiber optics inside the PC at a cost neutral for other PC/notebook makers. Apple will undoubtedly have the fiber optics in their Macs years ahead.
It would render my phone to being a phone and an alarm clock if there were no data port.
I think most stories like these are written by people ignorant of Apple’s mindset or they are blowing smoke to sell more issues/get clicks. Apple led USB & wireless adoptions when those new products were ready to hatch.
The phone itself is ready for this. It don't need no stinkin' holes!
But, it won't happen until affordable wireless peripherals are available: Mostly, headphones and CarPlay. Currently, to include AirPods with an iPhone 6S would increase its cost by a third -- or that of an X by 15%.
If there is no data\charging connector such as Lightning, then what happens when a battery is so low the phone won't come on? I mean will the wireless charging still work at that point? Not sure removing the connector is good idea, great to have the ability of the cable for data transfer or not using wireless\bluetooth to hook up to something. If they go to usb-c i guess you could say Apple is no longer "thinking different"? The reliability of the lightning connector seem very good from a wear standpoint. Who knows if usb-c would be, seems a bit flimsy to me, but not sure. It would really be better to hear that Apple is focused on giving us the best battery performance in a smartphone. There were rumors a couple years ago about experimental battery that could go 3 to 5 days on one charge. That would be huge!
I travel a lot so carrying a wireless charger is too bulky and would be very inconvenient on the plane.
It is not about charging only. But agreed that wireless charger can be bulky
Plus you can't charge and hold to use at the same time. Just a bad idea for my use case.
I use wireless charging and AirPods with out a problem.
Your AirPods sound as good as wired headphones? I've not heard ANY bluetooth audio devices that sound better than their wired counterparts. Until that's solved I'd consider a portless smartphone a non-starter.
mac_128 said: [...] Wireless is already technically far faster than the current USB 2.0 standard the phone is using.
It may be faster in theory, but it absolutely is not in actual use. Every few days I have to transfer 20-60 GB of video to my iPhone. I have a fast wireless network (all Apple routers, with my Mac reporting speeds between 700-1100 Mbps) yet wirelessly transferring files to my iPhone takes 1.5 to 2 times longer than with a Lightning cable.
If Apple can improve the speed of wireless transfers I'd actually prefer to ditch the cable for that particular task, but they haven't yet so at this point the cable is still the preferred method. Especially on my wife's iPad Pro that uses USB3. I wish my iPhone could transfer files as fast as her iPad!
I travel a lot so carrying a wireless charger is too bulky and would be very inconvenient on the plane.
It is not about charging only. But agreed that wireless charger can be bulky
Plus you can't charge and hold to use at the same time. Just a bad idea for my use case.
I use wireless charging and AirPods with out a problem.
Your AirPods sound as good as wired headphones? I've not heard ANY bluetooth audio devices that sound better than their wired counterparts. Until that's solved I'd consider a portless smartphone a non-starter.
I used to feel the same way, but not anymore.
In practice, the differences in transducers, amplifiers, and other, practical differences from one pair of headphones to another are much greater than the difference between wired and wireless transmission. Bluetooth seems to have reached the threshold of genuine viability (at least Apple's implementation of it).
I still prefer having a headphone jack available when I need it for practical reasons (which is possible with the Lightning adaptor but not with a wireless-only device), but I would no longer count Bluetooth sound quality among reasons to resist removing jacks. There are other good reasons, but this isn't one anymore. Bluetooth is more than good enough for audio.
I travel a lot so carrying a wireless charger is too bulky and would be very inconvenient on the plane.
It is not about charging only. But agreed that wireless charger can be bulky
Plus you can't charge and hold to use at the same time. Just a bad idea for my use case.
I use wireless charging and AirPods with out a problem.
Your AirPods sound as good as wired headphones? I've not heard ANY bluetooth audio devices that sound better than their wired counterparts. Until that's solved I'd consider a portless smartphone a non-starter.
I used to feel the same way, but not anymore.
In practice, the differences in transducers, amplifiers, and other, practical differences from one pair of headphones to another are much greater than the difference between wired and wireless transmission. Bluetooth seems to have reached the threshold of genuine viability (at least Apple's implementation of it).
I still prefer having a headphone jack available when I need it for practical reasons (which is possible with the Lightning adaptor but not with a wireless-only device), but I would no longer count Bluetooth sound quality among reasons to resist removing jacks. There are other good reasons, but this isn't one anymore. Bluetooth is more than good enough for audio.
Then you've very obviously stumbled onto headphones that I've not yet used nor read about. The two primary ones I've settled on are the OneMore Triple Drivers and 2nd Gen. B&O Play H6's. You've found sound-comparable Bluetooth ones? If so then I'd love to try them for myself. While there's a positive convenience factor to dumping the wires (need for a battery and charging which also means eventual failure to hold a charge is a small negative) the better sound is what keeps me wired up.
I travel a lot so carrying a wireless charger is too bulky and would be very inconvenient on the plane.
It is not about charging only. But agreed that wireless charger can be bulky
Plus you can't charge and hold to use at the same time. Just a bad idea for my use case.
I use wireless charging and AirPods with out a problem.
Your AirPods sound as good as wired headphones? I've not heard ANY bluetooth audio devices that sound better than their wired counterparts. Until that's solved I'd consider a portless smartphone a non-starter.
I guarantee this isn’t an issue for the vast majority of Apple’s iPhone customers. Now lag is a real issue for some, but I doubt most are using an iPhone for critical listening through headphones. It’s the delay issue which is going to create problems with using the iPhone as a recording device, or even a gaming device, or anything requiring audio sync. And it’s for this reason that Apple will most likely offer some kind of physical connection, like a SmartConnector.
I travel a lot so carrying a wireless charger is too bulky and would be very inconvenient on the plane.
It is not about charging only. But agreed that wireless charger can be bulky
Plus you can't charge and hold to use at the same time. Just a bad idea for my use case.
I use wireless charging and AirPods with out a problem.
Your AirPods sound as good as wired headphones? I've not heard ANY bluetooth audio devices that sound better than their wired counterparts. Until that's solved I'd consider a portless smartphone a non-starter.
I used to feel the same way, but not anymore.
In practice, the differences in transducers, amplifiers, and other, practical differences from one pair of headphones to another are much greater than the difference between wired and wireless transmission. Bluetooth seems to have reached the threshold of genuine viability (at least Apple's implementation of it).
I still prefer having a headphone jack available when I need it for practical reasons (which is possible with the Lightning adaptor but not with a wireless-only device), but I would no longer count Bluetooth sound quality among reasons to resist removing jacks. There are other good reasons, but this isn't one anymore. Bluetooth is more than good enough for audio.
Then you've very obviously stumbled onto headphones that I've not yet used nor read about. The two primary ones I've settled on are the OneMore Triple Drivers and 2nd Gen. B&O Play H6's. You've found sound-comparable Bluetooth ones? If so then I'd love to try them for myself. While there's a positive convenience factor to dumping the wires (need for a battery and charging which also means eventual failure to hold a charge is a small negative) the better sound is what keeps me wired up.
I'm not using high-end cans. I've got a pair of Beats Solo3 that I bought mostly out of curiosity when an employee discount program let me pick them up for less than half their ridiculous, who-in-their-right-mind-would-pay-this, regular price. I have not heard any artifacts attributable to Bluetooth. They sound very similar with or without the wires. I confess haven't done any critical comparison, but that would be because nothing in the wireless experience has led me to suspect that there is a deficiency that could be overcome with a cable.
Maybe Apple has found a way to improve the experience with that special chip they use? Or it may just be that my expectations are lower than yours. My use of the iPhone as a playback device is for casual entertainment. So far I haven't heard anything that makes me feel like I'd prefer something better.
Side note: the long battery life of the Solos bit me on the ass the other day. They so rarely need charging that I never think about it. It was disappointing to start a lengthy trip and discover the battery was dead! Perhaps if they didn't go so long between charges I would be more vigilant about keeping them charged like I do my computer and phone.
I travel a lot so carrying a wireless charger is too bulky and would be very inconvenient on the plane.
It is not about charging only. But agreed that wireless charger can be bulky
Plus you can't charge and hold to use at the same time. Just a bad idea for my use case.
I use wireless charging and AirPods with out a problem.
Your AirPods sound as good as wired headphones? I've not heard ANY bluetooth audio devices that sound better than their wired counterparts. Until that's solved I'd consider a portless smartphone a non-starter.
I guarantee this isn’t an issue for the vast majority of Apple’s iPhone customers. Now lag is a real issue for some, but I doubt most are using an iPhone for critical listening through headphones. It’s the delay issue which is going to create problems with using the iPhone as a recording device, or even a gaming device, or anything requiring audio sync. And it’s for this reason that Apple will most likely offer some kind of physical connection, like a SmartConnector.
I use my iPhone and headphones for watching videos. I expected to have sync issues when I went wireless, but to my surprise I haven't. Either the delay is so low that it's not enough to affect perceived sync, or Apple has come up with a way to delay video by an equivalent amount. There may be applications in which throughput delay could be an issue, but for video playback it's fine.
Comments
My read is that, yes, they talked about it... maybe even experimented a bit. But, they have no intention of doing so for a while.
Apple has made some questionable decisions in recent times... but even they aren't THAT daft.
Look, I still love Apple and have since my 128k in 1984, but that doesn't mean I worship them. When they screw up royally or are thinking about allowing Johnny Ive's over-zealous minimalism to yet again screw up royally in the future (e.g., but removing all ports on iPhones in the near future), the pro-Apple and pro-Mac and pro-iOS device MEDIA needs to call them out for it in a major way.
I don't mind a little signing to the choir in the pro-Apple articles I read, but I also know that we consumers need the media to help Apple find their way. It used to be that Steve Jobs did that. When his people started going off and doing things he didn't like, he kicked serious fanny until they got back in line. Jobs all so often knew what we wanted before we knew we wanted it. I don't hate Tim Cook, but honestly, his hands-off approach to product design and development has led Apple to the state its in now. I wish he would change and get more involved like Steve once did. Now days though, most of us stick with the Mac not because we necessarily get our money's worth in terms of product quality and features, but rather because we still love MacOS and would never defect to Windows or Linux. But if we're all honest, we want more to our Macs than just MacOS. Some find joy in getting that through building a hackintosh, but I would prefer to get that joy when buying from Apple. They only joy we get these days is seeing Apple release a new Mac (currently, only the iMac) with our beloved ports still intact.
This is a first generation kind of thing in my opinion. There’s probably a way to attach a pad with magnets now, but nobody’s bothered to design one. Short of that, there are iPhone cases which put a built-in pad in contact with a puck, but the ones I’ve seen are proprietary. Apple hasn’t managed to even get an OEM pad to market a year after they offered the technology. My guess is they have a few cool options up their sleeves, which will show up when the Lightning jack is removed, if not before.
I have an HDMI adapter for my iPhone, but I rarely use it anymore. I can Cast HD video to almost any Smart TV, or via AirPlay to any Apple TV, and prefer that method. But you raise a good point ... while likely fast enough for USB 2.0 data, I’m not sure whether something like a SmartConnector would be enough to handle HD video.
If Apple can improve the speed of wireless transfers I'd actually prefer to ditch the cable for that particular task, but they haven't yet so at this point the cable is still the preferred method. Especially on my wife's iPad Pro that uses USB3. I wish my iPhone could transfer files as fast as her iPad!
In practice, the differences in transducers, amplifiers, and other, practical differences from one pair of headphones to another are much greater than the difference between wired and wireless transmission. Bluetooth seems to have reached the threshold of genuine viability (at least Apple's implementation of it).
I still prefer having a headphone jack available when I need it for practical reasons (which is possible with the Lightning adaptor but not with a wireless-only device), but I would no longer count Bluetooth sound quality among reasons to resist removing jacks. There are other good reasons, but this isn't one anymore. Bluetooth is more than good enough for audio.
Maybe Apple has found a way to improve the experience with that special chip they use? Or it may just be that my expectations are lower than yours. My use of the iPhone as a playback device is for casual entertainment. So far I haven't heard anything that makes me feel like I'd prefer something better.
Side note: the long battery life of the Solos bit me on the ass the other day. They so rarely need charging that I never think about it. It was disappointing to start a lengthy trip and discover the battery was dead! Perhaps if they didn't go so long between charges I would be more vigilant about keeping them charged like I do my computer and phone.
I use my iPhone and headphones for watching videos. I expected to have sync issues when I went wireless, but to my surprise I haven't. Either the delay is so low that it's not enough to affect perceived sync, or Apple has come up with a way to delay video by an equivalent amount. There may be applications in which throughput delay could be an issue, but for video playback it's fine.