this post was submitted on 14 Dec 2023
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On a recent post, there were a lot of comments, which said that they were missing the headphones on newer mobile devices.

How many actually use the headphone jack?

I ask, because I have one on my phone, since I really wanted one, but I rarely use it. Like Tops 1/Month.

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[–] spare_muppets@lemmy.ca 4 points 11 months ago

I use wired headphones daily thru a USB c adapter

[–] ICastFist@programming.dev 4 points 11 months ago

I use mine, both on my phone and tablet.

I have a bluetooth headphone, but the hassle of dealing with battery dying out, then having to reach for my pocket in a crowded bus to put it back on the pod/charger isn't worth it. I nearly lost one of the pieces because it fell off my ear. Also, the only other situation where it'd be good, which is having it in my ears while I do house chores without the phone in my pocket, suffers from "wall interference".

[–] FeelThePower@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 11 months ago

Every single day, maybe a few times a year I don't use it. Though because I have an iphone, my headphone jack is on an adapter. But still, I know for certain it's not something I can ever give up at this point, have tried the Bluetooth thing.

[–] Send_me_nude_girls@feddit.de 4 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

I won't buy a phone that doesn't have it. I hate to charge my wireless earbuds, also they break after a few years for no reason because the battery got old. So I have a physical aux headset, will last me 10 years easy and never needs charging.

BUT the other day someone suggested to just get an usb-c to aux adapter and I'll probably do that in future if the aux connector isn't present on the next phone.

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[–] CalamityBalls@kbin.social 4 points 11 months ago

I do, but rarely. Maybe every other month or so. The situations I do use it, I've been thankful that I avoided phones without a jack. I like having appropriate tools at my disposal, and bluetooth will never be universally applicable.

[–] Toadvark@mander.xyz 4 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

I use mine consistently, and the presence of one will be a dealbreaker when I choose my next phone. I use it with an AUX cable in my car, wired headphones I already own, and (most importantly) with a Square point of sale thingamajig at shows. Bluetooth options exist for the last thing of course, but they have their own disadvantages- and I'd rather be able to use both options than just one!

[–] kux@kbin.social 4 points 11 months ago

When I was looking for a new phone I gave up and bought a usb c dac/amp from Fiio. Ended up buying a phone from Sony which does have a 3.5 port (and sd card too) but continue to use the dongle anyway as it sounds better. Use it 2-3 times a week

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/fiio-x-jade-audio-ka1-dac-amp.25817/reviews

[–] Diabolo96@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 11 months ago

I bought 2 different Bluetooth earphones that I ended up rarely ever using and instead use my standard quality cable headphones.

[–] Iseja@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

Used to use it daily but dropped it a few too many times with a cable inserted and now it can only be used in the car in a very specific angle.

[–] MicrowavedTea@infosec.pub 3 points 11 months ago

I thought I'd use it when I got my phone but I've since found Bluetooth headphones that are actually convenient so I don't. Now this headphone form factor is dying so I might go back to wired once they stop working. I hope the jack still exists by then.

[–] SpaceMan9000@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

I use both practically daily.

[–] Dremor@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

I had wired headphones, went to a good wireless one (Sony WH-1000XM3), and I will never go back.

Most people I know that want the headphones jack back want it to be able to use good quality wired headphones they already own, mainly because they can't afford (or just don't want to buy) a good quality wireless one.

Seriously. If you can buy a new mid-range smartphone, you have enough to buy premium wireless headphones. If you can't, most cheap smartphones have audio jacks. Just skip this smartphone generation to buy good wireless headphones and you are set for years.

[–] andyMFK@reddthat.com 3 points 11 months ago

I use it every day

[–] IcyEcho@feddit.uk 3 points 11 months ago

I used to use mine almost every day with the same set of earbuds that I've had for probably close to a decade at this point. Since getting a phone without a jack, I listen to music significantly less now which is quite upsetting. I'm not the type to use the speaker on the phone since I've always seen that as rude, and the wireless earbuds that I have are just inconvenient to use at best and not the same quality compared to the wired ones (That's not to say that they're poor quality but I can absolutely tell the difference on my favourite songs).

I've been very tempted to just go back to my old phone once the contract on my current one has ended if modern phones are going to move away from 3.5mm jacks.

It has been an excellent universal standard for decades and the arguments about it being obsolete make no sense as it isn't being replaced by something superior, it's just being deleted entirely and a cumbersome workaround is being sold as a positive thing. The only real argument I can see for deleting the jack is that it saves the manufacturers a couple of pennies per unit.

[–] lucullus@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 11 months ago

Every evening in bed I hear audiobooks for a bit. Simple wired in-ears are good for laying on your side (only one side in) while they won't be lost that easily as wireless ear buds. Also they never need to be recharged

[–] benvars@kbin.social 3 points 11 months ago

Weekly, since i moved i don't really care how much noise i make, but i still use my wired headphones daily with my computer

[–] nicetriangle@kbin.social 3 points 11 months ago

I don't have one anymore but even if I did I wouldn't use it. Much prefer wireless.

[–] papabobolious@feddit.nu 3 points 11 months ago

I want it mostly for aux in various cars. Also neat to plug into PC speakers and such.

I'd pass up on fingerprint scanner and nfc before the jack tbh.

[–] Deceptichum@kbin.social 3 points 11 months ago

Never.

You’ll never hear from the people who don’t miss it because it’s nothing for us to talk about, so it seems like everyone only wants them back when in reality the vast majority don’t care.

[–] cttttt@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

When the 3.5-less trend started setting in, I still had a phone with a headphone jack but started looking into wireless Bluetooth digital audio convertors just to prepare myself for the reality that it'll eventually be hard to find a phone that's both....good...and that I could plug my IEMs into.

One I settled on was the Radsone ES100. Besides allowing me to continue to use my headphones, one feature I really liked was its ability to store equalizer settings that could be used with any source, whether it be a Bluetooth device or one I plug the DAC into via USB. I found that there were equalizer apps for Android, but they kept getting killed because of memory limitations I guess. This device externalized the EQ.

Anyways some of the folks who made that branched off and made an even better version, the Qudelix 5K. It has the same features but does a better job of simultaneously connecting to multiple devices (but sadly it doesn't mix the sources...it just has a priority 😔😔😔😔). So I grabbed that upgrade and now the headphone side of my audio is locked in.

I found that getting a Bluetooth DAC helped me feel better about the trend of removing a standard audio connector from devices (which I gotta say, still makes no sense). It still frustrates me that I need to walk around with another device and the limitations of Bluetooth are annoying, but the cool thing is that when my last 3.5mm jack equip device (OnePlus 5) just stopped turning on, I just grabbed a random replacement phone (Pixel 5) and kept the same audio chain.

tl;dr - Consider just accepting that this is the trend for phones these days and try a portable Bluetooth (or even USB) DAC. When you find one you like, moving to any source will be less stressful. It won't matter if it has a headphone jack: you'll be able to focus on other features or even just get a less costly device that'll sound identical to what u know.

[–] jeena@jemmy.jeena.net 3 points 11 months ago

Since I went bluetooth I have to charge constantly which is annoying. But at the same time while I was wired the cBle always got in the way in a way so the phone would fall on the street or some hard floor at least omce but sometimes twice a year and breal.

Since I'm on bluetooth I didn't break any screen in the last 5 years. I'M NOT GOING BACK TO WIRED, IT'S TOO EXPENSIVE.

[–] MrScottyTay@sh.itjust.works 3 points 11 months ago

I would if I had one. I still use wired headphones so I have to either use specific usb headphones (which are not my favourite kind) or a dongle so I can use my preferred headphones which are a pair of over ear clip on ones. There are no wireless versions of those kinds of headphones.

[–] SeaJ@lemm.ee 3 points 11 months ago

If I had one, I would. I walked my kid to school recently and grabbed some wired ear buds for the walk back. I had to spend the walk back listening to boring nature and shit.

There is really no reason to not have one. It does not significantly increase the cost of the phone. The space saving excuse does not really hold water. If the Zenfone can fit one, then all the other gargantuan phones should be able to.

[–] BirdyBoogleBop@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 11 months ago

3 times a week for about 2 hours each.

[–] Deeleres@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 11 months ago

Right now at work I would use one but my phone (Xperia XZ3) doesn't have a headphone jack. So I use an old Bluetooth Headset with a jack. The whole setup were presents from friends and my boss, so I wouldn't complain about any of that. 📱🎧 👍

But thinking about it: It's totally stupid to build a phone without a headphone jack. My previous phone (XZ) 🥲 had one and it was waterproof.

[–] Gigan@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

I use it several times a week. I specifically bought a phone that still had a headphone jack. I'm over bluetooth earbuds. Too expensive, too easy to lose, too easy to fall out of my ears and break.

[–] FishFace@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

I use mine fairly often. I don't actually listen to music all that much but sometimes I do when my phone is my only data source, and I don't have wireless headphones.

[–] RinseDrizzle@midwest.social 3 points 11 months ago

Quite frequently for sure. I'm a musician in a band, a DJ, and working on becoming more of a producer. Plugging in for amplifying or sampling happens fairly often. Being an audiophile, I'm also partial to wired connections over Bluetooth which can be more unreliable in performance settings. Never wanted to mess with battery powered phones too. Already have charger fatigue pretty bad.

[–] Thassodar@lemm.ee 3 points 11 months ago

I loved the headphone jack on the S10, but other issues I had with the charging port made me switch to an S23 at the beginning of this year. I generally do not like wireless headphones due to the possibility of losing them, but using wired headphones and requiring an adapter to use them (because the S23 has no headphone jack) is a pain.

Overall, due to the specific nature of my phone, I'd use wireless headphones to regain the ability to answer and respond to phone calls while walking and listening to music. If I could get a Galaxy S class of phone with a headphone jack again, regardless of the thickness, I'd 100% be all over it.

[–] squirrelwithnut@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

My current phone (Pixel 8) and my previous phone (Pixel 3) don't have one. My previous phone before those had one but even then I never used it, because I've been using Bluetooth headphones for forever.

[–] Ejh3k@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

I had wired headphones for very specific times, and since my new phone doesn't have the jack I'm not fully sure how I'll deal in those situations.

[–] Robboman93@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

I use it everyday, I still like wired earphones a lot.

[–] AgentGrimstone@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

Often enough to want it. I use it all the time in waiting rooms.

[–] notapantsday@feddit.de 3 points 11 months ago

Never ever. It wasn't the reason why I got my current phone, but I thought I would use it at least sometimes. I don't.

[–] scoops@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

Multiple times a day. I have a wired pair of nice pair of headphones at my desk at work. Using cable is the simplest way to switch between phone and computer. In the car 3.5mm, at the gym I have iems I like to use. The other times I find it valuable is plane travel with steam deck and phone easily swapping audio source for whatever I am I'm the mood for. On planes I use circum-aural with active noise canceling. At work I have on-ear. I have different headphones for different situations.

[–] protput@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago (2 children)

Tbh. I love my Samsung buds. I don't understand people complaining about the hassle of wireless. It is the wires that are always a hassle imo. My earbuds just pop out the case and are ready.

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[–] JGrffn@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I use mine whenever I want to use my M50Xs. I tried buds, twice. Galaxy buds and Sony XM4s, the XM4s fell into a pool and the galaxy buds were simply misplaced. The galaxy buds sounded like absolute trash while the XM4 were actually decent, but why would I prefer them over the M50X? Now I'm switching from my note 9 to the pixel 8 pro and I don't know what I'll be doing about the lack of headphone jack.

My girlfriend has it even worse, her car only has AUX, no Bluetooth. I got her a Pixel 8 for Christmas, so she'll lose the only way to put music in her car. I also don't know what I'll be doing about that.

Honest take? We've got neural chips on our phones, we got cameras rivaling pro-level cameras, but we keep losing some very essential and basic features for no fucking reason. The headphone jack should've never been removed. Hell, the IR blaster should've never been removed, I'd kill for a high end phone with such things. Radio is another one, it's never going away as a means of communication, but fuck me for thinking I should have an antenna for radio in a box full of antennas for everything else, right?

Hey maybe I'm wrong about radio and it's just unfeasible to provide good quality signal for all things in a 6 inch box. Maybe I'm wrong about the IR blaster somehow even though TVs, LED stripes, and garage doors still use IR. But it's ridiculous to force no headphone jack as a trend that everyone just follows, all for pricier and shittier Bluetooth buds.

We used to be able to fit all this shit into phones back then, there's 0 reason to exclude them over size constraints now. If the reason is "butt fastah phowns", my 5 year old note 9 still feels more than snappy enough. Maybe we should spend more time making our shit efficient in order to use less space for heat dissipation, as well as better battery life or less battery size for the same battery life. Seriously who needs the kind of computing power found on phones nowadays? Is it really worth it to sacrifice basic QOL functionality for more speed?

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[–] Metans@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

Never for headphones, but I use an aux cable to connect to my amp and play along with music

[–] Paranomaly@sh.itjust.works 3 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Every day.

While I'm walking/commuting, I have my headphones in and am listening to something, be it music, podcasts, or audiobooks. Even on days I don't have anywhere to go I'll go on a walk for about an hour and will be listening to something the whole time. I'd buy a phone without a camera before I bought one without a headphone jack.

[–] a1studmuffin@aussie.zone 3 points 11 months ago

I use it a few times a month. I've got fantastic Bluetooth earbuds, but occasionally in zoom calls I'll switch from my PC to my phone on the fly, and the wired PC headset comes with me since it's got a nice microphone and noise cancelling. I can't imagine trying to switch quickly like this with Bluetooth!

I also tend to use wired headphones when commuting in busy areas (city train stations etc.) as Bluetooth falls apart in these conditions... dropouts piss me off. I listen to offline MP3s for the same reason.

I've gone without before - my last phone didn't have a headphone jack and I never bothered with the USBC dongle because it was a pain - but having the flexibility is more convenient.

I only upgrade every 4-5 years, so it makes it easier to find a newish phone that has a headphone jack. It frustrates me that new laptops still include headphone jacks, but most new phones don't. It's a stupid inconsistency.

[–] aDuckk@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

Used mine every day until that phone's screen stopped responding and at the time none of the otherwise decent phones with decent prices had a jack. Headphone jack will remain a consideration in my next phone purchase once this one dies.

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