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PC World has an article on why USB-C has not been a viable alternative for the 3.5mm audio jack. Problems with USB-C include variable handling of digital to audio conversion, incompatible SOCs inside the cable, and non-standard analog-passthrough. In short, the cables which contain computers themselves are not standardized in behavior and the author's conclusion is that mobile devices must have 3.5mm jacks until the USB-C cable technology gets sorted out enough that they become usable.
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Bring Back the Headphone Jack: Why USB-C Audio Still Doesn't Work
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We must believe that it is the darkest before the dawn of a beautiful
new world. We will see it when we believe it.
-- Saul Alinsky
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Shimitar on Wednesday September 12 2018, @06:04AM (11 children)
Getting rid of the 3.5mm jack?
It's standard. It's well proven. It has NO disadvantages of any kind. It's the best quality solution by far. It can be IP67 compliant, as a few vendors have them.
... it's legacy for old grumpers?
For me a few requirements are mandatory in a phone:
. Audio Jack since i still use it DAILY. I had been an happy Bluetooth headphones user for a while, then after two years the battery basically gave out. While i was pondering which model to buy i used wired hearBUDS and i was shocked at the quality and ease of use. I did not bought a new BT headset, i sticked with the stock-hearbuds provided with my phone and i am happier ever since (i don't cycle anymore, so maybe that was a good reason for BT stuff)
. MicroUSB, no usb-C. I don't get it, really. Why, why? What does usb-c gives me more? Why should i purchase new cables for my office, for my car and for so many plug-places i have around the house? Mind you, provide NEW plug places, since all our phones and tablets are MicroUSB so i cannot just replace them cables.
.External uSD. I recently broke my phone (by banging on the head of my dog, but she is fine, she did not even noticed) and i was oh SO glad everything was on my uSD. Specially the few unreplaceable videos i just took (and could not be backed up on the cloud since i had no signal at the place). No thanks, it was just the uSD which saved me, never a phone without one. Or provide me a way to access data from the internal memory even if i broke or drown my phone.
. Available LineageOS port (or hopes for one), so for example open or unlockable boot loader. Added points if that does not invalidate warranty.
. replaceable battery. My old phone i had three and an offline charger... Loved to be able to never ever run out of juice even if i tried very hard. (And five years of life, since battery is the only part that wears out)
Yes i found a valid replacement, i had to relax just one requirement, but i will not post it's name unless somebody wants it.
Coding is an art. No, java is not coding. Yes, i am biased, i know, sorry if this bothers you.
(Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 12 2018, @06:12AM
Because Courage®, of course!
(Score: 4, Informative) by maxwell demon on Wednesday September 12 2018, @07:49AM (2 children)
To the music industry, it has: You simply cannot apply DRM to it. If they ever manage to get USB headphones to be the new standard, one day they might label converters to audio jack as circumvention device.
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 12 2018, @02:48PM (1 child)
As someone who is actually part of the music industry I can state that virtually fucking nobody* thinks this shit. It's all made up, a strawman, imported from clueless slashdot pimply dorks.
*Nobody in this case means I have never met anyone with any *credibility* that thinks up this shit.
No, not even at the evil sony, muahahaa
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday September 13 2018, @10:51AM
Bean counters and lawyers do and they're the ones making most of the decisions lately else we'd have a lot less music that sounds exactly the fucking same.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 3, Informative) by coolgopher on Wednesday September 12 2018, @09:09AM (2 children)
Actually, it isn't easy/cheap to waterproof, and the jack can collect dust of various levels of problemacy. Having a bung in it is just painful, and the bung is likely to get pulled off accidentally.
Less time turning the cable over again and again to work out the correct orientation, and an overall easier time plugging the cable in.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 12 2018, @10:10AM (1 child)
USB-C has less cable turning need than a 3.5mm jack? Are you serious? Have you ever seen a 3.5mm audio jack? Hint: It even works if you turn it by 15.76593 degrees. Try that with USB-C.
(Score: 2) by bryan on Wednesday September 12 2018, @07:03PM
That quoted line was talking about MicroUSB, not the round audio jack. Some people (Europe) tried very hard to make MicroUSB the one-and-only connector allowed - I'm glad they failed (the USB3 variants [wikipedia.org] of MicroUSB were especially atrocious.)
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 12 2018, @01:22PM (1 child)
Yes! I would like to know...
(Score: 2) by Shimitar on Wednesday September 12 2018, @02:08PM
You asked for that.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5.
It has no removable battery, but has all the other points, including the unlockable bootloader which does NOT void warranty.
PLUS it has NO notch. And, yes, it's even clear of UsbC.
And the price point is sweet low, so i am not worried if the locked battery is a pain to change in three years time.
Coding is an art. No, java is not coding. Yes, i am biased, i know, sorry if this bothers you.
(Score: 2) by urza9814 on Wednesday September 12 2018, @02:15PM
I've got the exact same list of requirements....I'm looking at an LG G5 for my next phone because nobody has manufactured one that's actually USABLE in the last two years.
I've currently got a Galaxy S5 though, so the G5 isn't much of an upgrade...but at least it's fairly cheap these days :)
Although I have no problem with USB-C as long as it's also got a headphone jack...I know they've been using the USB-C port for both host and device, but you CAN buy a USB-A to USB-C cable to connect to any chargers/devices that don't have USB-C ports. It's backwards compatible just like any other USB port type. And if you bought the chargers with non-removable cables you can also get a micro-USB to USB-C adapter for a couple bucks. Haven't used it yet so I'm not sure if the new standard is worth that small annoyance, but it seems like it might be from what I've read.
(Score: 3, Informative) by DannyB on Wednesday September 12 2018, @05:08PM
While I want to keep the headphone jack, I have become a fan of USB-C. More data pins.
I can grab either end of the cable and plug it into the charger, and the other end into the phone -- or -- laptop! No more making sure I've got the right end of the cable.
When you plug a USB-C cable into a device, you can plug it in either way. In practice this means you only have to flip the cable one time!
1. Attempt to plug cable into device -- oops
2. flip cable, and it inserts
But with USB micro-B, the cable can only be plugged into the device one way, so effectively this means . . .
1. Attempt to plug cable into device -- oops
2. flip cable, and . . . oops
3. flip cable again, and it inserts.
You have to admit the USB-C way is better, 2 steps instead of 3.
But wait . . . there's more! (Now how much would you pay?)
I can use a Laptop USB-C charger (45W) with the phone. I can use a Phone USB-C charger (15W) with the laptop. They negotiate. None of the mishmash of "fast charging" standards from multiple vendors.
When I use the phone charger on the laptop, there is an on screen message that says it is charging more slowly than normal. This means I could use a USB C phone charger on the laptop in a pinch.
Every performance optimization is a grate wait lifted from my shoulders.