Apple Tries To Solve Headphone Jack Problem With A More Complicated Solution

Apple got rid of the 3.5mm headphone jack with their latest smartphone offerings to force users to use Lightning compatible headphones, but this presented consumers with a problem. If they wanted to listen to music and charge their phones at the same time, they wouldn’t be able to use the Lightning port for one of those things. Apple’s answer is a Lightning dock that does have a 3.5mm headphone, which pretty much complicates things even further.

One of Apple’s reasons for getting rid of the headphone jack as far as their smartphones’ actual frames is concerned is because they viewed it as ancient technology, 9-to-5 Mac notes. Instead, the company is encouraging users to purchase Bluetooth headphones or use the wired Lightning headphones that come with each unit.

However, since the one Lightning port that the “iPhone 7” comes with is used for both charging the smartphone and using the headphones, it can be difficult to do both at the same time. Enter the “Lightning Dock,” which costs between $39 and $49. This seems to be the official solution by Apple when it comes to wired headphones while still encouraging users to instead go for its Bluetooth units called “AirPods.” Users will have to shell out $159 for a pair of those.

Clearly, this solution presents a few problems for the users, one of which is the matter of portability. Are users expected to bring the dock wherever they go just to experience this solution? There’s also the matter of the dock having a 3.5mm headphone jack, which is not compatible with the default wired headphone of the smartphone.

Perhaps most concerning, however, is the prospect of spending even more on another Apple product. As BGR notes, consumers are not going to be thrilled at the thought of having to spend more money on top of the small fortune that they already spent for the “iPhone 7.” It just seems like the tech giant is intent on digging a deeper hole for itself with every action it’s making now.