How many of you actually use the headphone jack on your phone?

https://feddit.de/post/6698517

How many of you actually use the headphone jack on your phone? - Feddit

On a recent post [https://lemmy.world/post/9491179], there were a lot of comments, which said that they were missing the headphones on newer 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.

Me
Fair. Personally I prefer wireless, since my headphone wires break all the time due to heavy use, but I can understand, why you’d like to be able to use both.
Wireless headphones have to be charged so often, it’s just annoying. Good old trusty wired headphones never need to be charged.
A decent pair can charge enough for hours in minutes. When they about to die, pop one out and into the case, let it charge until the one in your ear is dead or dying, swap them out, 10 minutes and you’re back to stereo for a few hours.
I can get 2-3 days of use out of my wireless before they absolutely need to be charged. They’re not the best sound quality out there, but they have the features I need for my situation.
If they were wired I bet you’d have to untangle them more often than you currently charge them
Last time I tried to use wired headphones for work, the connection snapped off in the port. I’m definitely good to stay away from wired headphones for everything other than my computer.
I broke one off into a jack in my entertainment center computer once, ruined my week until I could get money to fix everything.

If they were wired I bet you’d have to untangle them

I never have to untangle my IEM cables. A civilized person keeps their IEM-s in the carry case when not in use.

Cool. You know that the majority of people have no clue what that even is, and that wouldn’t apply to those folks.

Anyway Congratulations on having a nice investment piece for your audio enjoyment

A pair of 40€ Denons is not really an "investment piece", even though they have lasted me for 10 years.
I’m not super versed on monitors outside of stage performances, and I didn’t do acquisitions. Don’t most people who use IEM’s for standard audio use a nice driver or prefer a device with a good audio out and lossless format compatibility? I guess I kinda assumed if you cared enough to distinguish using monitors instead of earbuds you care about other factors too.

IEM is easier to type than "in-ear headphones" and has become the defacto generic term for them, just like "monitor" has become to mean any stand mount/bookshelf speaker.

Anyway, over the past few years the market has flooded with cheap and very good "IEM-s" by manufacturers like Moondrop, Truthear and others. 30€ can get you a pair that follows Harman curve quite closely and has low enough distortion to allow EQ. Generally they use 10mm dynamic drivers instead of balanced armatures, but they also have more expensive multi-way BA and DD/BA options.

In short, high quality IEM style headphones have become a commodity and you don't need to be an audiophile or muso who's willing to pay hundreds for Shure SE535-s.

For larger models, replaceable batteries would improve this situation a lot. Of course that would hurt the manufacturers’ planned obsolescence strategy.

Not so true. I use a set of “wireless” where the two ears are connected around the back of my neck. (A pair of beatx). These have 12hr battery and I listen a lot. I only kill the batteries on long ski days (the cold probably bring the battery life down a bit).

All my complaints at this point are lack of options in this mostly perfect form factor.

(Better fit in my ears, better sound, etc). This isn’t a wired/wireless problem.

my headphone wires break all the time

Are these detachable wires? Because I used to kill headphones all the time tripping over their wires but since I started getting ones with the 3.5 mm jack on the headphone side that hasn’t happened since.

my headphone wires break all the time due to heavy use

Some wired headphones have a detachable cable. Large ones use a 3.5mm jack on both ends, but there are standards for small ones.

MMCX vs 2 Pin Cables for IEM | IEM 101

Latest IEMs feature detachable cables with two different types of connectors, MMCX and 2-Pin. The MMCX connectors provide a more strong connection, the cable snaps into the ports with a producing a clicking sound. It locks in the cable and earpieces securely. Two-pin connectors are of two types, straight pin, and angled QDC pin. As evident from the name straight pin features two straight pins, the QDC variant has angular 2-pins with a covering. Two-pin connectors are of two sizes, 0.75mm, and 0.78mm. Users should always check the connector type on their IEM first before ordering a cable. Even though they don’t affect the sound quality of your earphones in any way, they surely have their own pros and cons. Two-Pin Connectors:-  Two-Pin connectors are of two types, straight pin and angled QDC pin. Both the variants come in two different sizes, 0.75mm and 0.78mm. Users can buy the one matching with their IEMs. There is no lock-in mechanism and the pins are delicate. They are so light that one can turn the pins with their fingers by applying a little pressure. These connectors are very prone to get damaged, even while putting the IEMs in cases some pressure might get applied at the connector points and they might get damaged. But this issue got solved with the introduction of QDC two-pin connectors as they have a covering around the angled connectors. The main issue with QDC two-pin connectors is since the connectors are angled, these are not suitable for IEMs that are worn in the “Cable Down” way. Two-Pin cables can be connected in reverse polarity mode, connecting the left side of the cable to the right Earpiece and vice versa. Reverse Polarity affects the sound output in most of the cases as the current gets mirrored. This messes up the sound quality heavily and makes the pair sound weird. Moondrop Blessing 2, QDC Uranus are few of the IEMs that use two-pin connectors. Pros of Two-Pin Connectors:- >The connection is firm, earpieces don’t rotate around on the cable. >Cheaper than MMCX connectors. >Easy to change cables without any hassle. Cons of Two-Pin connectors:- >Delicate and prone to get damaged easily. >Could be connected in opposite points, Right side of the cable to the left earpiece and vice versa, resulting in reverse polarity that might damage earphone driver. MMCX Connectors:- MMCX connectors provide a more secure connection between the cable and the earpieces with a snap-in locking mechanism. Mostly new IEMs have gold-plated MMCX connectors. Even though they are preferred mostly, they are more suitable with IEMS that are supposed to be worn in the “Cable Down” way, probably due to the aforementioned Lock-in mechanism that prevents the weight or strain to pull out the cable from the earpieces. But this lock-in mechanism is not always good, sometimes it is very tight and it becomes very hard to change the cable. Applying force might result in a breakage of the connector ports on the cable or earpieces. Audiosense AQ3, DUNU DK4001 are some IEMs with MMCX connector type. Pros of MMCX connectors:- >Safe and secure connection. >Suitable for IEMs with any wearing method, around the ear or cable down. >Earpieces can rotate around while connected. >Can only be used with the proper right sides, reverse polarity is not possible. Cons of MMCX connectors:- >Costly as compared to Two-pin connectors. >In some cases the lock-in mechanism is very tight and trying to pull out the cable sometimes damages the connectors on both ends. Even though these two are entirely different from each other, there is no difference in sound quality output due to different connector types. Here are a few aftermarket cables to look for while upgrading. FiiO LC-RE:- FiiO LC-RE is the latest high-quality upgrade cable available in both MMCX and 0.78mm two-pin variants. The cable is made up of a hybrid configuration of wires made up of pure single crystal copper, pure silver, and gold plated copper wires. Wires are stranded in a scientific Litz type 2 method which provides a distinctive sound quality output with ultra-low distortion. The main attraction apart from premium quality material is the switchable termination plugs. The cable comes with multiple termination plugs including 2.5mm balanced, 3.5mm unbalanced, and 4.4mm balanced plugs. So it makes your earphones compatible with any of the output port on your source. It is priced at 209.99$, you can check more details about it here. DUNU Noble:- DUNU Noble is a high-end cable from the brand that is bundled with its high-end DUNU DK4001 IEM. The cable can be bought separately for 400$, it is made up of high-quality Furukawa single crystal copper and DHC sterling pure silver wires in a hybrid configuration. It comes in three variants, MMCX, 0.78mm two-pin, and 0.78mm QDC two-pin connector types. The cable has DUNU patented switchable modular plug design, it comes with multiple termination plugs including 3.5mm single-ended, 3.5mm balanced, 4.4mm balanced, and 2.5mm balanced plugs. Premium quality material in the cable provides an ultra-low distortion and uninterrupted audio signal transmission from the source to the earpieces. You can order the DUNU Noble from our website here.  

HiFiGo
Hell, every set of wireless headphones I’ve had (not earbuds) had a detectable cable as well. I use both modes frequently my sonys
That’s cool but that doesn’t answer the question
He asked how many of you use the jack. I replied “me” and told why.
I recently switched to wireless over-the-ear headphones and overall happy. However, when it comes to earbuds - they would only be wired. Unlike my large headphones, which can be unscrewed for that, most earbuds would have trouble wen replacing the battery. And - maybe more importantly - easier to lose since they’re separate and so small.
This.
Wireless is nice, but wired earbuds never need to be charged, they just work.
This is the correct answer. It’s about having choices. I very often forget to charge my wireless when I need it and when it’s dead, all I have to do is pull my wired out since my phone has the headphone jack. And when I work, I use my wired to listen to music, because in that situation, wired is simply superior. So I will always buy a phone with a headphone jack because I don’t want a perfectly workable, harmless feature that I need to be taken away from me.
I used to miss it but nowadays not really. AirPods Pro does the job wirelessly and if I ever have to use a cable version for music, I will just use the connector for the time being.
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.
I haven’t used a headphone jack for eleventy million years, I’m surprised so many people remember that they existed.
I use wired daily. I also use wireless a few times a week.
I bought a dongle for $7 and use it at work, maybe twice a week?
I do every time I use earphones. For me, it is a must.
Yup, I use it regularly.
You do realise that making a post like this makes wired users more likely to reply? I use wired daily, wireless too big and stuffy.
Good argument. But isn’t that always the case when asking if ppl are / aren’t into a topic? A persion, who is invested in the topic is way more likely to reply. I agree with you, but I don’t know how I could’ve avoided said issue.

You can’t really avoid it in any easy way. If you could, the field of statistics would get a decent amount simpler. The only way to deal with the bias is with a survey pulled from random people, which you can’t really do easily here.

But this one will have a lot of bias, all the same.

Reducing bias is tricky.

You want engagement from a. Mobile users who b. Use headphones c. With their phone, and the type of headphone connection is the end goal.

“How often do you use headphones with your phone, and are they wired/wireless” is clonky, but gets everything out there without too much leading. People more awake than me can help more.

*I use wired $9 shitty earbuds, daily. The Bluetooth ones are nice, but I lose them and the battery life sucks, and it’s a hassle.

You know I think the way you eliminate that is less by relying on the frequency of use, and more by relying on the merits of the argument being had itself. A good part of this is gonna be calculated on whether or not the tradeoff of having an aux jack is worth it. For the consumer, this is needlessly stupid and there are like no phones now that have one, you have a limited selection and that sucks, but in terms of the actual core technology I really can’t see why you wouldn’t have one. The idea that it wastes the 2cm^3^ of space is kind of a poor argument, imo, when we’ve been switching from palm sized phones with bezels and home buttons, to phones that now stick out of my sweatpants pockets and have hole punch cameras and like four cameras on the back and somehow have less features. None of the market makes a lick of sense, right now, it all seems like manufactured demand and monopoly to me.
Airpods are too big and stuffy?
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.
Weekly. And I’ve got bluetooth drivers on daily too. Drop the 3.5mm and you drop my purchase!

I do.

I don’t use it every day because I’m at my PC a lot on a normal day, and I use wired headphones plugged in to that instead. I do use it often when traveling, both for IEM-style earbuds that block most external noise, and to plug into rental cars, family members’ cars, etc… with an aux cable. Yes, Bluetooth is an option on most newer cars, but it’s slower to set up than a cable, and not all the cars I end up driving are newer.

Agree with this, a headphone jack is occasionally very useful, especially when traveling. I had a Google Pixel without a headphone jack and I was surprised how much I missed it, I got an adapter just to restore that functionality.
It's also the ariel for my radio so..

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.

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.
I used to use it every day until I realized my new phone doesn’t have one. Now I still use wired headphones for music when I’m near my computer. I have bluetooth earbuds that work…okay, but I have to deal with one earbud not connecting, or making sure I haven’t lost one, or I take one out for a second to hear something and the music just stops, or it just doesn’t connect to begin with, or I want to switch between two devices and it would be sooo much easier to just unplug something and plug it back in than to go through setting, unpaid/re-pair between two devices, and hope that it actually worked the first time.
Until I got a phone without one, I used it all the time. But now I have fully switched to Bluetooth. The price pot me off a lot, but my tozo A3s are are both cheap enough and good enough that I am happy to have made the switch.
I use both practically daily.

yes, I use the headphone jack on my phone.

I can't abide the idea of paying extra money for a separate device to plug in headphones to use a phone. That's like forcing people to buy a straw to drink their coffee because they're not allowed to drink it from a cup anymore.

People like having choice, it was never about saving space in phones. I like my wired bose headphones that I’ve had for 15 years and will likely last at least 15 more. Those wireless ones are the definition of planned obsolescence.

When the Pixel removed the phone my Google friend couldn’t STFU about how I was an idiot for wanting it. “Just get a dongle”.

I hate it. Yeah, I don’t use it all the time, but when I’m in a rush and need a pair I gotta scramble around for a dongle? I also hate Bluetooth pairing and the bs multi-pairing sucks. I have multiple devices and if I do my mac and my android phone my mac cuts in all the time. I honestly hate configuring this stuff when I’m in a rush for a call or something.

I have a few headphones and they’re all wired and I still have them and they work exactly as expected in every scenario.

Also bluetooth fucking sucks for lack of a better phrase.

9/10 times it connects fine, but then every now and then it just refuses. “What? No I don’t exist” and then you have to either restart bluetooth and/or the device, and then it magically works again.

Also, I quite often get stuttering with it. Not sure if it is my phone or headphones or both at fault, but I would like having an audio jack when I am sitting at the desk

People like having choices. Bring hdmi ports to phones.
C to HDMI doesn’t sound that bad, so just have 3-5 USB-C ports on the phone.
Around 2011 or so, certain Android models had mini hdmi. I even bought a mini hdmi to hdmi cable. I believe screen mirroring became common and killed it because I didn’t see it on phones after a couple of years.

Do Bose headphones not have issues with the plastic foam padding around the ears/top of the head crumbling into a million bits, or are they just easier to repair? Or is there something I’m supposed to be doing to prevent this that nobody ever told me about?

I’m so reluctant to spend much money on headphones because this keeps happening to me with less expensive brands (but still not like $20 or anything).

People like having choice, it was never about saving space in phones.

If you look at which company (apple) and the time of removal of headphone jack (around the time their wireless buds were announced), you’ll notice they removed choice so the consumer can only buy more expensive wireless buds, or many many dongles.

The “save space” is an absolute lie. The international (EU, Asia, etc) version of the iPhone has a dedicated SIM card tray. The US model? No tray, just a freakin placeholder where the international version has the SIM tray. Yes, there is a volume of space that can fit 2 headphone jacks on the US iPhone that is just empty.

Look at this iFixit video where they call apple out on it. The placeholder is huge. at ~1:17+

iPhone 15 Teardown: A Microscopic Look Inside The iPhone 15

YouTube
I use it, I have some very nice ear monitors from an old job. I also hate throwaway crap. If I have to I can solder a new cable on. Wireless headphones are extremely difficult to fix.
I use it every day