The Spectator The independent student newspaper of Valdosta State University
Written by Jada Dukes, Staff Writer
There have been some shocking rumors making their rounds in the tech world in regards to Apple’s iPhone 7. According to Forbes, a pair of sources from Apple’s Chinese supply chain have both confirmed that Apple is making plans to make a major change in the design of the new iPhone 7. The rumor is that Apple is planning on ditching the beloved 3.5mm headphone jack in their upcoming design which would then make the Lightning port the new headphone jack. There has been speculation that Apple is choosing to ditch the headphone jack in hopes of creating the thinnest smartphone on the market and also pushing iPhone users to purchase wireless headphones.
Forbes contributor, Gordon Kelly, made very valid points in his article about the new iPhone design schemes. in his article, Kelly mentioned that with the Lightning port, now being used as a headphone jack and a charging port, would now allow for wireless charging and that Apple is also planning to improve the quality of Apple music by adding super high audio resolution and limiting it exclusively to users with Lightning headphones.
Although Apple is just trying to keep their place at the forefront of new-age technology, it must be said that there are quite a few flaws in this plan. This change in design is completely unfair and inconvenient to long-time Apple users who also own Beats headphones from Beats Electronics, formerly known as Beats by Dre before Apple purchased the company in 2014.
As many of you may know Beats Headphones are very popular and very expensive with their prices starting as high as $140 for a pair of earbuds. This new design would force all longtime Apple users with Beats headphones to purchase all new headphones with an all new Lightning cord in order to use the iPhone 7. The new iPhone will more than likely be the most expensive iPhone yet, so it is extremely inconsiderate of Apple to force their loyal customers out of their hard earned cash in such a crude fashion.
Honestly I think that is stupid. Headphone jacks are a standard for all headphone companies and nobody will start making them with just lightning ports. Also claiming that this will now allow wireless charging is dumb. Removing headphone jacks has nothing to do with wireless charging. All they would have to do is simply add a small wireless charging chip and that’s it.
This is what Apple is best at, though. They do something that one would think would alienate their user base, and they eat it right up. They buy it. Every. Time. Something like this, however, I feel may be going a bit too far, and while the very loyal few will stay, the majority may end up switching in favor of an Android based device.