The new iphone design confirmed

Started by Elantric, July 06, 2012, 10:38:41 AM

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Elantric

http://www.zagg.com/community/blog/fire-fire-the-new-iphone-design-confirmed-via-jkhowland/?utm_source=SilverpopMailing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Content%20-%20Blog%20Highlights%20-%20062912%20-%20Not%20Sent%20Yet&utm_content=&spMailingID=4461491&spUserID=OTkwMDY2MTAzMQS2&spJobID=47452766&spReportId=NDc0NTI3NjYS1


There is way too much smoke for there not to be fire. These components are not only convincing, they're believable.

iFixyouri sent to 9to5 Mac

The site iFixYourI sent 9to5 Mac the first round of pictures of the black iPhone. With a black backcase, and a black frame. What's more interesting still, is the black coloring of the metal frame of the device in the picture.

9to5 Mac




9to5 Mac is raking in the pictures,
http://9to5mac.com/2012/05/29/photos-black-and-white-next-generation-metal-iphone-backs-mini-dock-taller-screen-moved-earphone-jack-present/

and has already amassed a collection of which even The Loop would be jealous. The black back case from iFixYouri wasn't the last.

They have a picture of what would be the next-generation iPhone front glass, as well as the frame of the device.

    This adds to our report in which we claimed the new iPhone would sport a taller screen with the same width. Sources say that the new iPhone's interface will be redesigned to take advantage of the newly available screen real estate. The screen resolution is said to be 1136 x 640, with a screen size of 3.999 inches (diagonally)

UBreakiFix

It didn't stop with the iFixYouri pics. The uBreakiFix pictures are just as impressive and convincing. The aluminum backplate looks very nice – an Apple-esque design for sure.



I think that the pictures paint a simple picture:

    Taller iPhone with a bigger screen.
    Aluminum backplate (potentially unibody with the frame)
    Headphone jack on the bottom of the phone
    New, smaller connection adaptor (confirmed this will be a new mini 20 pin "Dock Port" - backward compatibel with Micro USB Charges - as mandated by the new European Envoronmental laws

These are changes we won't know if we like or hate until we have the device in hand. Let's hope it's not a Fall launch like the iPhone 4S. That would be quite the wait.

Source: Venture Beat

Joshua Howland

Joshua is a mobile application developer, entrepreneur, and technology enthusiast. His favorite posts are comparing companies and products. He's pretty good at predicting what Apple has up its sleeves too. He loves sports and business and talks about them (along with tech) on Twitter (@jkhowland).

Elantric

#1
Basically this translates that the 30 pin dock connector will soon be obsolete - and rumor is  the 2013 "iPad 4" will also change to the "new" proprietary mini 20 pin port (backward compatible with micro USB) as seen on the new iPhone 5.


This will render all your third party I/O gear, MIDI Adapters, Audio interfaces (Fostex AR-4i, IK iRig, Alesis I/O Dock, Mackie DL1608 iPad Mixer ) which use the 30 pin dock connector obsolete by this time next year.

Someone surely will make a 30pin to new mini20 pin "adapter dongle" - but its going to be a bit kludgy.

Same holds true for Firewire - this is the final year to buy a computer with a Firewire port.


musicman65

#2
Looks like they copied a Samsung Galaxy S2 design which is already a generation old in the Android world. LOL! The Galaxy S3 launches in 4 days. The yet to be announced Galaxy S4 and numerous competitive models will be out by the time we see the i5 ;)

Apple already got (bought and paid for?) a temporary court injunction against the Samsung Nexus last week....now that we see that the i5 is waaaay behind on launch and specs, its no wonder they need the courts to hinder competition so they don't fall further back! Apple's marketshare will continue to slip as they litigate themselves to death against the relentless onslaught of rapid hardware development by multiple vendors and open source OS competition.

Apple does make a nice phone but there anti-competitive behavior is repulsive. Hey, if you can't beat 'em, sue 'em....RIGHT????

NAH! Viva comptition!

bd

Elantric

#3
Actually I agree with you.

I'm waiting for a TI OMAP5 Quad core Android 4.1 Jelly Bean phone with the new low latency audio. I hate the closed IOS on my IPhone that restricts me to using only one OSX computer to access / change / manage my files and forces me to use iTunes or have a separate file transfer host app on my computer to wifi access my files. It's a royal pain to locate any of my own original work on my iPhone.

I love everything else I use the iPhone for. Miso Guitar Strobe tuner , Calibrate a PA with iTestMic,
And camera.
If I need to record an audio note, I tend to use the iPhone camera in Video mode, simply because the Camera Pics Folder is the only accessible Folder when connecting the iPhone via USBto my work machine.

They hyped that IOS 5 would break the dependency on requiring a PC to manage the phone. It was a false bit of advertising.
Maybe I just need to Jailbreak my iPhone. 

musicman65

#4
Wow...sounds like a headache for such a simple part of using a device....file handling. They got so many thing right and then botch the simple stuff!

On Android, you can turn on Wifi, open a file manager app, and read/write to shared network drives. My studio pc has 20 TB of storage....all accessible via my phone. Dead simple.

I have the Google (Samsung Galaxy) Nexus phone. Its the official dev model for Android so I got JB 4.1 last week but wont flash it until I have a few hours to play. The Quadcores don't support LTE (yet) so we're waiting. The Galaxy S3 is Quadcore in Europe already and we got the Dualcore model at 1.8ghz. They say its still pretty fast. My GNex is OC'd to 1.65ghz already so I'll wait for the next round also.

12ms latency on JB should unleash some audio apps pretty soon.

If I had an iPhone, I'd have to jailbreak it on day 1 or I'd go nuts. I move files constantly.

bd

Elantric

#5
QuoteOn Android, you can turn on Wifi, open a file manager app, and read/write to shared network drives. My studio pc has 20 TB of storage....all accessible via my phone. Dead simple.

On iPhone I have 320 apps installed, and for most each app has a separate "host app" that must be run on the Host machine, to get your files Off the iPhone.

It's a real pain for me.

By comparison on my Android Tablet, I can connect it to Any PC Mac via USB and then the Android looks like another drive and I can use Finder on Mac or Explorer on WinPC to access copy , move  Any file.

That's the best method for me.

Elantric

#6
The Iphone 5 Apple Lightning I/O connector no longer has any analog audio or video connections.

So this forces the purchase of a future Lightning to 30 pin Dock Adapter  - but Apple states this will not support Ipod Control or Video.

To me the biggest annoyance with the Apple Lightning I/O connector on the new Iphone 5  is
the deletion of a direct HDMI Output cable path.

Frankly I'm very underwhelmed with iPhone5, with its 3 steps forward
(fast A6 processor and larger Display) 2 steps backward, and a huge
penalty for A/V Content creators.

I use my old 30pin dock to HDMI cable in hotel rooms all the time, to
review and watch concert footage i film for my monthly cable access TV
show I co-produce.




In fact a refurbished Motorola LapDock works very well as a mobile
battery powered HDMI Monitor for iphone 4 - or Mac Mini users.

http://www.cnx-software.com/2012/06/page/9/



As it stands now - looks like with iPhone5  - users are forced to buy
and carry the "Apple TV" and use Airplay if they wish to watch video
shot with an iPhone 5 while on the road.

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_ipod/family/apple_tv


At this Hour (July 2012) - Apple has stated that in the coming months various new
Lightning adapters will emerge - but these will be basically the same
active cable technology as the DisplayLink USB to HDMI Adapters - with
more latency than what exists with iphone 4
http://www.displaylink.com/shop/adapters


Info here:
http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-apple-iphone-5-lightning-hdmi-vga-20120914,0,2091031.story



To be honest, I might wait for a spring 2013 OMAP5 based Android 4.1
Jelly Bean phone.

Android 4.1 jelly bean has much lower audio processing latency compared to prior Android versions, and
gives IOS some competition for music creators.

The Samsung Note 2 looks interesting to me and is on my radar.

The Galaxie Note is out now - but if you wait until October, the
"Samsung Galaxie Note 2" will arrive and that runs Android 4.1 Jelly
Bean  - which is the new superior low audio processing latency that
mobile musicians have been waiting months for.




I should also remind that while the Galaxie S3 is getting the most attention  as the direct competitor to iphone 5, the version of the Samsung Galaxie S3 that ships in North America is a different phone than ships in the rest of the world. The USA Version has a slower processor.

QuoteSamsung's announcement also confirmed that the North American version of the phone will use a dual-core Snapdragon processor instead of the quad-core Tegra 3 that's in the international model.

http://www.tomsguide.com/us/samsung-Galaxy-S-III-2gb-RAM-snapdragon-LTE,news-15433.html


http://www.itproportal.com/2012/09/13/iphone-5-vs-samsung-galaxy-note-2-spec-comparison/
http://createdigitalmusic.com/2012/07/android-high-performance-audio-in-4-1-and-what-it-means-plus-libpd-goodness-today/

http://createdigitalmusic.com/2012/07/android-audio-improvements-will-appear-first-on-galaxy-nexus/
- Show quoted text -

mbenigni

#7
QuoteTo be honest, I might wait for a spring 2013 OMAP5 based Android 4.1 Jelly Bean phone.

Erase everything you've ever heard about smartphone technology... and that sentence is hysterical.  Android jelly bean phones!  Yay!  :D

mbenigni

#8
QuoteOn Android, you can turn on Wifi, open a file manager app, and read/write to shared network drives. My studio pc has 20 TB of storage....all accessible via my phone. Dead simple.

My god, that sounds so... sane.  I think I detest iTunes more than any other piece of software I've ever run.


Elantric

#10
QuoteBut, wait a minute:
http://www.macrumors.com/2012/09/13/apple-promises-iphone-5-compatible-hdmi-and-vga-cables-coming-soon/

I saw that too, but "Coming Soon" means "several months from now"  = Feb 2013.

And watch that those Lightning to HDMI Out adapters will be priced more than Thunderbolt cables.

By contrast most Android phones include micro HDMI Out Jack standard. And dont require a + $50 adapter. 

aliensporebomb

#11
We'll see.  Everyone thought PPC was going to to be the death knell of audio on the Mac and it lead to new opportunities that went far beyond the previous machines before it.
My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

musicman65

#12
Well it now looks like the iPhone5 is released with a relatively slow processor and small screen by new smartphone standards. It is barely equal to a Galaxy S3 which has ben out for 3 months. My 10 month old Samsung Galaxy Nexus has better specs and performance thanks to the Android community's open source support. I've been on Jelly Bean and over-clocked to 1.8Ghz on a dual-core processor with no issues for over a month. This ability to enhance my device with nightly updates is simple and amazing!

The next wave of smartphones will outpace the iPhone5 n performance by leaps and bounds within the next 3-4 months. Look for Apple to have an initial bump as their loyal but shrinking customer base flocks to the stores. Android will continue to grow steadily despite frivolous litigation. People are waking up to the advantages of non-proprietary software and hardware. The competition is heating up and Apple will have to eventually change their marketing model or suffer. Too bad because they have a lot to offer but would prefer to sue others that offer open solutions with better interoperability with the rest of the computing world.

It will be interesting to see how these smartphone competitors manuever as the market matures.

bd

aliensporebomb

#13
The problem is: the faster the processor the higher the battery consumption.

The newer android phones have strange issues - I deal with this every day at my day gig.  The famous one is the droid razr with its habit of outrunning its charger which I've seen on two different phones of the same type now.

The biggest problem I have with droids though is enterprise email integration but that's not really an issue for this system but the vast majority of droid phones have problems staying connected to exchange activesync email systems in my experience.
My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

mbenigni

#14
I jumped on the iPhone wagon about three years ago because, at the time, it was the only smartphone with a UI and web browser that weren't batsh*t insane.  Unfortunately, every thing else about Apple software is - at least to my own PC-addled brain.  I just can't seem to drink the KoolAid no matter how much I try.  To this day I can not wrap my head around iTunes, for instance: how to safely backup files (to my own satisfaction; not to the satisfaction of an Apple programmer) and get them the hell off the phone.  Every "sync" is a roll of the dice, i.e. how does the ambiguous verbiage on screen correllate with Apple's perception of how computers are supposed to work? 

Files have been lost, hair has been torn out, and worst of all... so much time has been wasted.

The iPhone 3 and 4 were essentially the devil I knew (even if the 4 was a devil that would disconnect my calls were I so bold as to, you know, touch it) and I'm not really looking forward to researshing something new, discovering too late that my favorite app has no equivalent on another platform, etc.  But I'm starting to think it's Android or Windows 7 Phone time for me.  I'll keep my iPad for TouchOSC et al, but I need my phone to be a little more straightforward than Apple prefers.

(Of course, all of this is a race against time - with each passing month it seems like the Microsoft OS paradigms become more and more like the Apple ones, whereas I'd rather see it all moving in the opposite direction.)

Elantric

#15
Update on the Lightning Connector on iphone5
http://thenextweb.com/apple/2012/09/14/the-facts-apples-new-iphone-5-lightning-dock-connector-adapter/

The facts about Apple's iPhone 5 Lightning Dock Connector Adapters

14th September 2012 by Matthew Panzarino


There has been a considerable amount of fear, uncertainty and doubt sown about Apple's new Lightning Dock Connector adapters, introduced alongside the iPhone 5. There are three adapters that do a couple of different things, along with two more on the way.

I reached out to Apple and a spokesperson clarified several things that had become sticking points and topics for misinformation. Just for reasons involving my own sanity, I'm going to lay down the facts surrounding these adapters, perhaps helping others that may be confused by their capabilities.

There are three adapters currently available, two of which are a bit special:

    Lighting to 30-pin adapter - $29
    Lightning to 30-pin adapter with cable – $39



The facts about Apples iPhone 5 Lightning Dock Connector Adapters

These two adapters are a bit pricier than you'd think they would be, but that's for good reason. There are actually chips in the dongles that enable several features that would be unavailable without them. Much of the reasons for this have to do with the fact that there are more and varied pins in the original dock connector (30) than there are in the new one (9). These are not just bits of plastic and metal.

The things that the dock connector adapters let you do:

    Analog audio output to stereos, docks and anything else that uses a 30-pin cable of any sort to send audio.
    USB audio output. If you've got a car stereo that takes a digital input over a wired-in USB cable, you're still fine with this adapter.
    Syncing and charging, of course.

The things that they do not let you do:

    Utilize iPod Out, a relatively little used feature that allows transference of the iPod or iPhone's music controls to an external screen or buttons, like the one in a car or on some home audio systems. BMW was an Apple partner for this feature.
    Video out. There are separate adapters coming for that.

Then there are two adapters on the way:

    Lightning to HDMI – $?
    Lightning to VGA – $?

These two adapters will let you send video out over either HDMI or VGA to projectors or other equipment. Now that Apple devices almost all have AirPlay, this isn't as big of a deal, but it definitely can be for those without an Apple TV or who are in a corporate IT environment and just want to plug into presentation equipment. There still isn't information about whether or not the HDMI adapter will send audio and video, but the current Digital AV Adapter does, so it should too.

Then there is an adapter to satisfy regulations surrounding the use of Micro-USB for charging and sync in the European Union:

    Lightning to Micro USB – €15

That adapter doesn't do anything but charge and sync, that's it.

So, I hope this helps a bit as a cheat sheet for those confused about the functions of these adapters and which ones they really need. If you still have questions, check out this article from Mike Rose at TUAW and this one from Dan Frakes at Macworld or feel free to drop them in the comments below and I'll try to answer them at some point.



And another good article regarding iPhone5 for Music Makers
http://beta.musicradar.com/news/tech/iphone-5-the-good-and-bad-for-music-makers-560135

HAMERMAN409

#16
Quote from: mbenigni on September 17, 2012, 07:25:31 AM
To this day I can not wrap my head around iTunes, for instance: how to safely backup files (to my own satisfaction; not to the satisfaction of an Apple programmer) and get them the hell off the phone.  Every "sync" is a roll of the dice, i.e. how does the ambiguous verbiage on screen correllate with Apple's perception of how computers are supposed to work? 

Same experience here. Maybe we are both overthinking this - it all works pretty well if you don't care what the file names are or where they are and you buy all of your tunes from apple (none of which is true for me).  :-)

Elantric

#17
A good review of Iphone5 after a week of use
http://daringfireball.net/2012/09/iphone_5

musicman65

#18
I'm having a hard time finding a review by someone with a broad experience if current smartphone capabilities and both Mac and PC use. Everything so far seems to be from the Apple CoolAid drinking crowd who have a very low expectation of what should be possible with current technology.

I do know that Apple employs various blog and tech writers to masquerade as unbiased users. This army if writers declared the Iphone5 as the winner in comparisons to Samsung's S3 even though the iPhone5 was admitedly unavailable at the time. They excused the smaller screen, lack of servicable battery, no expandable memory, still no Flash support, on and on...Amazing clairvoyance!

Apple marketing is trully a well oiled machine!

Did I just read that there are numerous $30 adapters necessary? Sounds expensive and proprietary.

Long live open architectures, software, and standards!

bd



Elantric

#19
Apple Lightning cable Teardown:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/628369/all-about-the-new-apple-lightning-cables-plugs

By ScooterMafia at Head-fi.org

Everybody knows and loves it, right?  Head-fi is certainly in a bit of a flap about the new Lightning plug, as is the rest of the world, since it's a big departure.  I've got a few Lightning cables on hand so the point of this thread is to be a permanent source of information on this plug since curiosity abounds.



Pix (sorry for the crap quality):











2 of the standard Lightning cables from Apple arrived today.  First thing I noticed is that the Lightning plugs are SMALL.  Pinky fingernail size.  The contact points on the plug are so tiny, it is hard to probe them with a multimeter.  Also, they are tough and look really good.  This is not a cable that is going to break easily.  It is a fraction of the width of a dock plug and isn't going to snap off or have weird problems with locking, and so on. 



Removing the plastic shell around the plug reveals a two piece metal crimp surrounding the solder area of the plug, as well as some injected silicone rubber cushioning.  This plug is built like a tank, it is armored.  Modders are going to want to give up on the idea of building their own charge cables/CLAS cables from scratch for this, until a DIY version of this plug surfaces.  I don't expect a DIY version of this plug will go for that much, despite how pretty they are, since Alibaba.com shows that these cables are going for 20 cents to $2 each at wholesale (Apple is making a killing here).    The amount of force required to remove the crimp is insane, it is really on there.  I got it off without completely destroying the plug, and was greeted with a generous coating of epoxy.  Scraping all that off reveals a tiny PCB with the 4 wires of the USB cable connected to it.  The PCB extends into the end of the cable, where I'm guessing the traces split off and cross to allow the two-sideness of the connector. 



For modders, we have a tiny ~32awg pair of green and white wires which are for data.  I'll post the exact specs when I get home.  There is a 26awg red power wire for V+.  V- duties are done by the cable's shield, which has several easily accessible drain wires for soldering to the plug of your choice.  It is trivial to chop the end on this, strip it with a 14awg stripper to get the shield and jacket off, then, strip & solder these wires to a USB plug or micro USB plug if you wanted to make your own custom version of the long and annoying stock Lightning cable. 



I will post the exact pinouts soon.  For now, let's look at it this way: if you face the plug straight at you, the contacts facing up (and it should be the same on either side) are 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8.  Pin 1 is V- or shield, and it is connected to the shell of the plug on each side, so the power ground also serves to ground the shells of the cable ends together.  Pretty standard USB layout.  Pins 6 and 7 are the data pins (forget the exact configuration, will fix this in my next edit).  Here's where we get to the strangest thing about this.  Perhaps I just had a broken cable, but when the cable was fully intact, and afterwards, I tried to figure out where V+ connects to.  I had the V+ wire stripped and hooked up to the multimeter, and I probed the crap out of the Lightning plug.  No resistance, no continuity, to any of the pins on the Lightning plug.  I will keep at it but for now this is a really strange mystery.  The V+ wire is soldered to the little board inside the Lightning plug.  Where it goes from there inside the PCB that extends into the metal contact end of the Lightning plug is anyone's guess.  There does not appear to be any resistors or circuitry in this cable.  It is just a regular USB cord as far as I can tell, so far.  Except for this V+ problem.  I have a 2nd lightning cord I can test here in a little while. 






New Ipad MINI Due in December 2012

http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?act=url&depth=1&hl=en&ie=UTF8&prev=_t&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=zh-CN&tl=en&twu=1&u=http://www.bolopad.com/html/show-22-1510-1.html&usg=ALkJrhgn189t75H_rIuajEc8oy_Hlz5X0g

Apple last week released the iPhone 5, people began to turn its attention to the Mini not yet released iPad. Today Bolopad on exclusive everyone at Apple's new 7.8-inch tablet real machine spy - Yes, really mini, everyone can feel at ease.

The appearance iPad Mini iPad Not much difference



iPad Mini back


Speaker iPad Mini Bottom, the figure shows the iPad Mini iPhone 5 Lightning interface.

Elantric

#20
Apple Authentication chips have been around for a while, and yes they are quite small. They have been a requirement for any product that directly attaches to an Apple IOS device.

But this seems to be the main point of the change to Lightning:

http://mashable.com/2012/09/13/apple-iphone-accessories-revenue/


The Apple mFI developer program is the source for details



https://developer.apple.com/programs/mfi/



But in my mind, if a DAC is what you are after, might explore the new "USB Audio" standard that several new DAC products support. Apparently IPhone 4/ 4S/ 5 (and new Android devices like the S3) all support "USB Audio" which is now being used to describe the direct streaming of Audio via USB


There are a new category of DAC boxes with a USB Type A Host port - and these support "USB Audio":



http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/index.php?s=9c0aa03ef613a9aedb422a5640654599&showtopic=93402&view=findpost&p=801027

http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/480480_4317734867479_2047049317_n.jpg







like these



RATOC  RAL-1648iP1







and the new JVC car Head units

http://resources.jvc.com/Resources/00/01/53/15346.PDF

http://resources.jvc.com/Resources/00/01/49/77.PDF



More here:

http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=93402&st=25

Elantric

#21

Elantric


Elantric

#23
http://createdigitalmusic.com/2012/11/lightning-audio-sonomas-guitarjack-meets-new-ipads-iphones-via-adapter-gallery/

By Peter Kirn:

QuoteNov 12 2012
Lightning Audio: Sonoma's GuitarJack Meets New iPads, iPhones, Via Adapter [Gallery]

by Peter Kirn

Okay, it's not as compact, but you can at least get input working with Apple's now-shipping Lightning adapter for 30-pin accessories and Sonoma's excellent GuitarJack.

Apple's mobile hardware offers some serious audio performance and a whole mess of apps to take advantage of it. But what it doesn't have is the ability to connect inputs and get high-quality sound. Basic mics will work via the built-in jack, but if you want really good sound and more flexibility, you need to connect external hardware. Previous accessories worked with the Apple Dock Connector.

I expect we'll shortly see new hardware with the Lightning Connector built in – the whole thing seems like an opportunity for third-party vendors to sell more accessories. But in the meantime, here's the latest from Sonoma WireWorks. One of our favorite audio adapters in fact works so long as you use Apple's Lightning-to-30-pin adapter cable, and we've got pictures from Sonoma along with official word as proof.

(Previously, more on this issue: iPhone 5: Audio Accessories Compatible; Some Require Adapters [IK, Line 6 Official Word])

The important thing about this interface is that its connection to your Apple gizmo is digital, using the digital connection on the device rather than going through the analog headset jack. (That analog connection is fine for things like headsets, but might be disappointing for creative audio work.)

While it's called "GuitarJack," the interface works with instruments and mics as well as guitar and bass. You get a 1/4? instrument, and 1/8? connections for stereo mic/line input and stereo line output.

Specs: input level control with 60 dB gain + 12 dB pad, Lo-Z and Hi-Z modes for working with guitars and the like, and full iOS app compatibility. Made in the USA.

Details:
http://www.sonomawireworks.com/guitarjack/guide/#devices

More pictures of the combination, plus the original hardware (sadly, showing what you can't do – connect directly to the iPhone). The accessory works with iPad as well as iPhone.



Elantric

#24
Yikes!


This is not going to be good news for Musicians (IF it comes to pass!)

http://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonkelly/2014/06/05/apple-to-abandon-headphone-jack-suddenly-beats-deal-makes-sense/

Apple To Abandon Headphone Jack? Beats Deal Suddenly Makes Sense


[Editor's note: The original headline stated as fact that Apple was abandoning the headphone jack. This is informed opinion, so we added a question mark.]

Suddenly why Apple AAPL -0.19% spent a seemingly ludicrous $3.2 billion buying Beats is starting to make sense. The reason: Apple is being more Apple than we ever imagined and it could mean saying goodbye to your favourite pair of headphones. Furthermore, if my theory is correct, then the new ones you buy will probably have Beats on the logo.

Get Ready For Lightning Headphones
Like most Apple developments, the news emerged from a leak. 9to5Mac
http://9to5mac.com/2014/06/03/apple-introduces-mfi-specs-for-lightning-cable-headphones-support-arriving-in-future-ios-update/
has learnt that Apple submitted a specification to its MFi (Made For) licensing program for headphones which connect using the company's proprietary Lightning port instead of the standard 3.5mm jack. Furthermore all it will take for the Lightning port to start accepting these new headphones is a firmware update.

In Pictures: Apple's Most Notable Acquisitions

Like most Apple innovations this brings some notable upsides. The 3.5mm jack (technically called a 'TRS' connector) is rarely the bottleneck to audio quality, but the Lightning port will enable a switch from analogue to digital audio with an exceedingly high lossless stereo 48 kHz digital output and mono 48 kHz digital input. If you can afford a $1,000 pair of headphones you may pick up the difference.

lightning_hero


Of more relevance to most people, however, is the new functionality it will bring. Headphones with a Lightning connector would be able to do more than lower/increase volume, end calls and skip tracks. There could be specific app control or even the ability to set a specific app to start when they are connected. Since the Lightning jack can also receive power, not just send it, you could still charge a device by connecting it to your headphones while listening to music.

Apple Wins Big
But let's cut to the chase. The biggest upside in this switch would be for Apple.

Right now you can plug any pair of headphones or earphones into an iPhone, iPod, iPad, Mac or MacBook, but with the switch Apple would control an essential peripheral and its MFi licensing program would see it start to take a sizeable fee for every pair of headphones sold for use with an Apple device. Meanwhile Apple would suck up the majority of the profits with the Beats brand because owning it means there will be no licensing fee.

As for users who want to stick with their headphones, they would need to pay for an adaptor which – like the $29 Lightning to 30-pin adaptor (below) – would inevitably be expensive and just bulky enough to make you want to buy dedicated Lightning headphones long term.

2014-06-05_13-42-44

Crucially Apple would also strengthen the hold it has over users by tying them even tighter into its proprietary ecosystem. Yes Beats may primarily have been about securing a streaming music service, but suddenly the ability to earn multi-millions from locked-in Lightning headphones, license fees and sales of adaptors makes for a very juicy side business.

As for rivals, Apple gets a powerful new differentiator and the competition is unlikely to be able to agree on a universal 3.5mm headphone jack replacement standard to combat it for years to come.


But Customers Lose
The problem is most customers will lose out, even die-hard Apple users.

Aside from the extra expense in buying new Lighting headphones or an adaptor, it makes people's lives more difficult. Apple doesn't make everything. With new Lightning headphones the HiFi you love suddenly needs an adaptor from Lightning port back to a 3.5mm jack (if such things will be made). The same goes for the TV you use with wireless headphones, your Windows or Linux work computer, older Apple equipment and on and on.

In Pictures: Apple's Most Notable Acquisitions

Furthermore casual Apple users – the ones with an iPad but nothing else or an iPhone work phone – either need adaptors, multiple pairs of headphones or to only listen to audio from their Apple devices via the external speaker (impractical).

Worse still, the switch to Lightning headphones is likely to be mandatory.

apple_beats_650Roll Out
Make no mistake Apple is not stupid. It knows the state of the headphone market and it knows the risk of trying to impose too much too quickly. That said there is a very simple and effective roll out trajectory:

1. Announce the technology with Beats and headphone partners
2. Unveil clever third party app integration
3. Make this integration inaccessible in any other way
4. Make Lightning port to 3.5mm headphone jack adaptors expensive and bulky
5. In a few years remove the 3.5mm headphone jack from Apple devices citing legacy, greater design flexibility and extra space for a bigger battery

Is there any way such a move could come back to haunt Apple? Potentially.

The flip side of locking existing Apple users in even tighter is that it makes for an extra hurdle in attracting new customers to switch to Apple. Just as those with Lightning headphones won't want the expense of paying to go back to 3.5mm headphones, those with 3.5mm headphones (particularly expensive ones) will be reluctant to splash out on an adaptor or a whole new pair.


But Apple is unlikely to be worried. The company's business model has always been about 'us and them' and controlling the user experience. By fracturing the oldest universal technology standard still in use today it will have found a powerful new way to make that distinction even stronger.