They don't make 'em like that any more: the 3.5mm headphone jack socket

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Preference for Wired vs Wireless

  • Many users deliberately buy phones with 3.5mm jacks and avoid wireless due to batteries, charging hassle, latency, and disposability.
  • Others say modern Bluetooth headphones “just work,” with long battery life, auto‑charging cases, and far less cable annoyance.
  • Several people end up using both: wireless for daily convenience or workouts, wired (often via dongle) for travel, flights, instruments, or serious listening.

Battery, Longevity, and E‑waste

  • Common concern: true wireless earbuds become e‑waste once tiny, non‑replaceable batteries degrade.
  • Some highlight repairable designs (e.g., Fairbuds/Fairbuds XL) with replaceable parts, but question whether they truly last a decade and note non‑OSS firmware limits fixes.
  • Others argue charging is a solved problem: multi‑port chargers, weeks between charges for some devices, and wireless charging pads.

Waterproofing, Thinness, and Cost

  • Manufacturers’ stated reasons: space, thinness, and water/dust resistance.
  • Many call this mostly an excuse, citing older IP68 phones with jacks and similar thickness.
  • Others respond that even if technically possible, jacks complicate sealing, mechanical design, testing, packaging, and increase failure/chargeback risk—so removing them is a clear cost win.

Audio Quality and Latency

  • Several report clear audible improvements going back to wired (especially over cheap BT and bad codecs), and note wired’s low latency is crucial for instruments and games.
  • Others say modern BT codecs are effectively transparent for most people, and DAC quality in cheap phones can be poor too.

UX, Reliability, and Compatibility

  • 3.5mm praised as universal, trivial to share (splitters, aux cables, cars, stereos), device‑agnostic, and pair‑free.
  • Complaints about BT: pairing conflicts across devices, auto‑connect behavior, connection drops, codec opacity.
  • Complaints about jacks: mechanical wear, lint, intermittent channels; flimsy USB‑C audio dongles; inability to charge and listen via a single port without extra hardware.

Market Dynamics and Regulation

  • Many feel “voting with your wallet” failed once major vendors removed jacks and ecosystems locked users in.
  • Some still seek niche brands (Motorola, Sony, rugged/low‑end phones) that retain jacks.
  • A minority suggest regulation (similar to USB‑C mandates) could restore or preserve wired options, though others see that as excessive.