One of the latest rumors that floated online on the upcoming iPhone iteration by Apple is that the new iPhone 7 will have a slimmer profile, as the Cupertino-based company will be reportedly nixing the 3.5mm headphone jack.
According to 9to5Mac, a reliable source told Japanese blogsite MacOtakara that the upcoming iPhone 7 will have a slimmer profile than its predecessors as the company will be doing away with the 3.5mm headphone jack. This will make the iPhone 7 at least "more than 1mm" thinner than its predecessor, the iPhone 6s.
The iPhone 7 can be audio-connected via wireless Bluetooth, or a Lightning connection because of this change. The Cupertino-based company has already launched Lighting headsets last year. Apparently, Apple will be shipping new iPhones with earpods already having Lightning connectors. For users who may want to have headsets from third parties, the accessories would need to have Lightning connectors, or at least have a 3.5mm-to-Lightning adapters for compatibility.
This was not the first time that Apple has eschewed the norms, particularly with audio standard jacks. Earlier in its flagship history, Apple thought of making iPhones with 2.5mm jacks to retain device thinness only switched over to the standard 3.5mm audio ports due to insistent user demand.
Meanwhile, observers have mixed reactions on the rumors as some observers have noted that the current iPod Touch has been made slimmer than the iPhone 6s but still retained its 3.5mm audio jack. Industry veteran Gordon Kelly of Forbes surmised that this decision by Apple may be part of the company's MFi (Made For) licensing program, hoping that its proprietary Lightning ports would be industry standard.
Apple will reportedly integrate a digital to analog converter into the connector, making third-party manufacturers submit to an Apple MFi certification for their products (like headsets) to be Apple product-compatible.
