[justsomehnguy]

It's always amusing to hear 'but now when I was deprived of 3.5 I'm happy with a wireless headphones!'.

I used a wireless headphones when some of HN visitors didn't even exists, I have a plenty of experience with them. No, I'm not happy with wireless headphones, partially because my old-style wired headphones works always. Not just 'always, though sometimes I need to re-pair them, or find the charging case for a super-mega-fast-charge for 10 minutes, or find the left one despite I swear I placed them both in the case' but always.

[krisoft]

If we are entertaining each others with stories I can tell you about the pains of untangling wired headphones or the fact that all my headphones failed due to a "contact" issue the jack developed. Or the number of times my headphones got yanked because I was walking with them on and the cables got entangled in something.

Or how with wired headphones one needs to remove to be able to step away from the computer, while with a wireless one I can keep listening anywhere around my home.

[toastal]

There are ways to wrap cables so they don’t tangle. Many IEMs & hearbuds come with a carrying case like a Bluetooth pair might (without fire hazard of batteries). Wrapping up cables ‘correctly’ plus keeping them stored tightly in a container is a recipe for no tangles. If I know you are going to moving up & down often, I opt for using my pocket DAP that can support two-way Bluetooth transmission + USB DAC so I can freely move around & unplug--but more often I just replug them into my phone or DAP when doing another task, then the plug IEMs back into my laptop or audio interface when I return.

I had used a pair of wireless earbuds for a year & I can’t tell you the number of calls I had to cancel early due to listening to music earlier & now not having enough charge. I’ve also had botched firmware upgrades & an app with trackers needed to installed just to get those updates, something analog didn’t deal with. The technology is far from the total-upgrade you are pitching--especially when all your digital apparatuses have a jack, the analog convenience of pulling the plug from one to the next without the fiddling of Bluetooth menus.

[justsomehnguy]

> about the pains of untangling wired headphones

First world problems. Also they still can work, so in a pinch you can just insert them tangled.

> all my headphones failed due to a "contact" issue the jack developed

If all your headphones are susceptible for this then it looks like the problem is not in the headphones.

> Or the number of times my headphones got yanked because I was walking with them on and the cables got entangled in something.

Yep, they are wired.

> one needs to remove to be able to step away from the computer

Yes, they are wired. Are you annoyed what you need to stand up to step away from computer?

Wired headphones has some disadvantages compared to wireless ones, but the problem lies again in what Apple said 'fuck you consumers you will eat it and ask for more', consumers ate it and asked for more and idiots followed the suit, too.

You know, BT (if we are talking only about phones) headphones are an old thing, 20 years if we count only BT EDR. All^W Most of those years anyone could choose the tech they like more. But now Apple fanbois and you tell me what I need to ditch my wire headphones, because wireless are working better for you. No, it doesn't work better for me. More so, I tried it multiple times and I can surely tell what it's not not just as an opinion, but backed by my actual experience.

And I love what I can forget my headphones for a month and they would still work even if I forgot to charge them the last time I used them, lol.

NB: the last year I smashed my phone up to the broken screen, first time in my life (Ericsson A1018 doesn't count, it was only a battery cover clip). I smashed it not because it was laying on the table while I stepped away with my headphones already inserted both in the phone and my ears, but because I was quite drunk (or more like drunk AF) and didn't noticed that. Is this a table problem or my phone problem (hey, only 1+ meter high!) or it's my problem? While it wouldn't happen with a wireless ones, the common sense says it's not the headphones' fault.

[2024throwaway]

> First world problems.

In a thread about modern cellphone technology is _hilarious_.

[justsomehnguy]

Yes, I knew that when I wrote that comment.

Thank you.

[krisoft]

> First world problems.

Second actually. But not sure how cold war allegiances have anything to do with the topic in question.

> Yes, they are wired.

That is the point. If we treat the downsides of one technology as given and baseline then of course the other technology will look deficient compared to it. But if we look at the pros and cons of both technologies we might see why people prefer one to the other.

> Apple said 'fuck you consumers you will eat it and ask for more', consumers ate it and asked for more and idiots followed the suit, too.

Not really classy calling people idiots. Especially when you are just chatting with someone who is taking the point of view you are calling idiotic.

> you tell me what I need to ditch my wire headphones,

Done no such a thing. You do whatever you want to and I'm wishing you the best with it. I'm merely explaining why I prefer my wireless headphones. You know, just comparing notes on existence among fellow travellers.

> I love what I can forget my headphones for a month and they would still work even if I forgot to charge them the last time I used them, lol.

I will give you that. That is a bummer. I walked today to the shop an wanted to listen to my DnD podcast and my headphone announced that it is running low on battery. I was worried it will cut out on me and I will have to wait before I can learn how the intrepid heroes deal with the nightmare king. Luckily it kept working for the walk. But yeah that is a bummer.

[ambichook]

pros and cons exist yes, but the core issue is that with a lot of phones you dont really have an option to choose which pros outweigh the cons, you're told to suck it up and use bluetooth.

i love my wf-1000xm4s, but i also love my catos, which played a large factor in why i chose the phone i did, the choice to pick one or the other depending on how i'm feeling matters to me. i dont want bluetooth audio to go away, but at the same time i dont want wired to go either. maybe one day i'll get a dedicated DAP and be able to freely pick whatever phone without suffering as much of a consequence but in the meantime thats too expensive and bulky for me to justify

[signatoremo]

> you're told to suck it up and use bluetooth.

Told by whom? You can still get wired earbuds for iPhone, just that they don’t use 3.5mm jack. Even Apple offers ones.

3.5mm jack don’t seem to be missed at all by the majority of consumers. If you are in the minority there can still be options. Plenty as the matter of fact. Cost you money of course.

[toastal]

If you follow the brand fans on social medias on release, there’s always a crowd asking if they plan to bring the jack back. It could be a vocal minority, but it could very well also be your biggest brand advocate & enthusiast. When I have asked ‘tech normies’ for anecdotes, many have said they bought Bluetooth purely in the aftermath of their latest phone upgrade removing the jack & having not invested in otherwise good-quality IEMs, etc. took an opportunity to choose to get some while having complicated & mixed pros/cons for them as often pointed out here. The biggest difference was in the past, that was always a user choice to get one or the other, has now been forced into a non-choice especially in phones where the time-tested 3.5 mm audio jack is still ubiquitous in other apparatuses. …But I’m sure the phone OEMs didn’t mind the uptick in buying wireless earbud bundles for the problem they created.

[ambichook]

yes i can get wired earbuds for an iphone that dont use the standardised connector and therefore cant be used in say, my PC as well. or whatever other phone i may move to. or i can buy an additional device or dongle to get access to what was the standard years ago. the final option, the one i'm using, is choosing a phone with a headphone jack because i'm willing to make that compromise and think that i should support products that do what i want them to. at some point following current trends with the gradually degrading DACs in even the ROG phone i'm likely to need an alternate solution in the near future but i'd rather that solution not be needed in the first place. having a headphone jack doesnt preclude you from being able to use bluetooth audio, it just gives more choice. taking away the jack doesnt give you all that much in return.

[justsomehnguy]

> cold war allegiances

>> first world problem (noun)

>> A frustration or complaint only experienced by privileged individuals in wealthy countries.

> But if we look at the pros and cons of both technologies we might see why people prefer one to the other.

But if you take out the 3.5mm jack out of the phone then the comparison is moot.

> Not really classy calling people idiots

Sometimes it's needed to tell the king about his new clothes.

> Especially when you are just chatting with someone who is taking the point of view you are calling idiotic.

Only if you take it to your heart, which you shouldn't. I don't think you are responsible for Apple decisions. Though if you are defending that decision then...

> Done no such a thing

Not you personally, of course, but it's a common thing among people. The thread started on that comment.

> I will give you that. That is a bummer.

Yes, pro and cons.

I've outlined the pros of a wired headphones what works for me. It doesn't mean what everyone should throw out their wireless ones, but that also means what I would defend the presence of 3.5 jack in the smartphones, especially if the absence is dictated by a moot 'we need it thinner' logic. Especially if the company what did that boasts about it's ability to bend the technology to pack the things in a slab plastic and aluminium. Surely that company could find a way to pack a 3.5mm jack in a 7.8mm deep phone. Just like thay did it in that device, 5.4mm deep: https://support.apple.com/kb/SP656?locale=en_US

[user_7832]

While wireless headphones do have some convenience, it's not necessary to lose a 3.5mm jack to use them