New Intel USB Type- C Could Make Losing Audio Jack More Bearable

Although it hasn’t been officially confirmed yet by Apple, the iPhone 7, or whatever it will be called, will probably be the first smartphone to lack an audio jack. However, it most likely won’t be the only one to drop the 3.5mm jack. The upcoming smartphone models might just go in a different direction and opt for other ways to ensure users can listen to their favorite music on their handsets. According to Engadget, Intel has already provided a replacement for the audio jack we thought we could never live without. The source reports that Intel developed a USB Type-C that will be able to provide a substitute for the jack.

According to the aforementioned reports, the tech company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, made some changes to the preexisting USB Type- C and turned into the perfect connector for audio. Brad Saunders, an architect for Intel thinks that even though smartphone users aren’t exactly excited about the disappearance of the audio jack from the upcoming handsets, they will soon embrace the change. Saunders believes that the new technology will eliminate the analog to digital circuitry that is currently found in smartphones and this way handsets can get even slimmer. We are not sure whether this really makes the difference, given the fact that smartphones nowadays are already too thin in some cases, but manufacturers could definitely use the saved space for something else. Maybe larger batteries would be a good idea.

The sound quality could also improve if the traditional audio jacks disappear and let USB Type-C take over. Unfortunately, this also means that users probably won’t be able to use their favorite headphones any longer. Of course, this probably won’t be a serious issue for the majority of people. For those who have developed a serious connection with their ear pieces, there will always be adaptors. On the other hand, these will most likely come for an additional price. Given the fact that the high-end smartphones that were recently launched are already quite pricey, users might not get the news too well.

Intel’s USB Type-C with audio capabilities still hasn’t been launched, so at least so far audio jack lovers don’t have to go out of their way in order to listen to their favorite tunes. However, it’s almost certain that the traditional audio jack will eventually disappear from the majority if not from every handset, so we might as well start getting used to the idea that a new connector will take over our audio.