A report released in November last year claimed that Apple is dropping the 3.5mm headphone port from the upcoming iPhone 7 to make the smartphone even thinner. It was said that the headphone jack will be replaced by the Lightning port, with the device shipping with EarPods that would be Lightning-compatible.
A new report that was only recently released is claiming that Apple would indeed be dropping the 3.5mm headphone port, with the information obtained from sources within the company's supply chain. In replacement of the headphone ports, Apple will be pushing customers to use wireless headphones, mainly its own ones that are said to be packaged with every purchase of an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus.
Despite the reports still bearing rumor statuses, with Apple not having confirmed any of the information being true, customers are already up in arms against the possible removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack from the iPhone 7.
An online petition hosted on the Sum Of Us website and titled "Apple is ditching the standard headphone jack to screw consumers and the planet" has already gained over 220,000 signatures as of the time of writing.
"Apple is about to rip off every one of its customers. Again," the petition's page starts, explaining that there are reports that Apple will be ditching the standard 3.5mm headphone port for the iPhone 7.
The petition claims that the move will force users of the iPhone to shell out more money to replace the headphones that they currently have so that they would have something to use once they upgrade to the iPhone 7. The pending move by iPhone users from traditional headphones to wireless headphones would create massive amounts of electronic waste which will likely not get recycled, according to the petition.
The petition points to a previous move of Apple when it replaced its original connectors with the Lightning port, which made countless cables, cords and chargers obsolete and turned them into electronic waste.
"Tell Apple to keep the standard headphone jack and ditch planned obsolescence!" the petition ends.
Such a petition will likely not change Apple's mind, as it has complete control over what to do with its products. In addition to the introduction of the new Lightning connectors, Apple's previous moves in the same vein include the removal of floppy drives and subsequently CD/DVD drives from Macs, every single port in the new 12-inch MacBook and even the MagSafe charger. Apple even decided to remove Flash support long before Adobe pulled the plug on the software.
Even if Apple listened, the company is probably too far into the development of the 3.5mm headphone jack-less iPhone 7 to make any changes. In fact, the company is already reported to be working on a new type of Bluetooth-powered premium earbuds with Beats Electronics. These could be the ones carrying the AirPods name and will be sold separately from the iPhone 7.
Rumors also claim that, instead of the AirPods having charging ports, they will be coming with cases that will also function as rechargeable batteries to charge up the wireless headphones when these are not being used.
