Apple’s desire to shave fractions off the iPhone’s profile could lead to the company eschewing one of the most time-tested of tech standards.
Judging by a patent discovered by Patently Apple this week (via 9to5Mac), the company is planning to ditch the trusty 3.5mm jack for future iOS devices.
In its place would be a half-height solution, which would effectively chop the jack in half.
That could perhaps enable the iPhone 7 to sneak towards the 6mm mark, with the current iPhone 6S model coming in at 7.1mm thick.
Headphone makers are already making use of the company’s Lightning port, while the firm also announced a new mechanism for connecting a keyboard to the iPad Pro at its launch event earlier this month.
On the other side of the coin, Apple dropped its trusty MagSafe connector on the MacBook (2015) in preference of a single Type-C USB port, meaning users will need an adapter to use more than one peripheral at a time.
Related: iPhone 6S review
While another adapter might be a pain in the neck for iPhone and iPad users, this represents a relatively simple, if not-so-streamlined way to cut the iPhone’s dimensions down even further.
Of course, a patent filing isn’t a surefire indication of Apple’s plans; often it just signifies the firm is playing with ideas.
Anyway, with the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus not yet on the shelves, we’re not quite mentally ready to embrace the iPhone 7 rumours just yet! Just kidding. Of course we are!
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
