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New iPhone SE Could Launch In May With Touch ID and A10 Fusion, Without 3.5mm Headphone Jack (macrumors.com)
Mac Rumors reports, citing Japanese website Mac Otakara, that Apple will release an updated iPhone SE next month with a similar form factor as the previous model. It is expected to retain Touch ID, but will drop the 3.5mm headphone jack. From the report: Also like the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, the new iPhone SE will supposedly be powered by Apple's last-generation A10 Fusion chip, up to 40 percent faster than the A9 processor in the current iPhone SE. The chip will likely enable support for the HEIF image format and HEVC video compression standard. The report speculates that the new iPhone SE may have a glass back with wireless charging capabilities, like the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X, but evidence is said to be inconclusive at this time.
I am sure Apple has something in store for this month - after all Apple regularly updates its models around the same time each year. What I do not think is worth any dime is to discuss rumors coming from a blog that provides no evidence. You know, it takes courage to stay nerdy and not trendy.
Does Cook actually know a damn thing about his own market demographics? The people who bought the SE in the first place are more conservative buyers who don't like the new form factor. This is just a big fuck you to the demographic they're trying to target.
Oh wait, this is the same guy who builds a pro-laptop with features aimed at the suits and marketing people, not actual pro users like media workers and engineers who need that 32GB RAM, not super tiny form factor.
Headphone connectors are subject to a lot of mechanical forces; that's what they are designed for: they are strong, springy, and very simple mechanically.
Lightning and USB-C connectors are not designed to have something plugged into that has a lot of forces applied to them. I've gone through two of these headphones so far, and the connectors keep failing, and I suspect the connector inside the phone is not going to survive long either.
The only realistic choice with the new headphones is to use Bluetooth. Unfortunately, Bluetooth has its own problems with connectivity, security, quality, and latency.