Let's talk about the headphone jack for a minute

[Aytex]

http://pocketnow.com/2017/10/30/microsoft-patents-3-5mm-headphone-jack

 

:thonking:

[TacoSenpai]

Yeah I'm not a fan of that growing trend either.  The part that gets me is that reviewers will mention how "premium" something feels aka Iphones how its completely sealed off and the smooth back is nice but Samsung S3s and S4s have a plastic removable back "its just not premium enough" because god forbid you can pop it off and replace the battery if that goes bad.  I mean thats kinda a feature if anything else same thing with having a headphone jack and not needing a bunch of dongles hanging out of your phone. 

[kokakolia]

Has anyone seen a premium "Hi-Fi" USB-C to 3.5mm jack dongle? 

 

I want to get one even though my phone (Zuk Z2) has a headphone jack that works rather well with pretty decent sound that leaves nothing to complain about.  

 

All I can find online seems to be generic dongles. What sort of DAC do they use? Are they any good? They're usually around $3. I can't really believe that they're "quality". 

 

I'm just hoping to see a "Nuforce" or "Schiit" or "Sony" branded dongle that's a step up from most phone/laptop DACs. I just can't seem to find one. 

[Pomfinator]

OP is right, the biggest problem IMO is the lack of a proper standard of how to implement audio in the future. Wireless is never going to be the choice of millions and OEMs have to accommodate them. At the very least, Apple has given us a inexpensive, high-quality audio solution that comes free with all their phones. But not all OEMs have done the same, some don't even come with a dongle and require a separate purchase with dodgy audio hardware.

 

It's such a shame because this was really the time to be like "yes, we can improve audio on phones by doing what computer audiophiles have done for a long time, removing the audio pathway from the source", but they haven't shone us any commitment to doing so.