If we think of removing the 3.5mm jack on iPhones and rumored next Sammy’s Galaxy phone as how Apple removed less-used IO devices like optical drives and Ethernet ports, then it makes sense.

Is it anti-consumer? I don’t know, they do include a dongle in the device so not really to me. Could it have been done better? Yeah sure.

The problem I have isn’t the whining–the whining is the solution to the problem that I have–the problem is that Bluetooth is this wild child growing up on the sidewalks and street corners of today’s gadgets metropolis. Someone needs to take him/her in and give Bluetooth the grooming and upbringing it deserves. If the wireless future is to continue, and based on what I understand about Bluetooth there’s nothing technically inferior about it, companies need to drive this technology.

The problem with audio technology in general is that consumers are far from discerning. As much as I look down on Beats phones, the commercial success of those fashionable cans does drive people to new habits–namely buying better quality headsets. That in turn should drive more people to better Bluetooth devices. Historically BT was used for crappy conference speakers and headsets that sound like a 3200baud modem. And that has been the way China and all them product chains are working. (Side note: same thing is happening with cables for USB-C). This means the marketplace is flooded with terrible BT implementations. And nobody knows any better.

So in order to take dongle life to the next stage, we need better BT implementation. Which is why Apple did just that. This is why Android OEMs need to take note and play along. I think by ditching the 3.5mm that will mobilize public attention on this issue. If we want real progress we can’t just let fools keep fooling around with their cables, as suitable as it might be. Life is better when wirelessly portable is literally wireless.