I am very glad S9 keeps the headphone jack. If only it would add a user replaceable battery and add-on memory card. I wonder why those three features that appear to be much loved by users are almost never present in modern phones.
Glad to see Samsung bucking the trend.<p>I want to use the same earphones on my laptop, desktop and my mobile without fiddling with different connectors.
The presence of a headphone is very, very high up the feature priority list for me. It's why for the first time ever the next smartphone I buy will not be a Nexus/Pixel device (I'm still on my 1st gen Pixel). I hope I'm with the market, and market forces prevail, consigning the jack-less models to a failed experiment.
The great thing about a headphone port is that if you stick something in it you won't ever hear anything over the speaker. A bluetooth headset might not be connected (anymore) and you won't notice until it starts blaring. I use it a lot when debugging applications that have sound and drive me nuts if I have to listen to the sound all day long. Apart from that I don't really miss it on newer phones but my SE remains my go-to testing phone just because things like that (also you need to dogfood the UX on smaller phones in my opinion).<p>Aside I have een looking into nice headphone amps for iPhones and that market seems really small. It seems that audiophiles would skip the built in DAC yes or yes if audio quality would really matter?
My iPhone SE died and I just bought an Xperia X Compact. Has a headphone jack :)<p>My main criteria for a phone are: small, has a headphone jack, and isn't a low-end POS. That leaves an extremely limited set of options.<p>I'm dismayed that there isn't much choice if you're looking for a phone that can be comfortably operated with one hand and fits easily in a pocket. Make an S9 mini, Samsung.
When I went from S7 to S8, I really thought Samsung did an amazing job learning from their mistakes and creating an excellent phone. Everything except the Bixby button. A feature I will never use and is difficult for users to work around without sufficient knowledge and investment of time.<p>Sad to see after all of the backlash them not learning from this particular mistake and doubling down on it instead.
Considering that one of the main complaints about devices without headphone jacks is a problem with using audio connection simultaneously with charging or data, why phones with two USB-C connectors almost don't exist?
That's good news - the headphone jack is essential to me, but the reason that my next phone won't be a Samsung is because Samsung disables Android's native multiple user profile feature.
Well, having had my Nexus 5x die and then the Motorolla I (temporarily...) replaced it with take 5 months to get the Bluetooth vulnerability patch (and still waiting on the KRACK patch), I would have been screwed with respect to the Motorola if it didn't have a headphone jack.<p>I'm to the point of thinking/feeling that any new "feature" they tout, I don't actually want. A lot of which get connected in the marketing-speak with "thin" and "water-resistant".<p>Whatever's driving this, it seems pretty clear now it's not consumer demand. (And with our "thin" phones, the first thing many of us have to do is slap a case on them, anyway. And recently all the people with even bulkier and heavier battery cases...)
Meh, I was skeptical of losing the headphone jack but my $18 Anker wireless earbuds have been fantastic so now I'm a believer in the wireless audio future.
I've not used a wired headset since I stopped gaming several years ago. Sony's bluetooth headphones have very good noise cancellation and very good sound quality. It's not quite as my old JVC HA-RX700 wired headphones.<p>I understand how audiophiles might really enjoy that quality gap, but beyond that niche market, I don't get it.<p>My bluetooth headphones even have wires to plug into 3.6mm / airplane connectors as well.<p>It seems that most people don't care about the headphone jack given companies have decided to ditch them en-mass. Certainly online forums give a voice to those that still want it, but I've not read any comments that seem to be valid for <i>ME</i>.<p>Problems I've seen described:
* connecting to airplanes (I have connectors on my bluetooth headphones)
* not wanting to use multiple dongles (bluetooth has no dongles)
* pairing sucks (modern bluetooth versions don't have the pairing issues of old. I don't have to repair to get it to connect. I just hold the button and tell it to connect to the already-paired device and it works every time.)
* "Considering the prices of bluetooth headsets, bluetooth ubiquity for audio will still remain a niche for the rest of the world." - bluetooth is CHEAP. high quality bluetooth are definitely more expensive than high quality wired.<p>Are there any arguments that I've not seen?
Aside from the headphone jack, many earlier leaks/rumours indicated an on-screen fingerprint scanner. It's unfortunate that this technology still isn't ready for phone manufacturers to use.<p>Anyone know of what the status is on this?
I was super nervous about buying the pixel 2 xl with no jack as I used to use earbuds that connect to the jack. I switched to some Bluetooth headphones and it has totally improved my quality of life not needing to manage that wire. I use headphones way more now that I ever did.
Jesus, this is a feature now.<p>I am voting with my money and saved about 1,000 last year from now buying anything Apple anymore.<p>I think tech companies need to focus on features that are only good for marketing less, and more on what consumers want.
Why does everyone (including here on HN) focus on the darn headphone jack, if the article/tweet shows an exciting feature that may finally make the computer-in-your-pocket dream a reality... I am WAY more exited about that 'DeX pad' than the darn headphone connector!