If you want an edge-to-edge display you can’t have an audio jack Spin2
Unless you bulk up the handset.
Why?
There are a few reasons why this design trend is happening in mobile electronics:
- The device profile. People tend to like thin phones.
- Bezel-less presentation. People want the display to stretch across the entire device despite what it actually takes to make that happen.
- Water resistance.
- Bluetooth audio peripherals have made some advances in quality, longer ranges, immersive sound , easier pairing, improved mics and accelerometer based gesturing for controls when away from the phone.
On Pixel 2
The primary reason [for dropping the jack] is establishing a mechanical design path for the future. We want the display to go closer and closer to the edge. Our team said, ‘if we’re going to make the shift, let’s make it sooner, rather than later. Last year may have been too early. Now there are more phones on the market.
-Google product chief Mario Queiroz to Tech Crunch
Is he right?
Yup. The audio receiver assembly -on the far left — is only bested in profile height by the camera assembly on this iPhone 6 which protrudes from the rear housing. The Pixel 2 camera protrudes as well…an indicator that more OEM hardware design engineers in the mobile space are not willing to compromise on the thickness of the phone design. The handset housing must accommodate a 3.5mm hole to accept the TRSS connector. Taking these factors into the final design review, it’s easy to understand why they are falling in line.
I am curious as to why he made the, “Last year may have been to early.”, comment. Especially considering he countered that point by saying there are more phones on the market. In context, more phones on the market that are built sans audio jack.
But OLED displays are supposed to be thinner!
This is true. However, to get the LED substrate to cover the entire span of the display glass, it has to be folded around the digitizer. You can understand this if you noticed how the accuracy and sensitivity of the capacitive touch screens is different on the corners and upper/lower edges on Apple iPhones between the iPhone 6 and the iPhone SE/5, all of which use the gorgeous IPS display. So to get optimal touch sensitivity across the entire plane of the display the digitizer must also be larger.
The above image was stolen from Apple (image credit) and their Chief Design God, Sir Jony Ive. This is a transparent cross-section render of the iPhone Ex. As you can see, the OLED substrate wraps around the display assembly and has a little left over underneath, a taper in the glass screen cover at the edge. You aren’t going to be able to put the TRSS receiver at the top or bottom of the bezel, and putting it on the side is silly for obvious reasons.
This is presumably why Apple began their “pathway forward to bezel-less design” last cycle. Ditching the capability to receive a TRSS jack and removal of the mechanical home button on the iPhone 7/Plus. They then shored up the change with a little vision and produced one of the best products they have released in a bit: AirPods. They also provided a way back for the meek…the Dongle.
I lost my Dongle the first week, but at least lightning connected EarPods (which suck because tethering your phone to your head is kinda dumb) came with it. That’s an error on the part of The Goog. If you are going to charge people $20 for a Dongle (irrespective of the fact that they gave the first one free, they should have provided a fallback (USB C headphones) in the box to quash the period of anger their customer is going to have thinking about buying a $20 Dongle to connect their primitive sound delivery method of choice.
Gotta give props to The Goog on this decision to kill the audio jack. They just about got it right, and the Made for Goog (the Mountain View mirror of Cupertino’s MFi program) will ensure iOS and Android users will have plenty to talk about when comparing Dongles.
And for those who appreciate a true wire-free experience with their wireless handset, the Bluetooth space is going to be on fire with competition, better quality, more choices and all for less money.
But despite all the goodness that comes from this, people will be like…
Originally published at imthemobile.guru.
