Get a Belkin dual lightning/3.5mm adapter. Look. I personally think this is typical Apple removing a legacy connector a beat or two too soon. But $50 or so in adapters later I have zero issue.
That's what you do. But what if you have several headphones? (I can barely realistically buy an extra adapter for my phone, never mind the ridiculous cost)
I've got two headphones (good sound or active noise cancellation) that I use and every single day I have to keep extra track of the adapter to make sure that I didn't leave it with the other pair - that's even if I don't use it. I mostly use it for long calls but that's typically just once a week.
But even that doesn't save you from times where you don't bring any headphones but still want to listen in your car or any other scenario. Has happened multiple times to me already despite all that hassle.
Also, a big use case is to listen to music while charging your phone at work etc. With an adapter that isn't possible.
The headphone adapters from Apple and Google cost $9 dollars each. If you can afford to buy a $700 phone, you can afford to spend $30 bucks on some extra adapters if you want them. In most cases, at least. I suppose availability of the adapters might be an issue in some areas as well.
It will work with any phone or PC with a USB C port as long as the OS supports USB audio devices. As far as I know, all the major OS's support those. Even iOS if you have a lightning -> USB adapter.
Technically it draws power but it's not going to use more power than an internal headphone jack does. They are both just a DAC and a small headphone amp. The only difference is that one is inside the device and one is outside the device.
In a few years, once the idea of having a device without a USB C port seems strange, headphones and AUX cables will probably just come with a DAC/amp built in to them and nobody except audio enthusiasts will care about not having a 3.5mm port on their device. That is, if Apple decides to embrace USB C on iOS devices which I think they will.
"It will work". Just as bluetooth? Humanity has serious issues getting serial to work over USB, yet this will just work? Across all OSes? We can't even make USB-C CABLES correctly, but THIS is a sure thing? Even the cheap ones everyone will buy? Or the expensive ones that has the same hardware but a nicer box/cable?
We won't have apple compatible cables, android compatible cables etc.? We won't have situations where that popular brand of "cables" doesn't work on new Samsungs/xxx?
Let's pretend that will be the case this time around?
Honestly I think audio enthusiasts are the only users for which that isn't the most absurd idea ever. Audio enthusiasts could use a decent DAC and for the first time combine regular hardware (wide selection of phones) and still get decent output. For everyone else though a headphone jack would be several orders of magnitudes better and cheaper. And guess what, it just works. I know people have done their darndest to make the microphone over 3.5mm experience as miserable as possible but despite that we still have/had a universal way to transmit stereo audio.
There are no decent alternatives even on the horizon. There haven't been brought up a single argument for the removal of it other than it isn't so bad to spend 10% of the device on adapters that you always need to carry. Seriously?
In this case, it will actually just work. People have been using USB audio DAC's since at least 2002. Unless you're using something aimed at professional musicians with a lot of inputs and outputs, it's just plug and play with class compliant drivers. Linux, MacOS, Windows, Android, and iOS all just work.
Obviously, until Apple switches to USB C, we will have separate USB C and lightning cables. That's inconvenient.
The argument for removal is that it's redundant. The USB or lightning port can transmit audio, so remove the 3.5mm and suddenly you have more space inside the phone to put stuff and it's probably slightly cheaper/easier to water proof.
edit: I feel compelled to mention that 3.5mm has issues as well. Cheap 3.5mm cables are often slightly too large or slightly too small which cause contact issues and wear on the port over time. Dirt/fuzz get pushed down into the port sometimes. Scratches or dirt can make the connection bad and cause noise when moving the plug. For a while we didn't have a standard TRRS configuration but I think we figured that one out now, for the most part. You can actually buy a 3.5mm TS cable which is missing a channel on the normal TRS or TRRS and therefore will not work, while looking almost identical to the correct cable.
> The argument for removal is that it's redundant.
That is it? That just can not be the reason. Even if that were true it doesn't make the slightest sense to force this change overnight. Most phones doesn't even have USB-C.
Add to that, we can't even make passive USB-C to 3.5mm adapters properly!
But even that doesn't matter now when the Pixel 2 (etc.) has been released without even an internal DAC. People buy these overpriced passive adapters but they obviously won't work, so people leave 1-star reviews and have to return the cables.
Passive USB-C to 3.5mm are the problem and should be avoided, in my opinion.
A USB-C to 3.5mm with a DAC inside can be used in any USB C port. A passive adapter will only work in some USB C ports. I don't expect USB C ports on laptops will ever have a DAC behind them.
I have no desire to keep one on me at all times on the off chance that I will need it.
I just stop listening to music or using the device for that use case.
Basically dropping the functionality of the phone significantly, unless I’m home or near my tech storage locker.
This is assanine design.