But of course we all know that the big manufacturers don’t do this not because they can’t but because they don’t want to. Planned obsolescence is still very much the name of the game, despite all the bullshit they spout about sustainability.
This article seems to omit the most important fact about headphones - how do they sound?
I love repairability and all, but it hardly matters if I don’t want to use them in the first place because they traded off too much quality for repairability.
I get what you’re saying, kind of…
But also, most modern earbuds usually sound quite good. Quality in general has become such a bizarre moving target, but here’s my take: We’ve become so used to constant improvement at the expense of satisfaction. I can barely notice the difference between 1080p and 4k. In my mind they’re both “good quality” and therefore I’m satisfied. Same goes for audio quality. I’ve used a few pairs of earbuds and they have sounded “good.”
As a culture, we need to stop with throwing away of perfectly good devices, because it’s extremely harmful to the planet’s occupants.
I’ve got the Soundcore Liberty Pro 2 and the Soundpeats H1. Neither of them come close to my HD598. What are the modem earbuds that sound good?
I don’t think the writer has them on hand - this is a news article not a review.
Lol sound is not the selling point for any of those pods. Portability is the name of the game
They’re almost all small. You’re a bit off center too.
They’re headphones. They sound ok at best.
There are indeed good aspects to this product.
But I won’t join the “Fairphone good” circle jerk and give them the free publicity, because just like Apple and Samsung, they removed the headphone jack from their phones soon before the launch of these headphones, in other words, artificially creating the problem and need to sell you their expensive solution.
You don’t get to ride the “we are pro customer!” free publicity train while also wanting to be the next Apple.
I understand people’s desire for a headphone port, but I really don’t understand the hate for devices that don’t have one. It would be one thing if they vendor-locked Bluetooth headphones so you had to use theirs, but it really just seems like a common sense move in a world where Bluetooth reigns supreme.
As long as a USB-C adapter still provides the same functionality, I really don’t see anyone’s choices being taken away. If it is one less physical port on the device that helps streamline the hardware, I’m all for it too.
And if it is a dealbreaker, you don’t have to buy a fairphone.
it’s partially because we are running out of options that have the headphone jack, and the only reason to remove them is to boost sales of more expensive bluetooth sets. Bluetooth really doesn’t reign supreme yet because wired headphones are still more convenient, cheaper to produce, and last longer than their bluetooth counterparts. the only reason it’s so common is because it keeps getting removed from phones so people don’t have a choice in the matter.
I’m with you. The hate has always seemed a bit like a first world problem.
I used up all my hate when Apple did it. I still think Apple lied about their reasoning (waterproofing and space), which pisses me off more than the other complaints, many of which I also agree with. (some of those reasons were even more valid when considering the overall state of the tech at the time)
However, at this point a big portion of the market has adjusted and accepted (to varying degrees), and that first change is so far in the past that I don’t know that I can muster up a lot of hate for mfrs who are taking away headphone jacks today when instead of upending the market they are following market trends.
Having said that, I’d be willing to bet that a larger than typical percentage of Fairphone purchasers would really like to have a headphone jack.
edit - purchasers not purchases
Mostly just because it’s kind of seen as a higher profile example of mobile phone manufacturers colluding and creating totally unnecessary changes in the market because they’re incapable of actual innovation. The reason people are mad, basically, is because there was no reason to remove the headphone jack. I haven’t seen a reasonable argument for it’s removal, really, or the removal of most of the other used-to-be-standard features on smartphones.
Does that include fairphone’s explanation for the removal of the headphone jack? Cause to me it sounds reasonable. It could be bs, sure, but I don’t think it is.
The fairphone 4 doesn’t have a jack and its from 2021.
So? Their over ear Bluetooth headphones came out on Q1 2023. Two years developing a new category for your company sounds about right.
Plus, their phones are expected to be used for long, so if they wanted to push people towards Bluetooth they’d have to start early.
Plus, this is still irrelevant - how does the fact they screwed customers over in 2021 somehow make it better?
So? Their over ear Bluetooth headphones came out on Q1 2023. Two years developing a new category for your company sounds about right.
So they first removed the headphone jack but intentionally didn’t launch a companion device because the customers would just wait for them “to sell you their expensive solution”?
the fact they screwed customers over in 2021
Wait, 2021 customers were not informed about that and got their headphone jacks taken away after already paying? They could not make an informed decision and were screwed over?
Okay, but my phone has a jack and absolutely dog water sound quality. Because it has a jack it does not support the USB DAC which I use on my desktop.
Worst part is, the whole USB DAC is $12 including shipping and it has USB connector and 3.5mm, and an amp. They cheaped out on this part not only on the phone, but also on the motherboard. On my computer the amp is way too weak to drive my around ear headphones.
So if it’s a crap one maybe they shouldn’t even include it, since I’ll have to use a USB DAC to get perfectly transparent sound. The only good one I own is on my budget Acer Aspire laptop.
LG phones used to come with a DAC. I still use mine as an MP3 player even though it’s not my main phone.
All phones with a 3.5mm audio jack have a DAC. You can’t play digital audio without one somewhere along the chain and all audio going through a phone or PC is digital unless you’re picking up a radio signal or some other analog signal that’s being fed directly to the audio jack.
You probably mean it comes with a good DAC, since they aren’t all created equal.
A bit of a tangent, but I believe that’s why people considered Macs better for audio stuff, they probably used a better DAC than most motherboards come with or might have just added that pathway in general back when it wasn’t standard on most PC motherboards and your had to use a sound card if you wanted better audio than the PC speaker which was more of a synthesizer. They’d take a pitch and generate an analog wave at that frequency while a DAC uses a sample rate and series of amplitudes at that frequency to generate rich sound.
I’d rather they just give me a headphone jack tbh
I’m right there with ya. I know many people prefer wireless earbuds, but I like ripping cables out of my ears at random. Makes me feel alive.
fuck wireless headphones! I don’t want to remember charging another god damn thing to start with.
I have come to love my bluetooth earbuds… but darn when im in the car i just wanna plug my phone in some times.
This the type of business the EU has to develop. An entire ecosystem from phones, earbuds to computers and software. It’s how you create a conscious and a model.
And standards. EU please enforce standards and interoperability, and open APIs.
I wish all their stuff wasn’t EU only.
It’s hard for a small manufacturer to start selling in overseas markets. It would take a certain volume for them to have the capital to set up shop in the US.
Search for KZ IEM it’s a chifi has this kind of feature also probably cheaper than fairphone version.
You should ask your carrier why. Why they don’t offer it. EU and US are two different market where people don’t buy phones in the same way.
They cut the cost by not selling it to the carriers which will sell it to the customer.
In my European country, the market is dynamic. The fairphone 5 is available in multiple store. People have cheap mobile plan without contract. Another type of market.
I think you can get them imported but the costs go up significantly. Also they wouldnt be certified by your electronic bodies
I’m doing just fine with my bio body…
You can, I had an English vendor ship me my FP4 and it works just fine stateside. It does have its quirks being locked to GSM networks and the 5G bands not being universally aligned between the continents.
I still use the free wired earbuds I get on flights. You can also go to walmart and get unpackaged bags of them for like $1. I just lose wireless ones too easily
I mean, yes that’s an option. They are terrible for anything other than hearing things like they are in a tin can, but an option.
I’d suggest at least a slight upgrade if you prefer wired, and there’s nothing wrong with preferring wired. But I honestly can’t stand them. I get the wire caught on clothes, can’t leave my phone charging and pace the room, have to deal with it if I’m running, etc. It’s just more comfortable to use wireless.
