Samsung, one of the last advocates for the traditional 3.5mm headphone jack, has finally taken the plunge in its latest flagship phone and dropped it in favour of USB-C audio and a slimmer design. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to find a top-end smartphone that includes this seemingly vital port, especially with the LG G8 not on sale in the UK.
With the Note 10 Samsung softens the blow by bundling some wired USB-C earphones, but those of you who have done the math will know you can’t charge your phone, transfer data and listen to music all at once without going wireless or buying an adaptor.
To be fair, Samsung does offer 15W wireless charging in Note 10, and you can always listen to music using the phone’s speakers or some Bluetooth earbuds, but as is always the case some people just don’t like change, especially when it means your existing accessories no longer work.
Theoretically USB-C audio is superior to that pumped out through the regular jack, but this also depends on the quality of the headphones and DAC, and actually not all USB-C earphones will work with all USB-C phones because the DAC can be either in the phone or in the headphones. At least with the traditional audio jack you know it will just work.
With Samsung following the likes of Apple, Huawei, Xiaomi, OnePlus, Sony and others in omitting this jack, we think it’s only a matter of time before the change also filters down to the budget- and mid-range.
Read next: USB-C vs 3.5mm audio jack
Author: Marie Black, Editorial Director
Marie is Editorial Director at Foundry. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she's worked in tech media for more than 17 years, managing our EMEA and LatAm editorial teams and leading on content strategy through Foundry's transition from print, to digital, to online - and beyond.