New photos of alleged Lightning EarPods for Apple's 'iPhone 7' match recent leak

New images posted on Wednesday are said to depict Lightning-equipped EarPods intended for Apple's "iPhone 7," which is commonly expected to ditch a 3.5-millimeter headphone jack when it ships this fall.

Several photos posted to China's Weibo show the gear as resembling current EarPods for the iPhone 6s, but with the addition of a large endpiece housing a Lightning connector. It's not clear why the endpiece would have to be so big, though one possibility is the presence of an authenticator chip.

Notably the photos match another recent EarPod leak, although it's still impossible to confirm the authenticity of the suggested headphone design.

For Apple, removing a 3.5-millimeter jack should free up internal design space, while reducing component costs and encouraging more development of Lightning audio accessories. At the same time, public reaction to the idea of losing the jack has often been negative, particularly since many people may be forced to rely on EarPods or buy new adapters and accessories that will only work with Apple products.

Bluetooth audio is an alternative, but its quality is generally weaker and wireless headphones are often more expensive than wired options.

65 Comments

ireland 18 Years · 17436 comments

About 8 years ago

Honestly this design wouldn't surprise me. Looks quite Apple. I also think a better design is to put the DAC near the lighting port and away from the in-line controls and the buds. Costs will go up too. Expect a minimum of $39 for Lightning EarPods. Bundled free with the new iPhone (6x) of course.

Me, I must be old-school as I still choose wired headphones (earbuds) over Bluetooth due to high cost, bulk, charging requirements and battery life limitations. Wired means immediate, no pairing, no dead battery ever and no need to think about charging—plug and play. Both have pluses and minuses. Wired are my preference.

ireland 18 Years · 17436 comments

About 8 years ago

nolamacguy said:

I am surprised how large the end piece is.

Why? External DAC needs to go somewhere. And will shrink over time. One bonus is something to grab now. EarPods have a slippery connector that's a bad design. Even if EarPods aside from that are some of the best designed wired buds around. I own 6 different pairs of earbuds and prefer EarPods.

larrya 13 Years · 608 comments

About 8 years ago

ireland said:

Honestly this design wouldn't surprise me. Looks quite Apple. I also think a better design is to put the DAC near the lighting port and away from the in-line controls and the buds. Costs will go up too. Expect a minimum of $39 for Lightning EarPods. Bundled free with the new iPhone (6x) of course.

Me, I must be old-school as I still choose wired headphones (earbuds) over Bluetooth due to high cost, bulk, charging requirements and battery life limitations. Wired means immediate, no pairing, no dead battery ever and no need to think about charging—plug and play. Both have pluses and minuses. Wired are my preference.

Based on earlier information on the Lightning port, there is no need for an external DAC, and I doubt Apple would waste the money to include one unless it's absolutely necessary. Apparently the pins are reassignable to be analog audio. I think this is why the article mentions the possibility of an "authenticator" chip rather than a DAC.