Sony sticking with 3.5 mm headphone port for upcoming smartphones

Sony Mobile plans to maintain the 3.5 mm headphone port on its upcoming smartphones, the company has revealed. Sony made the claims at a press briefing in Japan in December, stating that it would instead continue to pursue audio improvement with its proprietary High-Res audio products and service.

Questions regarding the future of the 3.5 mm port became more prominent after Apple omitted from its iPhone 7 released last September. Removing the 3.5 mm headphone port allows manufacturers to save space inside the device (the USB Type-C charging port can also be used for audio) allowing them to be thinner and/or house larger batteries. It’s also said that using a connector like USB Type-C or Lightning Port can improve audio quality.

Sony’s audio products predate smartphones by some decades and the Japanese manufacturer will be no doubt keen to uphold its reputation with regards to sound quality. With the dominating force of Apple casting the 3.5 mm slot aside, however, it will be interesting to see how the market changes. Sony is keeping the headphone port for now, but there’s no telling how long that will last.

What are your thoughts on the 3.5 mm headphone port? Is it time we said goodbye? Give us your thoughts in the comments.