The Moto Z doesn't have a 3.5mm headphone jack. But this little doohickey will take care of that for you.
One of the biggest stories from the announcement of the Moto Z at Lenovo's TechWorld event in San Francisco back in June was that the phone does not have a 3.5mm headphone jack and instead relies on the USB-C port to pump out audio. Most folks are in two camps on this. That's either a nonstarter, or it's not a big deal at all.
And in reality it's sort of both. It doesn't have a headphone jack. But, Motorola is providing a USB-C adapter so that folks who prefer to listen to audio via a wired connection aren't left out in the cold.
Today, we're getting our first look at that adapter courtesy of the Moto Z Droid Edition and Moto Z Force Droid Edition on Verizon.
And guess what. It's a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter. There's really not much more to be said that that. You get about five inches of cable, with one end plugging in to the phone, and the other for your headphones. There's also a little rubber piece that (I think?) is for helping make sure they stay connected. It's one more thing (OK, two, I guess) to lose, sure. But it's also not a horrible compromise.
Reader comments
This is the Moto Z's USB-C headphone jack adapter
Perfect for breaking that small connector in your pocket. I remember some years ago everybody complaining about the mobile phones not having 3,5 connector, welcome to the past folks!
Posted via the Android Central App
People showing why innovation in smartphones are stagnant. People want new but isn't willing to sacrifice something old. This happens with everything. DVD replaced VHS. CD-ROM replaced tapes and floppy disks. It gonna happens to headphone jack to so I rather it happens now. As they say, change require pain.
Posted via the Android Central App
The problem is the changes you've listed are for the benefit for all. Removing the headphone jack only benefits manufacturers in their quest to make even thinner phones while leaving consumers completely confused about a change that did more bad than good.
Posted via an LG V10
Removing the 3.5mm headphone jack is not innovation. Innovation is an improvement / evolution, not an inconvenience. Removing the headphone jack forces people to a) purchase bluetooth headphones that require charging every 8 hours, b) purchase a set of usb-c wired headphones, and c) carry an idiotic adapter when using wired headphones if you don't feel like dishing out $$$ for a) and b). This is not about innovation, it is about selling more accessories. Don't confuse innovation with greed.
A solution to a self-inflicted problem.
It's not a horrible compromise. It's not a compromise at all. It's a POS.
Headphones are not the issue with me. It's the fact I still use the Aux In jack on my car's stereo to listen to music from my phone. I just can't believe the 3.5mm headphone jack was so obtrusive that it had to go and how much money the manufacturers are saving by deleting it.
I don't think it's the cost so much as the space it takes up. In a quest to keep shrinking phone thickness they are removing useful ports. It's like Apple having only one usb c port, it's really dumb.
Wonder how long this adaptor will take to brake of in your pocket with constant use?
Posted via my Motorola Startac
Too many "opportunities" to break the male end and damage the female end. I've never had an issue with breaking/bending 3.5mm connections but definitely have multiple times with usb.
This whole no-headphone thing seems like a huge load of horse shít to me. Like the no-SD card thing I expect the manufacturers will be backtracking on this when it becomes a selling feature to have a headphone jack.
I would say that the no SD card thing varies on the person. I'm indifferent and hey, iPhone users are long used to this. However, no headphone jack is a huge, universal deal!
You know when you plug in normally the audio is instantly routed to the headphones. are these as instant?
Now,, we wait for a couple manufacturers to make us decent usb-c headphones, or make Bluetooth better
Posted via the Android Central App
2015 Moto X Pure
I would get on this if you want ear buds:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/aero-digital-earphone-upgrade-to-hifi...
I bought into their original MicroUSB headphones+DAC for $25 campaign and loved them.
This is so stupid. I remember my HTC Touch back in the day. No headphone jack, only the Micro USB adapter. I hated it. Everyone hated it. Why start this again!
Posted via the Android Central App
When I'm on a road trip, I like to listen to music from my phone and charge the phone at the same time. My car doesn't have Bluetooth stereo. These one-jack phones are not for me.
I am port sure the there will be a cable that has two USB ports on available on Amazon pretty soon. This will allow you to charge your phone whilst listening through your headphones.
Posted via the Android Central App
I haven't plugged anything in my phones headset jack in a hot minute, it's just a dust hole that I cover with a rubber stopper and with wireless charging, the charge port is becoming obsolete to me.
OK. You haven't in a "hot minute". What about a "hot hour"? Idiom fail.
I just love it when manufacturers try to solve non-existent problems.
For real shows how stagnated the smartphone market is getting smartphone wise.
Posted via the Pokémon Central App
You can just left i permant on your headphone so you dont loose it right? I don see the problem with that...
There's a hole in that. What if you have a day when you need to take your charger too?
There's another hole. What if you have another device that has a 3.5mm jack that you also use your headphones with?
Exactly.
I use a pair of in-ear headphones every day on my commute.
I have a pair of circumaural headphones at home that I frequently plug into the phone to fall asleep to. (Charging at the same time -- double whammy.)
I often plug my phone into the drum module on my electronic kit as a shortcut to pipe music through.
I have a couple of older sets of portable speakers that aren't BT-friendly but still perfectly serviceable and get regular use around the house, outside, or while traveling.
When I'm visiting family, they all have various sets of speakers that feature 3.5mm inputs. (Pretty music-oriented family, so these are guaranteed to be used during any visit.)
I'm not about to start dicking around with an extra adapter for all those scenarios, having a gimped phone if I travel and forget to bring it, and having to buy extras in case one gets lost.
Just get a good set of Blue Tooth headphones! I hear Apple may be going this way too!
For the few times I listen to music through my headphones, this should be fine. That said, removing the headphone jack was a pretty dumb choice. Sure, it's old tech, but it's tech that is still widely used and would be best kept around at this point in time.
I only use BT headphones, so it wouldn't matter to me. But if I had a nice set of wired headphones that dongle would be a non-starter.
oh, how we have come full circle. This reminds me of the OG MyTouch 3G USB headphone adapter.
Where's the story on availability and pricing? Wasn't the announcement at 10 EDT? NDA?
Can't find anything on those either anywhere, AC, BGR, Verge, Pocketnow, etc.
I'm annoyed.
There must have been no announcement of availability OR there was an embargo put in place on the press that was there to not release that info. All I've seen anywhere is this thing about the headphone adapter of which I don't even care about
Posted via the Android Central App
Mashable apparently released an article about the release daste that is now down but was copied on other websites. If that information is correct, preorders will start in a week and the phone shiuld be released the 28th. I am now waiting to see if the phone is going to be unlocked...
No big deal to me, will just leave it connected to my earphones cord. Wish it was a tad shorter though, but sure plenty of 3rd parties versions available.
I'm okay with it. I use bluetooth headphones for the most part, so it's very rare that I need to plug in headphones and charge at the same time. If anything, this makes a better argument for phones to include wireless charging; if I had a choice I'd always prefer that over a headphone jack.
I assume that the Moto Z is supplying audio via the onboard DAC, since that dongle doesn't look big enough to have one built in. I suppose my only issues are that the USB-C jack could have been a lower profile, though it's no worse than a headphone plug, and the rubber piece for keeping the cables together could be more elegant.
If I wanted to use a phone that needed an adapter to deliver shitty sounding music and would never get updated, I'd just use my G1.
No thanks.
+1
The T-Mobile G1 needed that damn adapter for headphones. I'm glad that it didn't take off and I'm really thinking that this would also end up hitting a brick wall.
JERRY HAS SPOKEN MAD TRUTH
Posted via the Pokémon Central App
Off topic, but are you gonna review the audio on the Axon 7?
I've been on the Bluetooth bandwagon for a while now so this isn't a huge, world-ending thing for me. I also don't get this "one more thing to lose" argument. Well, I mean, I understand it to some extent, but isn't already owning a pair a headphones something "extra" you're carrying around to begin with? Furthermore, if your primary audio device is your phone, and you have a pair of headphones you use all the time with it, why not just leave the adapter attached to the headphones so everything's just one unit? I think people are just blowing this out of proportion.
Well, a pair of headphones is pretty large, compared to an adapter.
Also, ehh, I've tried plugging in USB headphones into the Lightning port on my iPad Pro. Having a Lightning to USB adaptor does feel rather clunky, especially when holding it. I don't think it'll work too well for phones, especially since you're also taking up a port that's for charging the phone.
Also, because my headphones don't have their own DAC and amp, they sound poor compared to the 3.5mm jack.
Seems like they're taking something that should be straightforward and making it clunky with no real benefit
DING DING DING
Posted via the Pokémon Central App
Profits and new compatible headphone sales are benefits. Not for us consumers, though. :P
Soooo, this is is going to use the built in dac on the phone via type-c audio passthrough, since it prob wont have a dac in the adapter due to size constraints. So you not gaining the advantage of a digital audio source, meanwhile giving up the ability to charge and listen to music, plus another adapter to buy/lose.
Exactly -_-
Posted via TCP/IP
Ask yourself how many times you use that headphone jack...I honestly can't remember, maybe 4 years ago but I can't remember why.
Every day for me.
How very, VERY anecdotal. Many people use their headphone jack every day. This includes me.
Posted via the Android Central App
Everyday at work.
I use it more with the aux input in my car than actual headphones lol
Nexus 5X or 7 2013
2-4 hours a day
This is one of those moments when seemingly speaking for everyone does not work. I know that I don't use that much, but it's great to have the choice.
I use my headphone jack everyday, dummie.
Audio Medic
I use it everyday. It's just a lot simpler to use a wired set of earphones. No need to deal with Bluetooth's shenanigans, no need to charge your earphones separately.
Posted via the Android Central App
Everyday for me too.
Posted via the Android Central App
Use mine frequently, even use the cable on Bluetooth sets because of quality. Nice thing about HTC is they can drive my studio headphones and sound better than my former dedicated players.
Posted via the Android Central App
Twice a day for me.
Posted via my Motorola Startac
Not impressed. I have a Droid Turbo 2. Bluetooth headphones suck -- poor connectivity, need to be recharged, and they drain the phone battery.
Only way I will purchase any phone without a headphone jack is if they have an option for affordable earbuds that do not require an adapter. Just one more think to keep track of. Or lose....
Those earbuds would probably need a DAC and amp for decent sound.
So don't expect them to be affordable, at least for the first few.
Not necessarily, as others commented, the Moto seems to be outputting a standard analog signal over it's passive adapter... Meaning the internal DAC is not only still there (duh, needed for speaker and probably integrated with other components anyway) but it's still wired for analog out using unused Type C pins which this adapter taps.
I think this is actually gonna be the biggest obstacle to Type C audio, the confusion it's gonna cause... Between analog out options, digital out, Type C vs Lighting, etc etc. Not that I care much if it fails... I guess I could be called an audiophile but when I'm on the go I'm all about convenience so it's usually USB for me unless I'm trying to save battery life.
Honestly, for the average consumer it's a pointless transition, that of digital out... Long term it might enable some interesting new products ("smart" headphones with sensors, tracking, etc) but short term it's just gonna be chaotic. Ironically, hard core audiophiles who might dismiss it off hand stand to gain the most...
Portable DAC/amp units that use USB OTG have been a thing for a while now (see Oppo HPA2 etc), but digital out over Type C could make them even more interesting or at least more universally compatible... There's extra power out options lessening the need for on board batteries, etc.
Nope.
I mean, why would you do that?
Does that mean I have to go buy a pair of headphones with included DACs and amps just to get the same quality of sound over that port from what I'd get with a decent pair of headphones on a phone which has a good DAC and amp built-in for its audio jack?
I "think" in this case the phone is still putting out analog audio, but using two of the usb-c pins to do so. In other words it's not doing digital audio out of the usb-c adapter.
Posted via the Android Central App
Not too sure about that. But I've also been seeing Lightning headphones with included DACs and amps.
I'm still not a fan of it. Not that I don't like progress, but I just don't see how this will take off.
I remember old flip phones that needed an adapter to connect headphones, and honestly it's just a hassle. One more thing to lose/forget/not have when you need it.
Posted via the Android Central App
Ah yeah, the good old Ericsson/SonyEricsson phones. They made thin phones for their time, but the nuisance with glitching sound once that connector started collecting dust and pocket lint was unbearable. :D
Make you wonder about the longevity of analogue USB audio.
Check out the writeup on Anandtech about Intels work on usb c audio. It is possible to do analog or digital out, but in this case I'm pretty sure Lenovo is just running the stereo analog out on the two sideband pins.
I would say any manufacturer dropping the 3.5 jack needs to include 2x adapters and a pair of USB C ear buds in the box. Short of that I think many users will find this too inconvenient.
Posted via the Android Central App
I had these for MicroUSB and they were much better than most 3.5 analog plug outputs.
http://www.zorloo.com/#!zbudd/c1yf2
I know I'm the minority, but I welcome USB-C powered DACs and headphones.
I welcome them as well, but Motorola/Lenovo should have kept the headphone jack.
I do welcome the headphones themselves.
I just don't welcome killing off the jack at this point in time.
Could the extra rubber piece not only help keep them together, but help keep the adapter attached to your headphone cable when not in use?
Yes that is it's purpose! It was used incorrectly in the photos
Posted via the Android Central App via 6P
I seriously love the looks of these phones, but I just don't know if I am ready to drop the headphone jack.
Well, I assume the jack was ditched to facilitate the look - which comes down to the thinnest possible phone so that it's still reasonably thin when you add on one of their modules. And even if your only module is a combination scratch protector / battery extender, that's still a pretty clever setup - assuming you need a battery extender. Of course, if you don't, you could've gone with their thicker model with the bigger battery, and there probably was room for a headphone jack there. But Moto probably didn't want to put the thin one at a feature disadvantage.
Sure, this thing's pushing some limits - and the whole thing may not succeed. But it's more interesting than LG's approach...
Does it work with other phones with USB-C jacks (N6P, N5X, etc.)?
Yes. The jacks on those devices can output audio, so it will work.
Yes it would, but the big question would be "why?" Unless you've broken the headphone jack on those phones, there really wouldn't be a reason to use this adapter.
Posted via the Android Central App
Not necessarily, I'd bet it won't actually... That doesn't look like one of those cables that has a tiny DAC/amp inside it, looks like a passive adapter in which case the phone has to be wired in such a way to allow multiplexing the audio signal unto unused Type C pins... Most other phones aren't wired that way.
If a usb C to headphone adapter is farily inexpensive I will definitely use one on my LG G5 . I really miss a bottom headphone jack and wish it was more common. My Klipsch headphones have started to split from bending backwards when the wire dangles down and bends the jacket of the wire. A bottom plug allows the wire to hang freely without having to be draped over the phone.
Just replaced my G3 with a G5 and I think this is my major compliant. I miss the bottom headphone jack. :(
I think no, because this looks like a passive adapter, using the unused pins in the connector.
Posted via the Android Central App
Bluetooth all day
Posted via Techmology
Not if you're an audiophile.
In that case you'd have to buy the smartphone that's designed for audiophiles.
Which one is that again?
HTC 10 or ZTE Axon 7 seem to be the closest.
ZTE Axon 7.
Quite a deal at $399.98, if you ask me.
If you want to use the "audiophile grade" hardware in the phones you guys responded with, as some sort of alternative in favour of USB-C audio, you'd have to use the headphone jack, making the point moot.
I'm with the OP on this one. Between Bluetooth and USB-C audio, Bluetooth wins any day. You can get lossless audio over bluetooth, and you have the same limitations on both connection types, that is, you need a DAC/amp in the headphones.
I'm pretty sure USB-C will fail miserably as a headphone connector format. It's not going to be cheaper than BT yet, you're still forced to use a cable and you can't listen to music while charging.
I guess this is the boost BT ear- and headphones needed to get going for real.
LG V10
This
Posted via the Android Central App
If you are an audiophile then you are not listening to music on a cellphone through ANY kind of headphone. Period.
Yes, it is subpar. The point is you want to do everything within your power for the best sound possible because there are limitations. Wired is the way to go for this.
Posted from Nexus 6
Yeah. Wired for the win right now. I don't need another thing to be charged up, and wireless earphones aren't really a thing.
Also I think charging is possible I think, because it looks like a passive adapter, so it uses the unused pins I think.
Posted via the Android Central App
Audiophiles are luddites in the age of streaming music anyway.
Go ahead and keep listening to sub par music. Let me guess your home theater system consists of Bluetooth speakers.
Posted from Nexus 6
So no listening and charging without a splitter. Thinking I don't like that.
Seems doubtful you could listen and charge even with a splitter.
Why not? usb 3.0c used separate, dedicated pins for power and data.
Because because there's no standard for USB C audio yet, it's all proprietary at this point.
Except for the party about how, yes, there is a USB C audio standard. It's literally been part of the standard since day one. This adapter is standard and will work on any other USB C phone. If you don't believe me, go read the actual standard: http://www.mouser.com/applications/usb-type-c/ Read the section about "Alternate and Accessory Modes".
Narcosmackdown.
Hell, HTC had the charge and listen part figured out with ExtUSB and the Touch Diamond in 2008. I'm sure there will be third party solutions that do this, but, yes, what an oversight.
I'll stick to BT Headphones, thanks.
Nope