Bluetooth vs. Wired Headphones
Connectivity is another aspect where headphones vary. Most wired
headphones
still use the 3.5mm jack that has been around since the late 1800s. We
have
also seen the introduction of USB type-C wired headphones that leverage
the
newest USB standard. Headphones that use the 3.5mm jack require the
device to
convert the digital signal to an analog signal in order for the
headphones to
process it. USB type-C headphones can process a digital signal, which
allows
headphone manufacturers to place an amplifier into the headset instead
of using
the on-board amplifier in the phone, which may be
subpar.
If your phone doesn’t have a USB type-C port, it will almost definitely
have
a 3.5mm jack on it somewhere. 3.5mm jack headphones have the advantage
of being
almost universally supported except in some of 2016’s smartphones like
the Moto
Z Droid and Moto Z Force Droid and the Apple iPhone 7. While it’s
possible to
get better sound out of USB type-C headphones, it isn’t always the case.
Headphone manufacturers have had over a hundred years of R&D to
figure
out how to squeeze ever ounce out of sound quality out of that jack.
