A Short Rant About the New iPhone Earbud Situation

Just after the first of the year, I bought a new iPhone 7 to replace my iPhone 5s, which had finally bitten the dust for good. I bought that 5s on the day they became available, all the way back in October 2013. Damn, that phone was hardy.

I'm pumped about my iPhone 7, though. It feels so much more chic & up-to-date. There's nothing like buying new technology, is there? Something about it just makes you feel so chic & up-to-date. And also a little bit futuristic. Just me? OK. Oops.

Let it be known that I have zero beef whatsoever with the iPhone 7 except for one considerable piece of beef. I love everything about it... except this new bullshit about not having a headphone jack.

if you're not an iPhone user, here's the deal: The new iPhones don't have a headphone jack. Instead, they come with special Apple earbuds that are designed to plug into the same hole you use to charge your phone. Those earbuds also come with a little adapter jack that turns your Apple-only earbuds - I'm sorry, apparently these new ones are called earpods - into regular-headphone-jack earbuds. Smart-ish, right?

But here are my issues:

• Apple earbuds have never been my favorite. They don't fit well into my ears, & they don't stay in my ears if I start to get even slightly sweaty, as when working out (a key time for wearing earbuds, so that's not at all convenient). With this new change, I'm effectively forced to used them. Not cool. But that's not even my main issue.
• I usually listen to podcasts while I'm driving, but now I can't plug my phone into my aux cord (to play over my car stereo) and charge my phone because that all happens out of the same plug. This means that on longs road-trips, I have to choose between listening to my phone & charging my phone.
• I work from home & need to have laptop-friendly earbuds on me at all times, but now, because I listen to my phone so often while on the go, I need to have my iPhone earbuds with me. That's just plain annoying because I try to be minimalist & who needs to carry around two pairs of earbuds?
• Conversely, I can try to bring the little adapter jack with me everywhere I go, but I undoubtedly leave it behind sometimes - it's in my car when I need it on my person, or it's in my laptop bag when I'm on the road. Also, it's tiny, so I'm bound to lose it eventually. I can't wait to spend $12.99 buying them over & over & over again!

And look: I don't usually use the terms #firstworldproblems (even people in developing countries have technology, y'all), but I recognize that this is a very bougie problem if ever one existed. Still, it's been on my mind, like, every day since I got this phone, which makes it worth mentioning, right?

Overall, I just feel like this is one of Apple's self-indulgent Appley moves that seems smart but doesn't take into account the many ways people actually use their phones in everyday life & how frustrating this one little change makes their everyday usage.

I've always hated when people use their phones in public spaces without wearing earplugs, but with this new development... man, I may just be joining their ranks.