dumb question: so, WHY the odd headphone jack?

kirk,

The iPhone's jack is recessed, which allows it to be insides the body of the iPhone, and incorporate shielding around it. No matter how well shielded a set of earphones is, the tip can not be shielded, and could pick up RF interference.

The jack is a mini-jack, and will accept standard headphones as long as they are narrow enough to fit. If the plastic "housing" around the plug is too wide, they won't fit.

Some of resolved this by whittling down the plastic on their headphones, but that is not something I would recommend because if you slip you could ruin the headphones. Use at your own risk.

Alternatively Belkin and Monster make adapters that are carried in the Apple Retail Stores as well as the Apple Store online.

Other companies make adapters that incorporate a microphone as well, for example Bose makes a kit that includes a Microphone.

Hope this helps,

Nathan C.

When the earphone jack is in, the handset mike is off, and the earphone mic is on. People might get real grumpy if they get a call and cannot answer it because they do not have an earphone mic.

AppleMan1958 wrote:
When the earphone jack is in, the handset mike is off, and the earphone mic is on. People might get real grumpy if they get a call and cannot answer it because they do not have an earphone mic.

Actually, thats only if you are using a TRRS connector like the iPhone headset. I plugged in my old iPod headphones a while back (when my iPhone buds shorted out) and received a call. The caller came through the earbuds but I still talked into the mic at the base of the handset.

So actully its about money and profits at apple.
You have to buy there stuff; video out adaptors,headsets,music its all markiting for profits...

The answer is simple and well known... it was to keep the design slim.

From two interviews with Apple marketing VP Greg Joswiak:

+"The only way to accommodate the full variety of headphones would be to make the \[iphone\] thicker, or change its contours. And you know we don't like to do things like that."+

and

+“The jack is recessed in order to maintain the integrity of that design,”+ That is, "if they had wanted the jack to not be recessed, the phone would have had to be thicker at that point, and they weren’t willing to compromise the shape — specifically the thinness — of the design."

thedodgeboys wrote:
You have to buy there stuff; video out adaptors,headsets,music its all markiting for profits...

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't they give you a free pair of headphones that were compatible in the box?

that doesn't really discount the other guy's reply (theory)about making the hole bigger....even though it's recessed....I'm looking at the phone and can't really see any obvious reasons why you couldn't make the hole bigger...without changing it's current dimensions......

Are you seriously going to argue that the stock apple headphones are suitable?

maybe for people that use their ipod for a 15 min run every now and then but what about commuters that have to sit on the train for an hour at a time, twice a day? maybe that's not so common in high density cities in America but in Australia we spend a lot of time commuting every day. i don't know how i survived for the two or three weeks with the stock earphones i got with my nano before i got my sennheisers.

in short, the stock ones, although being better than some, are still pretty poor.

Not to be anal, but there is nothing free in life. Some portion of the price you paid for the iPhone was allocated to cover the costs of including the earbuds...it's just good business sense. It is indeed about the money, but isn't that why they are in business in the first place?

I'm not going to argue that they are suitable. I changed mine out for UE's at the first opportunity.

My only point was that they did give you a compatible set of headphones with the phone. Its not like they recessed the jack and then forced you to buy an adapter after the fact to use it at all.

I don't actually have an iPhone yet (stupid apple pushed forward the Australian release date from December to some time later in this year). And I'm sure the headphones that come with the phone will be decent, but I am the type of person who is prepared to pay more for higher quality headphones, and because of the recessed jack I am going to be limited to the range of 3rd party headphones I can choose from. That's what is stupid.

its just because they want to make money. that interfearence crap is stupid. there are plenty of phones with normal headphone jacks that sound just fine. they made the hole too small so you have to buy their stupid little adaptors... which they sell and make a product off of... on top of the 400 dollars you pay for the phone

If you made the recess large enough the frame would no longer be continuous around the face of the phone.

Who is "they"? It certainly isn't Apple, as Apple does not make an adapter and they give away a standard headset with the phone. Or do you think there is a conspiracy between Apple, Belkin, Bose, Shure, Vmoda, Ultimate Ears and other headset manufacturers that make adapters and headsets that are compatible with the iPhone? There are 3 companies (currently) that make an adapter, and at least 6 headsets that are compatible with the iPhone jack as it is. And none of them is Apple.