How Can I Use My Lightning Headphones With My New MacBook?

Well I hope it's feasible, and more importantly that Apple permits it since Lightning is controlled exclusively by Apple -- especially since aApple has included headphones with their phone that can't be used with anything other than recent iOS products.

Did you modify the adapter at all? The Pencil Lightning plug is longer than the typical Lightning connector, so you'd literally have to cut off the end of the adapter for the contacts of a normal Lightning plug to reach.

Clearly it is "Rocket Science" since Apple is the one who took away the 3.5mm jack and included Lightning headphones with the iPhone 7 that aren't compatible with anything but the iPhone 7 and some recent iOS products, including the Mac, and didn't bother to introduce a way for customers to use the Lightning headphones with anything else. Not only that, but there are no Lightning headphones that are natively compatible with anything but some current iOS devices. That basically discourages anyone from buying a Lightning audio product, which in turn costs Apple MFi license fees they would have otherwise received on them, including sales their own Lightning EarPods.

Are you suggesting that Apple removed the 3.5mm headphone jack, and intends that I continue to use a 3.5mm adapter forever, if I want to use any wired headphones on any other device, despite introducing Lightning audio? Or are you suggesting that Apple doesn't want anyone to really use Lightning headphones despite supplying a free set in the box? I know Apple is pushing Bluetooth, but BT is not compatible with every device a typical customer might want to use them with.

Perhaps you are saying that in order to use headphones with a Mac and an iOS device, a customer must now chose between lower quality Bluetooth headphones for widest compatibility, and higher quality wired headphones with limited compatibility.

Some choice. Kind of makes a mockery of Apple switching to Lightning audio at all, or even removing the headphone jack in the first place.

@aaanjoo "My problem is I don't want to carry two headphones i.e. one for my iphone 7 using lightning and one for my macbook air and ipad that use 3.5m jack"

A reasonable position. That's the main reason I'm asking the question. There should be a way to use one set of Lightning headphones, on every Apple device a person owns, to say nothing of all the other audio equipment throughout the world. Hopefully, Apple will work with third parties (if not themselves) to offer a Lightning audio adapter for various Apple products, as well as legacy audio equipment.

It seems ridiculous that Apple would promote and sell a $500 pair of well-reviewed, Audeze Lightning headphones, which can only be used on iOS devices, and no way to use them with a Mac short of swapping out the entire cable. http://www.apple.com/shop/product/HJYQ2VC/A/audeze-sine-on-ear-headphones-with-l ightning-cable

I simply would not buy such a pair of headphones, until there were a better solution available. Likewise, I won't be using the included Lightning EarPods, but instead use the 3.5mm adapter with an old pair of headphones, until Apple gets a solution to market that allows me to use Lightning on more than newer iOS devices.

@deggie

"The JBL and Audeze Lightning headphones take advantage of features in the Lightning connector that will not work with any kind of adaptor. They are not intended for use with 3.5 analog connectors."

How do you know they are not intended for use with 3.5mm analogue connectors, or will not with with any kind of adaptor? The Audeze headphones sold by Apple include a standard 3.5mm analogue audio cable. So indeed they are intended for use with 3.5mm analogue connectors, though at some additional inconvenience.

But you present an interesting theory that Apple established a Lightning audio developers program almost two years ago, and are both selling and giving away Lightning headphones themselves, but don't want to encourage adoption of them for use with all of their products, or indeed any products outside of iOS devices.

And what an interesting move to remove the headphone jack but encourage the continued use of 3.5mm headphones, at greater inconvenience to the customer, even to the exclusion of wireless, which is an additional cost, and significantly lower audio quality. At least Bluetooth adapters can be purchased to use with legacy 3.5mm outputs.

Well here's hoping you're wrong. In the meantime, you're wise to point out that customers should not buy Lightning headphones if they ever expect to use them on anything besides select iOS devices, since who can really know for sure they won't? Hopefully Apple's development partners and licensees won't be too upset by Apple's failure to support them.

@deggie -- I can't say I find your posts particularly helpful in determining whether there is a way to use Lightning headphones on anything but the iPhone 7 and select iOS devices, which is the original topic. What I see is a lot of conjecture and speculation about Apple's future plans which is typically frowned on in these forums.

In response to your most recent post, and with all due respect, someone who thinks there is no noticeable difference between Bluetooth and a wired connection should not be giving audio advice. But let's start with the Audeze headphones (I'm not concerned with the JBLs since Apple does not sell those) -- the app allows for customization of EQ settings in the Lightning cable. I wouldn't expect that to work with the 3.5mm jack. The Lightning cable also provides digital controls similar to Apple's Analogue 3.5mm EarPod controls. Again, that is lost by switching to the Audeze 3.5mm analogue cable. So whether the Lightning cable may be used with an optional app is irrelevant -- they can be used without it. Therefore, using them with an adapter would not impair the use of them anymore than using them on a native Lightning port without the app. Whether or not such an adapter is feasible is a different question. If not, it would seem to be a bit short sighted by Apple. However, since there are plenty of Lightning adapters to other digital audio platforms like HDMI, I somehow think this won't be an issue.

As for your unsupported speculation about whether third party headphone makers will license the Lightning connector, well -- baseless speculation says it all I think.

Also, I'm not sure what you think the W1 chip does in the Beats Solo 3. But it doesn't improve the audio quality. The Beats Solo 3 sound just like the Beats Solo 2. I didn't care for those and I yes I've heard the BS3, and I don't care for them either. Sound is a personal thing, and the reason why there are so many brands of headphones to chose from in the first place. And that has nothing to do with poor bluetooth quality -- but thank you for telling me what I will and will not be able to aurally distinguish. The BS3 is still a compressed Bluetooth signal and sounds like it. And I have a pair of BT 4.1 headphones with which to distinguish the difference. But those don't do much for my 24/48 Aiff and wav sound files.

As for Apple's offerings, well no one knows when the AirPods, or the Beats X or PowerBeats 3 are going to be released. So if I want a BT headphone with the W1 chip, I only have one expensive choice. Which means, if someone wants other BT headphones for their new iPhone 7, they will have to settle for a pair without the W1 chip. Where's the logic in that? Or they can use the included Lightning EarPods until the W1 chipped offerings arrive -- unless they want to use them with their Mac. So now, they are back to one option -- use their old headphones with the adapter. Doesn't make a lot of sense does it? Especially when a simple adapter would solve the problem, from which Apple could make a little more money in the process -- not to mention help establish Lightning as a high quality option to Bluetooth.