The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM
Other people getting screwed: Custom IEM wearers. I had a $300 set of Alclair Audio IEMs made so I can use an in-ear audio system on stage while making live music. These use impressions that an audiologist takes of your ear canals for an _exact_ fit that completely seals your ear.<p>There's not a snow-balls chance in hell I would have these be wireless, or a proprietary standard:<p>1) Latency. Anything over 2ms is not acceptable for live music. That's the difference between a band sounding "in-time" to "needs practice"<p>2) We use various tablets, phones to control the mix to our ears, and sometimes in between sets, listen and review music.<p>3) Removing the 3.5mm pretty much means Apple is exiting professional audio because it's now incompatible with 100% of everything.<p>4) There is no way in hell my $300 pair of custom-molded IEMs bound to a standard that Apple is going to change in 3 years. Not only would I have to replace my IEMs, but any equipment that's not Apple would have to be updated to match. Not going to happen.