There's a new-ish connector on modern computers called USB Type C (often shortened to USB-C). It uses a small oval connector. It can do all of the things that existing USB connectors can do and more. Most significantly, it can send quite a bit of power, so it can be used to power laptops, monitors, etc. and it's a lot faster, so it can be used to send data, video, etc. So, it can replace literally every other connector on the back of a modern computer. Oh, and it's also reversible, so you don't have to worry about plugging it in backwards or upside down.
Right now, it's going through the awkward chicken-and-egg phase that any new technology faces. Most people still have old USB printers, external disks, keyboards, etc., so computer makers are reluctant to switch entirely to USB-C. They leave a few old style USB connections, just in case. And since old computers and new still include a few old USB connectors, accessory makers stay with the old style of USB.
In contrast to the rest of the home technology industry, phone makers have been embracing USB-C. It's rare to find a new phone (aside from Apple, who always does their own proprietary thing) that doesn't use USB-C for power. And, increasingly, for headphones.
A lot of people have been complaining about phones losing their headphone jacks, and to be fair, their reasons are good. But, I'm hopeful about this change. Getting rid of the headphone jack also means getting rid of the digital to analog converter (the DAC). Right now, that's really annoying. It means that you have to either use Bluetooth (which is complicated and doesn't sound as good) or you have to carry both a pair of headphones and a small adapter dongle to get sound to your headphones. But, soon, we should see headphones with a USB-C connector and a DAC built into the headphones.
Why is this good? Because it means that the DAC can be exactly matched with the headphones. Right now, the DAC in your phone tries to produce sound that sounds good with most headphones, but it has no idea which headphones you'll use, and every pair of headphones is different. If the DAC and headphones are paired in one device, the manufacturer can ensure that the sound is as good as it can possibly be for those headphones and only those headphones. Of course some will sound better than others, but the improvements in the low end will be amazing.
Because USB-C also includes power (and potentially, quite a bit of it), it also means that headphones can do more. Noise-cancelling headphones will no longer need their own battery. Microphones (including systems with multiple microphones and background noise cancelling) can be built in, and can sound a lot better. You can even start to include the kind of features seen on high-end conference room phones, like directional microphones. Imagine a headset that can both capture your voice clearly AND recognize when the person across from you is speaking, capture that clearly, and adjust the volume so that they come through at the same volume while still filtering out the sound of your breathing. Imagine a headphone for the visually impaired (or chronically distracted) with sensors that alerts the user when they're about to bump into something. Imagine headphones that vibrate for notifications, or, when following directions, vibrate the left ear when you need to turn left and the right ear when you need to turn right (perhaps with a subtle LED "turn signal" on each ear to warn people around you). And, of course, there will be stupid things first. We're going to see an explosion of headphones with blinking LEDs and wiggling cat ears.
But, in a market full of nearly identical products, USB-C is a grand tool to allow headphone makers to differentiate themselves from their competitors. In a few years, I suspect that we'll look on the headphones of the past in the same way that we look back on the cell phones of the past. Not with nostalgia, but with faint disbelief that we were ever able to use such primitive things.
Right now, it's going through the awkward chicken-and-egg phase that any new technology faces. Most people still have old USB printers, external disks, keyboards, etc., so computer makers are reluctant to switch entirely to USB-C. They leave a few old style USB connections, just in case. And since old computers and new still include a few old USB connectors, accessory makers stay with the old style of USB.
In contrast to the rest of the home technology industry, phone makers have been embracing USB-C. It's rare to find a new phone (aside from Apple, who always does their own proprietary thing) that doesn't use USB-C for power. And, increasingly, for headphones.
A lot of people have been complaining about phones losing their headphone jacks, and to be fair, their reasons are good. But, I'm hopeful about this change. Getting rid of the headphone jack also means getting rid of the digital to analog converter (the DAC). Right now, that's really annoying. It means that you have to either use Bluetooth (which is complicated and doesn't sound as good) or you have to carry both a pair of headphones and a small adapter dongle to get sound to your headphones. But, soon, we should see headphones with a USB-C connector and a DAC built into the headphones.
Why is this good? Because it means that the DAC can be exactly matched with the headphones. Right now, the DAC in your phone tries to produce sound that sounds good with most headphones, but it has no idea which headphones you'll use, and every pair of headphones is different. If the DAC and headphones are paired in one device, the manufacturer can ensure that the sound is as good as it can possibly be for those headphones and only those headphones. Of course some will sound better than others, but the improvements in the low end will be amazing.
Because USB-C also includes power (and potentially, quite a bit of it), it also means that headphones can do more. Noise-cancelling headphones will no longer need their own battery. Microphones (including systems with multiple microphones and background noise cancelling) can be built in, and can sound a lot better. You can even start to include the kind of features seen on high-end conference room phones, like directional microphones. Imagine a headset that can both capture your voice clearly AND recognize when the person across from you is speaking, capture that clearly, and adjust the volume so that they come through at the same volume while still filtering out the sound of your breathing. Imagine a headphone for the visually impaired (or chronically distracted) with sensors that alerts the user when they're about to bump into something. Imagine headphones that vibrate for notifications, or, when following directions, vibrate the left ear when you need to turn left and the right ear when you need to turn right (perhaps with a subtle LED "turn signal" on each ear to warn people around you). And, of course, there will be stupid things first. We're going to see an explosion of headphones with blinking LEDs and wiggling cat ears.
But, in a market full of nearly identical products, USB-C is a grand tool to allow headphone makers to differentiate themselves from their competitors. In a few years, I suspect that we'll look on the headphones of the past in the same way that we look back on the cell phones of the past. Not with nostalgia, but with faint disbelief that we were ever able to use such primitive things.
Comments
Post a Comment