Apple might soon discontinue its Lightning to 3.5mm headphone adapter. The company’s online store in the United States and several other countries already lists the item as “sold out.”
The adapter remains available for sale in some countries. However, once existing stocks run out, Apple is unlikely to replenish it.
Apple quietly phasing out the Lightning to 3.5mm adapter?
Apple launched the Lightning to 3.5mm adapter in 2016 alongside the iPhone 7 lineup, the first models to launch without a headphone jack. After the controversial move, Apple bundled the impressive dongle with new iPhones for the first few years.
MacRumors reports that Apple now only sells the Lightning to 3.5mm headphone adapter in selected countries: India, France, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. In all other major markets, Apple lists the adapter as “sold out.”
Lightning’s death is near
This could be another move from Apple to phase out Lightning entirely. The company finally updated its Mac accessories, like the Magic Keyboard and Magic Mouse, with a USB-C port alongside the M4 iMac refresh.
The only devices Apple still sells with a Lightning connector are the iPhone 14 series and iPhone SE. The latter reportedly will receive an upgrade early next year with the arrival of the iPhone SE 4, ditching Lightning in favor of USB-C.
For newer iPhones, Apple sells the USB-C to 3.5mm headphone jack adapter for $9. But if you still use an iPhone with a Lightning connector, you’ll have to switch to wireless earbuds or get a third-party adapter.
