Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Supposed Lightning EarPods for iPhone 7 shown in new leak

By

iphone 7 lightning earpods leak version 1467204487 apple headphones top 650x0
Image used with permission by copyright holder
The iPhone 7 is largely expected to do away with the long-used headphone jack, allowing Apple to make the device thinner and sleeker than ever. While some rumors indicate that Apple will include Bluetooth earbuds as a replacement to the standard 3.5mm headphones, a new leak reveals that Apple might instead simply include wired Lightning headphones.

Updated on 07-14-2016 by Kyle Wiggers: Added additional images of purported Lightning-compatible EarPods. 

Recommended Videos

The leak comes from Chinese social media site Weibo (via iPhone7.nl), and basically shows headphones that look exactly the same as Apple’s EarPods, but have a Lightning connector instead of a 3.5mm connector.

17538-15166-earps2-l
Weibo
Weibo
Related

It’s important to take these images with a grain of salt, as they could pretty easily have been altered. If accurate, however, the leak seemingly confirms that Apple will be doing away with the headphone jack. Some reports suggest that the leak could be fake, considering the fact that the connector seems to be a lot larger than that of the standard Lightning cable. Still, it’s important to remember that in the case of headphones, a digital-to-analog converter is required to convert ones and zeroes to something the human ear can understand.

Actually, if accurate, Apple will be going above and beyond the latest rumors, which suggest that the iPhone 7 will come with Apple’s standard EarPods and a Lightning-to-3.5mm adapter. It’s a somewhat unwieldy solution and would be very un-Apple-like, especially considering the fact that Apple has always been about great design and ease-of-use. Still, it would allow users to continue using their own headphones if they so choose. Perhaps the best solution would be to offer Lightning earbuds, like those shown in the latest leak, as well as a Lightning-to-3.5mm adapter. One can dream.

lightning-headphones-leak
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Apple is also expected to release Bluetooth earbuds, but most rumors suggest that those will be available to buy, rather than included in the box with the new iPhone.

Of course, we should find out the truth pretty soon. If Apple sticks to its normal update schedule, the iPhone 7 should be released in September.

Article originally published on 07-13-2016. 

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Christian de Looper
Christian de Looper
Contributor
Christian’s interest in technology began as a child in Australia, when he stumbled upon a computer at a garage sale that he…
iPhone SE 4: news, rumored price, release date, and more
The Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Apple iPhone SE (2020) together.

While the spotlight always seems to be on Apple’s mainline iPhones, the iPhone SE is a great pick for those who are on a budget. If you want an iPhone that doesn't break the bank, the SE is the way to go.

The original iPhone SE came out in 2016, and then Apple revamped it in 2020 and 2022 by giving it some more modern hardware. The iPhone SE tends to get updated every two or so years rather than annually like the traditional iPhone. This means  that we should see a new iPhone SE 4 this year, but it’s not so cut-and-dried with this particular model.

Read more
3 reasons why I’ll actually use Anker’s new iPhone power bank
A person holding the Anker MagGo Power Bank.

Power banks are a necessary evil, and even if you don’t consider yourself a “power user” who's likely to drain a phone’s battery in less than a day, there will be times when one comes in handy. And when I am forced to carry one, I want it to be as helpful and versatile as possible.

I’ve been trying Anker’s MagGo Power Bank 10K -- meaning it has a 10,000mAh cell inside it -- and there are three reasons why I'm OK with it taking up valuable space in my bag.
It has a screen on it

Read more
Here’s how Apple could change your iPhone forever
An iPhone 15 Pro Max laying on its back, showing its home screen.

Over the past few months, Apple has released a steady stream of research papers detailing its work with generative AI. So far, Apple has been tight-lipped about what exactly is cooking in its research labs, while rumors circulate that Apple is in talks with Google to license its Gemini AI for iPhones.

But there have been a couple of teasers of what we can expect. In February, an Apple research paper detailed an open-source model called MLLM-Guided Image Editing (MGIE) that is capable of media editing using natural language instructions from users. Now, another research paper on Ferret UI has sent the AI community into a frenzy.

Read more