Rumor: Samsung looking to replace the 3.5 mm headphone jack with a proprietary port

Apple's has done away with the 3.5 mm headphone jack with the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, a move that had been rumored for long and actually came true earlier this month. Apple wants people to use its new wireless AirPods headphones instead; the company is also paving the way for accessory makers to follow suit and make wireless headphones the next big thing, and come up with headphones that work with the company's proprietary Lightning port. According to Geek, Samsung might just be thinking of coming out with a proprietary port of its own in the future, following in the footsteps of its one and only true competitor.

According to the website, Samsung is only exploring the move at this point. If the company is indeed working on an in-house port, Geek says it could look at licensing the port to other Android manufacturers. Frankly, this rumor doesn't make too much sense. Samsung, for all its resources and innovations, doesn't command the same power as Apple to make a replacement standard for a widely accepted existing one a big thing in the market. Should Samsung choose to come out with a new standard, it will have to impress a lot of companies with the benefits in order to make the new standard popular.

Of course, it would also have to think about what the consumers will say. Samsung's decision to remove something like the microSD slot from its phones last year was met with strong opposition, and it wouldn't be in the company's best interests to do so with the headphone jack. But then again, with Apple having said goodbye to the 3.5 mm jack, it is possible the market will move towards the same. If that happens, Samsung certainly has the resources to lead the way for a new standard backed by manufacturers.

In any case, provided this rumor is even slightly grounded in reality, it would be a considerable time before the headphone jack goes away for good from the smartphone market. What do you think of Samsung possibly coming out with a proprietary headphone jack of its own? Do you think the industry needs such standards to move forward, or do you think innovation should take place elsewhere and not in the way people enjoy audio on their smartphones?