Intel wants to get rid of 3.5mm jack in favor of USB Type-C

Intel launched a proposal to get rid of the ubiquitous 3.5mm audio port. The industry wants to switch audio to USB Type-C, this will enable device makers to remove the old analog port and will allow headphone designers to integrate the digital-to-analog converter (DAC) and amplifier right into their headphones, ensuring more consistent quality across devices.

Furthermore, headphones can receive a bunch of new features thanks to the extra power and programmability of USB Type-C versus the old 3.5mm jack. For example, the earpieces could get integrated thermal sensors to measure temperature for fitness tracking.

At present, Intel is finalizing the USB Type-C Digital Audio technology and plans to release its specification later in Q2. The company does not reveal a lot about the standard right now, but notes that it is working on updating the USB Audio Device Class 2.0 specifications to support new connector, expand the list of recent audio specifications and features, improve power management and simplify the discovery and configuration model to make the upcoming headsets as easy to use as today’s headsets.

More details about the plan can be read at AnandTech.