Are there compatibility issues for Apple’s new earphones?

Here is another report that states you will not be able to use your iPhone earplugs with other devices in the near future. According to a report by 9To5Mac , Apple is introducing new specifications for manufacturers in its Made-For-iPhone/iPad/iPod (MFi) programme. This will allow them to build earphones for iOS with lightning connector instead of the usual 3.5 mm jack.

“The lightning headphones will be capable of receiving lossless stereo 48 kHz digital audio output from Apple devices and sending mono 48 kHz digital audio input. The input means that the headphones will also support a microphone for audio input,” the report said.

Currently, the Apple-made earpods that you get with every new iPhone use a regular old 3.5 mm headphone jack. This enables you to use them with any other device with a 3.5 mm audio port. It also means you can use non-Apple headphones with your iPhone.

The report added that manufacturers would be capable of taking advantage of Apple headphones’ remote controls like volume and other buttons for launching specific apps. It is quite possible that the headphones could also be made to work with a companion iOS app.

The port switch hints that the headphones could be made to work exclusively with a particular app or might even launch a specific app once they are plugged in. So instead of plugging in your earpods and listening to whatever music app you want, a pair of future earpods could only work with the iOS Music app and the iTunes Radio.