While the 3.5mm jack is still considered the industry standard, tech giants like Apple have forgone the headphone jack on their latest smartphones in exchange for USB digital connectors. While it may seem like headphone jacks are going out of style with how widespread Apple smartphones are, plenty of devices still use 3.5mm jacks. Let’s take a look at those jacks and how you can use them to protect your privacy.
Laptops
While Apple smartphones may exclude the 3.5mm jacks, their laptops still utilize it, along with every other make and brand of laptop available on the market. Unlike with smartphones, where wireless headphones are becoming more popular for people on the move, wired headphones are still the ideal for working on a laptop. However, it’s also common for people to experience paranoia about whether their laptop camera or microphone is secretly being tapped into and recording them. After all, social media and advertisers are always trying to get ahold of our data, so it’s not a stretch to worry they’d go to any length. Laptop microphone blockers make use of the 3.5mm jack to disable and block the use of your laptop’s microphone, granting you peace of mind.
Field Recorders
Field recorders are made specifically for audio recording, and as they are a bit more of an industry-specific tool, there’s no reason to stray from the practical and reliable 3.5mm jack. While it may not be the most common tool, plenty of people working in a variety of industries use field recorders, and some people even use field recorders for their own personal use. If you’re worried about the field recorder continuing to record when not in use, you can still use a common 3.5mm mic block to ensure it isn’t recording.
Other Smartphones
While Apple is certainly everywhere, you can easily get a device that still uses the 3.5mm jack. Android and Google Pixel phones have not yet abandoned the industry standard, and you can therefore ensure you’ll be able to use a mic block with these devices. With a smartphone almost always being within reach, it will most certainly be the primary target for anyone trying to record you or get your data.