Apple IPhone Headphone Jack Plug

 by LepNinja
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The headphone jack on the Apple IPhone has gotten a lot of bad press because it does not work with most standard headphones because it is recessed. That obvious annoyance has concealed another critical drawback to the headphone jack design - it is clearly a weak point in the IPhone's armor. Many generations of cellular phones have used simple rubber or plastic plugs to keep dirt, debris and water from getting into the headphone jacks. Apple, however, made no efforts whatsoever. If you look closely into the headphone jack when the IPhone's screen is active, I swear you can see the light and that makes me wonder how protected sensitive internal components are.

Immediately after its release, many reviewers were quick to test the Apple IPhone's durability. The results were impressive. Apple's first endeavor into the cellular phone market place was surprisingly tough. The sophisticated piece of equipment resisted scratches and impacts quite well. This super phone did seem to have a weakness - water.

I do not know if a single wayward raindrop tumbling from an overcast sky into the IPhone's headphone jack would be enough to turn the phone into a paperweight. I don't know what would happen if lint or dust from a person's pocket got into that little porthole of doom. I don't want to find out. I set out to create a plug to protect my precious IPhone with very basic supplies.

Some quick warnings - this instructable requires the uses of sharp pointy tools. The use of proper safety gear is recommended. Also, the IPhone's headphone jack was meant for use with the headphones that come with it and not my little plug. I've had no problems but that doesn't guarantee you won't. If you try this and somehow damage your phone in the process - you're the one to blame. The final product is very tiny...you're baby may eat it. If any harm comes to you, your phone, your baby or anything else don't come whining to me :)
 
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Step 1: Find A Doner 3.5mm Plug

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The basis for the plug is a normal 3.5mm headphones connector. The easiest way to get one of these is from an old/cheap set of headphones. You can buy just a plug from radioshack but the construction is a little different. They often give away cheap headphones with stuff so I wouldn't think it would be hard to find.
qwerty the turtle says: Dec 21, 2011. 8:29 AM
i diddnt have any epoxy or anything like that so i filed down the wirey end and stuck it in backwards it looks really cool
sorry for fuzzy the picture i took it with my sisters phone
Photo1304.jpg
GorillazMiko says: Nov 24, 2007. 11:12 AM
nice! lucky, you have the iphone. or is that the ipod touch? i dont know, hahaha.
Kuhan in reply to GorillazMikoApr 6, 2008. 10:26 PM
it's the phone. the touch doesn't have a camera or the receiver. and it has no buttons on the sides. (but it does have the sleep/wake button on top.)
A.C.E. in reply to KuhanOct 6, 2008. 7:49 AM
my ipod touch (maybe 2nd generation??) has volume control on the side.
cody777 in reply to A.C.E.Aug 18, 2010. 7:00 PM
if it has buttons its a second gen
Kuhan in reply to A.C.E.Oct 6, 2008. 8:20 PM
how recently did you get it? if it was within the past few weeks at the apple store or other official retailer, then it is 2nd gen and should have volume control. if it's over a month old, then it's not an ipod touch :)
A.C.E. in reply to KuhanOct 7, 2008. 7:41 AM
yea I got it 5 days ago.. Guess it is 2nd gen. Is your avatar that crazy undead terrorist from comedy central?
Kuhan in reply to A.C.E.Oct 15, 2008. 2:50 PM
yes. and yes.
chaz84 says: May 16, 2009. 11:50 PM
Also the sensor for water damage is at the bottom of the jack. If it's pink in there your phone has lost any kind of repairs from apple. one raindrop is all i gotta say. great idea lepninja!
A.C.E. says: Oct 6, 2008. 7:50 AM
hey, im wongering, since you cut the end of the headphone jack off, will it still kind of "lock" in the ipod's headphone port?
LepNinja (author) in reply to A.C.E.Oct 6, 2008. 2:13 PM
Once cut, the headphone jack itself does not lock into place. Mine stayed in place because I made sure it fit really well into the recessed headphone jack of the iphone. This plug does NOT work with the iphone 3G.
A.C.E. in reply to LepNinjaOct 7, 2008. 7:37 AM
ok, cua I figured the end was what locked it in.. I did this and though it doesn't lock in, it won't fall out either. Great instructable!
XBlade316 says: Aug 11, 2008. 3:30 AM
sry but do u put the regular headphone jack into the clay mold thingy
LepNinja (author) in reply to XBlade316Aug 11, 2008. 9:41 AM
The epoxy goes around the back end of the headphone plug (where the wires connect). The tip of the headphones plug needs to be removed otherwise the phone will think there is a set of headphones attached and it won't play sound through the speakers.
XBlade316 in reply to LepNinjaAug 24, 2008. 11:19 AM
but where am i supposed to put my standard headphone jack in?
puffyfluff says: Jul 17, 2008. 6:39 PM
I never would have thought of this. Great instructable! I'll have to do this...
mrmath says: Nov 24, 2007. 12:20 PM
You forgot one of the iPhone's weaknesses.
John Smith in reply to mrmathNov 24, 2007. 4:55 PM
OMG! I just knew you would link to that website! Really weird!
mrmath in reply to John SmithNov 24, 2007. 5:15 PM
Knew that I would do it, or that someone would do it?
John Smith in reply to mrmathNov 24, 2007. 5:38 PM
Whoever typed the sentence ( I didn't look at the username at the time).
Derin in reply to John SmithJun 3, 2008. 9:32 AM
here we say "cüşş yani" which stands for OMFG for that mov
Derin in reply to DerinJul 9, 2008. 5:48 AM
oops, stupid foreign lettering hope this one works:

çüş yani

Derin in reply to DerinJul 9, 2008. 5:48 AM
yay it worked
tomatosandbutter says: Jun 24, 2008. 1:02 PM
tomatosandbutter says: Jun 24, 2008. 12:54 PM
coolz says: Jun 16, 2008. 9:29 AM
aha! no wonder the jack was like that!
drummonkey92 says: Jan 18, 2008. 2:33 PM
nice job a realy sleek addition to an obviouse solution, when i started reading this i was thinking 'couldnt u just cut the end f a pair of head phones n shove that in' but the way you did it makes it look like its supossed to be there. *just incase that was a bit confusing...this is ment to be a positive comment! :)
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