A new patent appl
ication from Apple aims to remove yet more componentry from its already minimal devices. The invention combines the orifices for microphone and headphone into one, promising a kind of double-penetration for iPhones.
In this design, the microphone would sit at the bottom of the cavity into which slips the headphone jack, and "is coupled to the body such that the plug aperture and the cavity provide an acoustic path to the microphone."
Not only does this close off an open hole through which dust and dirt may enter, it could actually be used in conjunction with a normal, hole-using mic to provide noise-cancelation for phone-calls and even provide directional recording via something called "beamforming".
This obsession with stripped-down hardware will clearly never end. We're down to one main button and a few dedicated switches on the iPad, along with four holes in the edges. I don't think Apple will be satisfied until it has printed its multi-touch circuitry directly onto our retinas and fingers.
Audio Jack with Included Microphone [USPTO via New Scientist]
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