The rumors can now be put to rest; Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed the latest Apple products on Sept. 8, where the company finally laid out the newest iPhone. Critics have talked about the iPhone 7 for months, speculating about what would be different. And finally, the public knows some rumors were true. For the first time in Apple iPhone history, their newest creation does not have a headphone jack.

Wait, what? I’m sure when you first heard this, and like me, you were confused and left with the burning question: How am I supposed to jam out to Yeezy now?

With the extinction of the popular headphone jack, Apple seems to be looking for ways to take more and more of our money. Sad thing is, we give it to them so willingly. Pre-orders have already begun for the iPhone 7, which starts out at $649 for the 32GB model, and stretches to an astounding $849 for a 256GB phone.

But the buck doesn’t stop there. Apple introduced a new product to replace the hassle of wired earbuds, making the lack of auxiliary port a non-issue. Wireless AirPods have been created for any future headphone needs, but they will not be available with the iPhone 7. The newest iPhone will come with EarPods and an adapter, allowing traditional headphones to connect through the lightning port.

At $159 a pair for new wireless headphones, techies are expected to spend almost $1,000 for the newest mobile gadgets. What have we come to, folks?

What in the world is Apple thinking charging consumers almost $200 for wireless earbuds? Not only is that outrageous but simply poor taste on Apple’s part. To charge an obscene amount of money to put something in your ears to simply listen to music is just pointless.

I don’t think Apple understands the demographic of those who purchase their products. Apple products appeal to a wide audience, one that is not limited to businessmen and women, groups such as college students.

We as college students have other necessities to pay for, leaving little money for trendy gadgets. If you own a car, you have a car payment, along with car insurance, gas and oil changes. If you live on your own, you have rent due every month, bills to pay and food to buy. We also have tuition to pay, or loans to pay off, making our budgets very tight.

Where does Apple get the idea that we have almost $200 to randomly drop on a pair of plastic wireless earbuds? Or even $600, $800 and $1,000, to buy their newest phone?

I know no matter what they produce and what they price it as, it will sell and Apple will make millions. But, what does this say about us as a society? Why should a measly headphone jack, or lack thereof, cause society to spend a month’s worth of rent on something that will be replaced by something bigger and better the following year or two.

Why get rid of the headphone jack in the first place? I was raised on the theory that, ‘if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.’ What was wrong with the headphone jack and the wired earbuds? I was fine with untangling and unknotting my perfectly fine earbuds. If Apple really needed to create wireless earbuds, did they really need to get rid of the headphone jack?

No. They didn’t.

I am an Apple product user. I love Apple products, I have an iPhone 6. But, to extinct the headphone jack? It’s just not cool Apple.

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