It looks increasingly likely that the Google Pixel 2 will drop the headphone jack

The biggest talking point around the upcoming Google Pixel 2 and it’s bigger sibling, the Pixel 2 XL, is whether the handsets will drop the headphone jack, and we've got yet more rumors suggesting it's time to pour one out for the 3.5mm port.

A tweet shared by managing editor of 9to5Google Stephen Hall, further solidifies the current thinking that Google will drop the headphone jack on the Pixel 2 (and 2 XL), in favor of Bluetooth connectivity and the USB Type-C port for connection to audio devices.

In a follow up tweet he says that he is basing this information on having “seen both internal documentation and been told by someone who has seen protos”. That's prototypes in case you don't know the abbreviation.

Just got another tip that Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 will both ditch the headphone jack. In case you needed further confirmation.August 3, 2017

End of 3.5mm?

This news doesn’t come as much of a surprise to anyone who has been keeping an eye on the Pixel 2 rumors, given that CAD designs a little over a week ago showed no sign of the 3.5mm port, and case designs that have recently surfaced show no hole to plug in your headphones.

While an unpopular move when Apple removed the port from the iPhone 7, it does make sense in terms of device real-estate, where every inch of the handset is valuable for spreading spreading internals.

If there is a port that is capable of doubling up, it doesn’t make sense to have two ports taking up valuable space that could be filled with battery or chips.

Of course, Apple isn't the only manufacturer that's dropped the jack, with the HTC U11 and the Moto Z also doing so. If Google does drop it, this could be significant for the future of the 3.5mm in general.

As this is just a rumor, we have yet to get official confirmation about the status of the audio output from Google. As soon as we know for definite, you’ll know.