The PopSci 5-Minute Project: iPhone Jack Hack

As any informed PopSci reader will know, the iPhone is definitely a game-changing piece of hardware, but it's not without its problems. Chief among those nagging little imperfections, for me, was the recessed headphone hack that rejected any headphones but Apple's trademark gleaming white buds. Apple's 'phones aren't that bad, but my Shure in-ear pair is better for blocking out noise on the subway (and my Grado SR60s are better for listening at home). Thankfully, an easy solution to this problem is just a trip to the local Radioshack away.

Sure, there are plenty of third-party adapters to solve this problem, but who wants to place a credit card order and pay for shipping for a tiny little adapter? I sure didn't, but after some Googling, I turned up this gem of a hint on David Oster's website, where be pointed out that a $7 Y-splitter (part no. 42-2570) is perfectly suited for modification to fit into the iPhone's skinny jack.

Enough babbling, check out the video above to see how it's done.

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