Phileweb inked four pages (Japanese) about a new, bigger, sleevier balanced headphone standard devised by the Japan Electronics and Information Industries Association. JEITA's reason for further complicating our world? There were too many connectors. Naturally, the world needed a new one. They didn't want to cooperate with extant designs (page 2). 2,5mm and 3,5mm were too small and 6,3mm was too large. 4,4mm was just right (page 3).

Like the razor blade wars, the R's keep multiplying: TR, TRS, TRRS, TRRRS. BTW, JEITA also claim that this design sounds better.

Piss off, JEITA.

New, arbitrary standards don't help the end user. And they don't help makers, particularly when arbitrary standards inevitably lead to the demonising of companies that don't comply with new visions.

Eschewing de facto (market-driven) standards for design-by-committe industry standards after the fact is disruptive, anti-competitive, and painful to both makers and users alike. Moralising is lazy. As usual, xkcd explain it best:

Thanks: Ryuzoh