This is why iPhones without headphones jacks have bigger batteries than phones with them.
Wait.... hold on... let me check that...
Nope.
Apples to oranges... [literally?]
Compare battery size of iPhone models with headphone jack to models without headphone jack. Each phone is different in what is prioritized, and obviously there is a great deal of marketing that demands some specific form factor which is where engineering compromises are needed.
Maybe instead of shaving a fraction of a mm no one gives a shit about aside from tards reading spec sheets, they should just put in a fuckin' headphone jack. I got a low end phone last time so I could have a removable battery, and I guess a headphone jack, but things hadn't gotten stupid at that point. Most phones still had jacks. It's in a case, and only the most hardcore of *techies would know it wasn't a flagship.
*techies in regards to phones is laughable. It's basically a bunch of fanboys that eat all the shit the manufacturers shovel. They don't do any hacking, they don't do much important in any regard. They just jerkoff over spec sheets, and consume, cause resources are free afterall.
And again, you guys are also discounting antenna design. Newer high-speed cell technologies need more antenna surface area to operate closer to network fringes, and with metal bodies there's this "you're holding it wrong" design flaw that is always on the mind of engineers these days.
I mean, why else abandon physical external SIM cards (and yes CDMA never needed them, this is a GSM/LTE thing) in favor of internal embedded SIM tech? You can argue all you want it's some marketing collusion so phones can't move across networks, but this is disingenuous -- as major factors like that also weigh on the public when deciding on the next model to purchase, and the wrong design decision may mean a drop in sales.
Also take note that I'm taking the devil's advocate position here - I'd rather have a headphone jack for the rare occasion I'd like to use one, but I also acknowledge that the current direction of design evolution is right up my alley and I'm comfortable with the trade.
Do remember that most of these design decisions are in fact not at all arbitrary and it's understood they could be counter-productive to sales - but it's a direction they would rather push for future generations and they would rather focus on other important design considerations. Phone size, screen size, bezel size, camera positioning, weight distribution, number of camera sensors and lenses, battery charging tech (like wireless charging, which requires space and separation from the battery for proper heat dissipation), etc etc etc... these are not only calculated decisions by the engineering teams, there's also a wealth of feedback from consumer studies on what is preferable. These manufacturers chase the profit, not the smaller sales of those who would demand a specific feature.
Whether one needs a "flagship model" shouldn't even be part of the equation - if you don't need it, don't buy it - clearly there are lesser models that have the removable components and features that some individuals desire... it's just that, the market has spoke and demonstrated what features are desired and which can be safely ignored, and unfortunately that has led us to the point where we have lost headphone jacks, replaceable batteries, SD card expansion, etc. Hell it's part of the design decision equations that have factored into the continued design limitations of the Microsoft Surface lineup where we've seen all continue to require the stylus just hang out loosely instead of slotting into a receptacle integrated into the device body.
Do I like this trend in the end? Not particularly. But these aren't arbitrary design decisions, there is weight behind them. Much has been made about it just being all about adapter/dongle/accessory sales, but I don't buy that - sure that's a healthy profit margin potential, but if other designs are sufficiently worthy of market challenge, that's a risky bet to rely on dongles and adapters. But if physical form factor is itself a design limitation, there are certain factors that need controlled elsewhere.
And in this kind of world, with these technologies, millimeters actually do matter -- a hell of a lot more than one would ever guess if just asked randomly on the street. Seemingly tiny design changes can have a ripple effect on the entire product to the point that perhaps priority goals can't be met if initially handled wrong.