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Updated: 2026-10-03 · 7 min read · Independent comparison
If you want to restore the built-in headphone jack on a 2018 or 2019 MacBook Air, choose ICTION Headphone Audio Jack; if you need to plug three pairs of wired headphones into one USB-C MacBook so several people can listen at once, choose Poyiccot USB C.
• ICTION Headphone Audio Jack — biggest strength: a direct-fit replacement jack board built specifically for the MacBook Air Retina 13" A1932 (2018–2019), so it restores the port Apple removed instead of routing audio somewhere else. Biggest trade-off: it is a repair part, not a plug-and-play accessory — you have to open the laptop and install it yourself.
• Poyiccot USB C — biggest strength: one USB-C port becomes three 3.5mm TRS female jacks, letting three wired headsets share the same audio at the same time. Biggest trade-off: it is audio only — the splitter does not charge, and it does not carry a microphone signal.
• Who the ICTION board is for: someone with a dead or damaged headphone jack on an A1932 MacBook Air who is comfortable with laptop disassembly.
• Who the Poyiccot cable is for: someone with a USB-C-only MacBook who wants to share audio across multiple wired headphones, or simply needs a 3.5mm connection back.
• Different categories entirely: one is an internal repair component, the other is an external adapter cable. They are not substitutes for each other — they solve different problems.
This is a replacement headphone audio jack board for the MacBook Air Retina 13" A1932, covering the 2018 and 2019 model years. That specificity is the whole point. It is not a universal part and it is not an adapter — it is the board that sits inside the machine and gives you back the physical 3.5mm port. If your jack has gone crackly, loose or silent on that exact model, this is the part that puts the function back where it belongs.
What it does best is restore original behavior. Because it is a dedicated board rather than a dongle, nothing hangs off the side of your laptop, nothing gets snagged in a bag, and there is no adapter to lose. The board is round in shape, uses a female-to-female connector, has four pins, and carries a maximum voltage of 5 volts DC. ICTION states that each jack board is tested before shipping, and the part number is listed as ICTION-02. It weighs in at roughly 0.05 kg.
Who should buy it: anyone with an A1932 MacBook Air from 2018 or 2019 whose headphone jack has failed, who already knows their way around a laptop chassis and a set of small tools. Who should skip it: everyone else. The listing is blunt about this — installation is not easy for someone without disassembly and assembly skills, and it should only be purchased if you know how to install it. If opening a MacBook Air makes you nervous, this is the wrong product for you, full stop. There is no software trick and no external workaround here; the job is mechanical.
The Poyiccot cable is a 1-to-3 USB-C to 3.5mm TRS female splitter, 30cm (1ft) long, with an aluminum alloy shell in black. One USB-C male plug goes into your laptop; three 3.5mm female jacks come out the other end. Plug three pairs of wired headphones in and all three hear the same audio at the same time. That is a genuinely useful thing on a modern MacBook, where the headphone jack has quietly disappeared and where a family, a study group or a car full of passengers all want to listen together.
It is built for plug-and-play use. Poyiccot describes the connectors as tight and not easy to loosen, with the cable surviving 500+ unplugging cycles in their testing, and the aluminum shell resisting scratches. Small and light at about 0.06 kg, it disappears into a pocket or a laptop sleeve. Compatibility covers most USB-C devices with audio support, including MacBook and MacBook Pro, Galaxy S21 FE and S21, and iPhone 16.
The limits matter just as much as the features. This is an audio splitter, not a charging cable — it will not power your laptop or your phone. It is also a TRS splitter, meaning it does not carry a microphone signal, so it is for listening, not for taking calls. And the sound is shared, not independent: three people hear the same thing, with no per-listener volume control. Poyiccot lists a one-year warranty description, which is a reasonable safety net for a small cable.
• Best for fixing a broken MacBook Air jack → ICTION Headphone Audio Jack. It is the only one of the two that actually replaces the port on an A1932 (2018–2019) machine.
• Best for sharing audio between three people → Poyiccot USB C. Three 3.5mm female outputs from a single USB-C port, all playing at once.
• Best for a USB-C-only MacBook → Poyiccot USB C. It turns a port you already have into the 3.5mm connection you actually need, with no disassembly.
• Best for a permanent, dongle-free setup → ICTION Headphone Audio Jack. Once installed, nothing hangs off the laptop and there is nothing to lose.
• Best for low-effort, zero-risk use → Poyiccot USB C. Plug in, listen, done. No tools, no opening the chassis.
• Best for a technical user who already repairs laptops → ICTION Headphone Audio Jack. ICTION explicitly frames it as a job for someone with real disassembly skills.
• Best for travel and shared listening → Poyiccot USB C. The 30cm cable is small, light and pocketable; a board repair is not something you do on a plane.
• Best for charging or calls → neither. The Poyiccot splitter explicitly does not charge and does not carry a mic; the ICTION board is a repair component, not a power or call accessory.
In my opinion, these two products only look like competitors because they both involve a 3.5mm jack — and the right pick comes down to what is actually broken in your life. If the headphone port on your 2018 or 2019 MacBook Air A1932 has died and you are comfortable with a screwdriver, I would buy the ICTION Headphone Audio Jack board: it fixes the machine properly and permanently, and there is no better answer for that specific failure. But if your MacBook simply lacks a jack, or you want three people on one laptop listening together, I would buy the Poyiccot USB C splitter without hesitation — it is the safer, faster, more flexible choice, and it works the moment you unbox it. For most people reading this, the Poyiccot is the more likely daily win.
FAQ
how to use headphones for macbook
how to connect headphones macbook
For a USB-C MacBook, plug the Poyiccot cable into the USB-C port and plug your headphones into one of its three 3.5mm jacks; it is plug-and-play with no setup. If you have an A1932 MacBook Air from 2018 or 2019 with a failed jack, the ICTION board is the internal fix — but it requires opening the laptop and real disassembly skills.
how to connect headphones macbook air
On a MacBook Air with a working 3.5mm port, just plug in. On an A1932 (2018–2019) model where that port has failed, the ICTION Headphone Audio Jack board replaces the faulty part internally. If you would rather not open the machine, a USB-C splitter like the Poyiccot is the external route instead.
how to use headphones macbook pro
A USB-C MacBook Pro can use the Poyiccot splitter to run three wired headsets at once from a single port. Remember the limits: it is audio output only, it does not charge the laptop, and it does not carry microphone audio. For a single listener, a direct 3.5mm connection is simpler if your model has the port.
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