We’ve known that the iPhone is switching to USB-C for a while now, but there was always a possibility that Apple would stick with Lightning for one more year. Based on the latest leaked images, however, Apple is all-in on USB-C for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models, with USB-C parts for the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, and iPhone 15 Pro Max all shown in a leaked image by X user fix Apple.
With the switch to USB-C, nearly all of Apple’s devices will have adopted the new standard, with only AirPods, Mac accessories, and the iPhone SE remaining aside from older iPhones and the 9th-gen iPad.
Been waiting for this for like 4 years now.
We changed to USB-C ports because
the EU forced uswe have courage!
I bet it’s USB 2.0. Sidenote: DAE hate all cloud transfer options/nearby share/airdrop and just plug in a good old cable like me any time they need to transfer stuff lol?
Apple is honestly garbage. This would have been news 5 years ago. Now it’s just sad.
This is not sad. Progress is progress.
Good on EU to force their hand, we should be cheering for regulatory agencies making life better for consumers.
It’s sad that it took so long
The EU rocks, but it is sad apple had to be forced to do this instead of choosing to not be dicks
It’s depressing that they were forced into it rather than realising for themselves that it’s bad for their own consumers to continue to have to use their crappy proprietary port. Of course they don’t care they make money out of lightning and that’s all that matters.
Their 10 years of no charger port change promise hadn’t yet expired 5 years ago. So it sure would’ve been news if they’d broken it. In fact it ran out a year ago, so I guess they went 11 years.
I like apple 👍
I don’t. But their hardware is top notch. Fuck Apple. I like my Google Pixel. But fuck Google too.
Wait until you hear the same Apple fans who kept repeating the iPhone is better because of the lightning port suddenly praise Apple’s genius to switch to USB-C.
The lightning port is literally the USB-C standard but with a bunch of features removed, a lower max voltage rate, and it’s less safe. It’s not going to blow up on you, but it is less safe then usb-c.
Yep. That’s what they always do. I cannot wait for Tim Cook to be giddy about it on stage lol
As an iPhone user since the 3GS, I couldn’t really give a shit which port my phone has, because I almost never actually use it. Data transfer is usually via iCloud or Airdrop, and charging is almost always on my MagSafe stand.
That said, it’ll be nice for my next phone to be able to use the same USB-C adapters that I have for my MacBook for those odd occasions they’re needed.
I can’t wait to see tweets from people claiming that Apple invented the USB-C port.
Ya know what’s ironic actually? They were one of the companies that helped create that standard. They just couldn’t be bothered to use it as long as they could make a buck filling up landfills with their proprietary bullshit.
Not saying it’s the right thing to do but sticking to lightning was more profitable to them due to licencing fees. Switching to usbc means they’re losing money
This is exactly why they didn’t do it before, despite it being the right move to make. But they lied and said lightning is a better tech
Could have had superior BNC, pathetic.
Bayonet Neill–Concelman?
No more loose charging ports.
One year early, so they can make a big deal about proprietary restrictions if you don’t use Apple accessories, which won’t be the case the following year with no mention.
This is the one iPhone left that they can do anything they want regarding USB-C, without being under the new law as it won’t be in place yet and won’t apply to product SKU’s that were released prior.
I’ll start saving up then. Still on the XS max but this is finally worth the upgrade.
Hot damn! Thank you, EU. Maybe we’ll finally be able to climb out of connector hell.
The beauty is that it will start extending to devices like notebooks. So goodbye those stupid barrel plugs most still use that all vary in size for whatever goddam reason.
Mice too. Why no one makes usbc dongles is just insane to me. Even if it was an extra $10 give us the option.
Even if it was an extra $10 give us the option.
I would pay more than that for a Logitech USB C dongle
I’m already out of the connector hell for several years by buying only devices with USB-C.
The iPhone doesn’t have USB-C, I don’t even consider buying one.
My new connector hell is trying to find a micro usb cable to charge that one device I still have that uses it.
I wish I could get a 15 mini with usbc. That’s all I want.
15 mini pro
This is all I want
Was that so hard?
I’m pretty sure accessory manufacturers have to pay Apple a fee for each device they sell. Apple are more concerned about making money than making life easier for the consumer.
cries in proprietary
nobody understood this
Watch them roll with the most barebones feature set possible just so they can point and say, “see, lightning was obviously better!”
There’s no point for Apple to self sabotage like that. Why make your new shiny $1500 phone look bad just to praise a discontinued products? Switching back to Lightning is impossible. Better to just move on with it and because it’s Apple, they will more likely to pull some bullshit like “Reinventing USB-C” or “The Best USB-C in the world”.
Apple would rather just ditch all physical ports and move to 100% wireless than praising Lightning over USB-C.
Remember that this is Apple, the company which has already been crippling its phones with lightning for the past decade(?). Although you’re probably right about them just going with whatever and then marketing the crap out of it.
As for ditching all physical ports, I was honestly thinking that’d probably be the road they’d go just to spite the EU. Oh well, I guess there’s always next gen?
Crippling? Lightning is way easier to use than usb c and USB C literally didn’t even exist a decade ago, no clue what you’re on about. Yeah USB C is really nice, but lightning doesn’t get junk in the ports and in general is a much sturdier connector and for the time was a much better option than all the other ports. I didn’t even use apple at the time and it was clearly superior to things like usb superspeed and all the other proprietary junk that other manufacturers had.
Also, I feel like not enough people appreciate just how much shit Apple got for moving everything from the 30 pin to Lightning. There was a barrage of comments across the message boards from people bitching about how they’d have to replace their iPod docks and all the cables they’d amassed. There was no way Apple would have gone through that again lightly to switch to a new standard that wasn’t mature.
I completely agree. It was terrible how bad all the connectors were (including that fucking 30 pin, my god I hated that fucking thing) before lightning. This includes micro and mini USB.
I quite like the 30 pin, though that may be because I coveted iPods at the time but couldn’t afford one. I had a couple of Sony hard disc Walkman, which seemed to have a different connector every damn time, meaning you couldn’t buy one dock like you could with an iPod. On top of that, it was a solid connection that clicked nicely every time. But yeah, ya boy was wiiiiiide. I have a dozen of them knocking about now, as my little collection of iPods grows…
Also, it’s hilarious that Samsung straight up copied the 30 pin for their original Tab, but flipped the pin position so the cables weren’t interchangeable.
lightning doesn’t get junk in the ports
How the heck are you getting gunk in your USB C ports? 🤨
for the time
Indeed, it was probably fine ten years ago. But, as Mac Address (among many others) rightly pointed out, transferring gigabytes of HD video over a shoddy USB 2.0 line is a less-than-ideal experience.
way easier to use than usb c
How?
Do you not have pocket lint build up in your phone’s ports over time?
No.
How the heck are you getting gunk in your USB C ports? 🤨
How are you not getting lint and dust in your USB C ports? Not really a problem with computers due to the cleaner usage environment but I have to clean out the port on my phone every few months or the cable will start losing connection at the slightest bump.
I wouldn’t expect Lightning is immune from this either but it likely is less of an issue there due to having less narrow gaps for lint to get caught in the port.
I’ve had my phone for near 4 years now and have never once had to clean out the charging port or the headphone jack for that matter. What are you doing to have that issue?
Just carrying it in my pocket all day, nothing unusual. I might get a bit more lint forming or dust falling into my pocket than some people since I have a fairly active job but that applies to many others too. It’s not just a USB-C thing either as I found micro USB to similarly build up stuff inside the port. Headphone jacks I never had a problem with when I had a phone or mp3 player with one, I guess they’re less prone to this issue.
Edit: Never had issues with lint build up in the old Nokia charger port either, micro USB was the first port I really noticed it happening with.
I don’t know, but given the apparent volume of people having this issue I’m starting to think I might just have a special talent. Maybe my case is getting in the way?
Edit: okay I actually went and shined a light in my Pixel 7 Pro’s port. It has the tiniest bit of dust build-up but nothing that’s prevented my charger from working properly. Unfortunately, my speaker grills have not been so lucky.
How the heck are you getting gunk in your USB C ports? 🤨
I’m not, but other commenters in this thread are. And with the internal pin in the female connector you have a much higher risk of damage, also the connector is larger. Also have you never had lint get into a phone connector in your pocket? That was a huge issue for years with my Android phones. I had it fuck up my Dell streak port all the time.
I have an iPhone and have never had anything get stuck in the port, unlike all the Android stuff I’ve owned. But like I said, other commenters in here are complaining about things getting stuck in their USB C ports.
Indeed, it was probably fine ten years ago. But, as Mac Address (among many others) rightly pointed out, transferring gigabytes of HD video over a shoddy USB 2.0 line is a less-than-ideal experience.
Huh? Why in the world would you be doing that? And shoddy? Haha dude, usb 2 ran the world fine fora decade and continues to work fine today. Lightning supports up to USB 3 anyway, but USB C came out and they didn’t bother expanding their cable selection.
How?
No need to worry about whether the cable you’re using supports PD, bidirectionality, hdmi, etc. All lightning cables are the same. Power and data. I literally have a device to plug usb c cables into to verify what they support. Even Android news sites agree it’s a mess.
I’ve soldered up USB C cables. They’re not “it just works” like lightning is. I don’t even use lightning anymore since I wireless charge everything but apple not putting usb c on their phones is completely inconsequential and really not the massive deal everyone thinks it is.
Also have you never had lint get into a phone connector in your pocket?
No.
Huh? Why in the world would you be doing that? And shoddy? Haha dude, usb 2 ran the world fine fora decade and continues to work fine today. Lightning supports up to USB 3 anyway, but USB C came out and they didn’t bother expanding their cable selection.
Because some people actually use their iPhone to record videos, since the iPhone has a pretty damn good video camera. I’ll just link this excerpt from Mac Address that I hinted at before.
No need to worry about whether the cable you’re using supports PD, bidirectionality, hdmi, etc. All lightning cables are the same. Power and data.
USB C is a mess, sure. But if your solution to that is to try and justify sticking with an old, proprietary standard that supports only a fraction of the features of the competitor, then I guess it’s your money to burn.
USB C is a mess, sure. But if your solution to that is to try and justify sticking with an old, proprietary standard that supports only a fraction of the features of the competitor, then I guess it’s your money to burn.
I most definitely am not doing that. Lightning was good for the time, and the benefits of USB C now are overwhelming (compared to a few years ago). What I am talking about is the blatant whitewashing of the past. USB C didn’t exist, and the lightning cable was amazing for what it replaced. Absolutely astounding honestly. And the connector still is. But time moves on. But lots of people love to hate on Apple and just completely ignore history.
They released lightning about 3 years before the first USB-C phones, so they could have worked with the standard, delay the connector switch a bit, and use USB-C. They could even have released the first USB-C phone if they’re so keen on being “innovative”.
That would have save their users from 10 years of incompatible connectors.
But Apple never cared about standards, on the contrary they choose lock-in over standards whenever they can.
I really cannot tell if you’re joking or not…
They released lightning about 3 years before the first USB-C phones
3 and a half years before the first usb c phones showed up in china. It was 4 years until it showed up anywhere else.
so they could have worked with the standard,
They literally did work together to create the standard.
delay the connector switch a bit,
You seriously have to be joking. Stop working on getting rid of their shit 30 pin connector that everyone had been complaining about for literally a decade? Why in the world would they stop development for something that was never guaranteed to actually make it out of a standards body? Standards don’t just pop up at a set time. They had no clue USB Type-C would succeed or if it did, how long it would take. Not only that, but it’s not like they just started developing lightning in 2012. They had to have been developing it for several years, along with the phones to go with it. This is honestly the most ridiculous suggestion I think I’ve seen in this thread.
They could even have released the first USB-C phone if they’re so keen on being “innovative”.
… they were innovative. They released the first symmetrical connector for a phone, ~4 years before anyone else. Theirs was (and still is) thinner and more robust than other phone connectors. You’re literally just trying to rewrite history.
That would have save their users from 10 years of incompatible connectors.
dude… like… are you seriously joking? why in the world do you think this?
But Apple never cared about standards, on the contrary they choose lock-in over standards whenever they can.
… this is where you clearly reveal that you are ignorant on this topic. Apple (and every tech giant) collaborates on standards all the time. Please. seriously. Go look at any standard and you will find apple, google, facebook, etc. on the standards body.
You might go ‘oh iMessage’. Well apple did try to create a standard for iMessage. Carriers didn’t want it
Just because you believe all the apple hate doesn’t mean it’s true. Just like believing that Google sells your data doesn’t mean it’s true. Sometimes you have to research stuff yourself.
iPad Pro (2020 model onwards if I recall correctly) already uses USB type C already so it shouldn’t be any different.
I could charge my android phone with it for example and in couple occasions I have done so.
Honestly, the fact that apple used usb-c on it’s “pro” iPads but not the regular iPad is all the proof we need that even apple thinks usb-c is better
It’s likely more to do with the iPad Pro architecture being essentially the same as a MacBooks. Makes it easier to produce multiple devices based on the same components. But they kept Lightning on the cheaper devices because the people using them are less likely to care how they (very infrequently) plug stuff in.
Not gonna happen.
They are a perfectionist company.
You’re probably right, but imagine the meme potential 🥺
side-eyes the 10th gen iPad with its 1st gen Pencil and usb-c > lightning adapter…
Next up: allow side loading!
I might actually consider getting an iPhone.
(it’s crazy you still cannot get a version of Firefox with both adblock and bookmarks sync on ios)
I use Safari with AdGuard to get AdBlocking.
Apple knows that consumers don’t want that. Apple knows everything.
I feel so suffocated by their products!
Never, Google pixel and machine learning
EU is the real MVP. Hoping that a few more years now and we’ll have iphone with USB C, app sideloading, user replacable battery. I’ve never owned an iphone before but if that happens, I might consider one.
If you don’t need access to iMessage or are not part of the iCloud ecosystem (i.e. do most/all of your work on a Mac), it’s still not worth it. I switched ~3-4 years ago for iMessage and the Lidar sensor. The lidar is shit for technical work, or really anything other than the simplest in-phone diversions. If iMessage were available on Android I’d almost certainly swap back. It’s not that the phone is bad, per se, just that there are weird limitations that pop up from time to time that wouldn’t exist with an Android device.
Edit: I was going to jump on the 15 for the USBC, but I’ll probably wait for the hype to die down unless I get a sweetheart upgrade deal from my provider. My airpod case is still lightning, so there’s no economy for me in getting my phone switched over.
If you’re happy using a third party app then you can use iMessage on Android.
Good to know. That’s an interesting app all around.
I moved because of the insular iMessage (including facetime) system my family uses, and have tried several hacks over the years prior to access it on my phone/desktop. During the time we were auditioning apps, there simply wasn’t a more reliable mobile system that worked on iOS with the features we wanted (and, trust me, I tried several).
I don’t really care about imessage or icloud. But apple have a much better track record for providing updates for old iphones. Android is quite enshittified these days. Filled with sponsored unremovable apps, abandonware stock rom, and if you try to use something else like lineage os, it is no longer possible to use banking apps etc. Really all iphone need for me to consider it is sideloading apps which is presumably on its way.
[edit - my first response was combative; I didn’t intend it to be]
Sadly, iOS is filled with sponsored, unremovable apps - the only difference is that they are Apple branded. I lock down my notifications pretty hard, and I generally don’t subscribe to streaming media. I get regular, invasive pop-ups to join Apple Music and Apple TV+. You can’t turn those off, you can’t uninstall them. Yes, they keep devices updated for longer, but once you fall out of that period almost none of the apps will work anymore and you can’t get versions that will work with your OS revision until you’re left with a brick (it’s happened on multiple iPads for me). It may be the lesser evil, but it’s still annoying at times.
This and we are gonna have replaceable batteries in the future as well. Thanks EU!
though Apple is expected to adopt curved edges for the first time since the iPhone 11.
Damn, I use a Pixel but I’ve always liked how the 2018+ iPad Pro and 2020+ iPhones looked. I wonder if the front will still be flat with a curved back, like the Nothing Phone 2
I’m really curious how apple will present that on stage. If they say anything positive about the change everyone will ask why they didn’t do it sooner. But they also can’t just not say anything about it
deleted by creator
I don’t know what people don’t understand about this. Lighting is way better than microUSB, the only other option at the time. I cant imagine how many accessories will be rendered useless or at least inconvenient to use after this change. Probably gonna be an ewaste disaster.
It doesn’t really matter anyway, how many people really care about the port they have to plug their phone into at the end of the day as long as it works? I’ll admit I used to care A LOT but I just don’t anymore, bigger fish to fry and all.
I cant imagine how many accessories will be rendered useless or at least inconvenient to use after this change. Probably gonna be an ewaste disaster.
On the upside, everyone in this thread bitching about Apple hanging on to Lightning for all these years will have something new to hate them for, thus maintaining balance in the universe.
I’m confident Apple will use whatever the currently top performing variant of usb-c is.
My guess is they spend less than 60 seconds on it, in the same way they talked about it when it came to the iPad Pro in 2018: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bfHEnw6Rm-4&t=3309
In summary: “We changed a thing. It’s a big deal but also not. Here are three benefits this change brings for users. Also this other benefit. On to the next thing.”
My understanding is that USB-C as a standard is pretty all over the place. Some can fast charge etc. So my guess is that Apple will come up with some superduper performance USB-C or they’ll at least present it as such. And why not sooner? Because they were in the lab perfecting it.
USB Type-C is not all over the place, it’s a pretty normal connector standard, that was updated a few times.
What may be confusing to is that there are also two other relevant standards:
- USB Power Delivery 2.0 and its updates
- USB 3.0 and its updates
Both of these standards require the USB Type-C connector for some of their features. Sometimes in a specific revision, for example at least USB Type-C Rev 2.1 is required for the Extendend Power Range introduced in USB Power Delivery 3.1 for charging at more than 100W.
Furthermore USB 3.1 has absorbed USB 3.0 and USB 3.2 has absorbed USB 3.1. Each time they renamed the old connection speeds. For example a USB 3.2 Gen 1×1 connection used to be called a USB 3.1 Gen 1 connection and before USB 3.1 came out it was called a USB 3.0 connection.
Finally USB Type-C has so called alternate modes, where the lanes for SuperSpeed USB can instead be assigned to carry other protocols, like DisplayPort.
Since very few features are actually required to be supported, and marketing managers are apparently allergic to precision, it’s hard to find out what feature is supported on which interface for any given device.
It is all over the place. The connector allows for all of those things and doesn’t guarantee any of them. Along with that cables don’t even have a guarantee of being bidirectional, a problem with the usb c spec, not with the USB standards.
Also you kind of proved the point. USB C is confusing because it pretends to be universal (see literally the hundreds of comments in this thread) even though it most definitely isn’t.
USB C is confusing because it pretends to be universal
In reality USB Type-C is only a connector, not all the features people associate with it. Of course it’s going to be confusing if you insist on mushing the concepts up in your head even after an explanation. Just accept that there are at least four different things, Type-C, USB 3.2, Alternate Modes and USB PD, and start thinking in those categories.
Dude. The connector allows for different sets of pins. This is not mushing up different concepts. I’ve actually soldered usb c connectors. I’ve even designed PCBs that needed to support PD. Have you read the USB spec? I have. It’s clear you don’t actually understand how complicated the connector itself is.
I think what confuses people is precisely the fact that we finally have one universal connector, because previously each connector basically only had one set of standards.
USB-C is a victim of its own success
USBC is a hot god damned mess.
The C describes only the shape of the connector.
The numbered specification (“2.0”, “3.0”) describes the speed.
But USBC can also do non-USB protocols like HDMI and Thunderbolt and DisplayPort.
This is why I haven’t really been clamoring for this change. USB-C SUPPORTS cool things, but doesn’t guarantee that it’ll be available to use. Most of the time that’s a silent fallback, but I’ve seen a lot of odd things with USB-C cables and chargers in the past, all followed the standard, the standard just allows for only supporting partial feature sets.
At least with Lightning I know what I’m getting. I’ve got usb-c cables that don’t support 1.1 data lines for keyboards or mice, yet pass 40gbit. I’ve got chargers that support, in fine print, high output at 5v, 9v and 20v, but plug a 12v device in and it negotiates it down to 5v. Etc. and these are all brand name things. I even have a cable that supports more if you flip It over than it does on the other side.
I really hope D is better, but I also kinda hope they don’t call it D…
Things got better as manufacturers now implement the standard correctly.
Nowadays you can plug any device to any charger and the worse that can happen is your device not charging fast enough (sometimes actually discharging).
So if you get a powerful enough charger, you’ll be able to charge all your devices.
And yes, you can also do video out and for that you need to check the compatibility of your devices but it’s still not that bad, compared to the days where you could fry a device by using the wrong charger.
For sure, they’ll make some spec that isn’t very compatible with lots of cables, chargers, devices, etc. But, it will charge. A normal usb c cable might not Super Ultra Mega Charge your iPhone like an apple cable and adapter would, but it will charge, and vice-versa. That’s basically what we have with usb-c standards currently, though.
It depends what the device supports. It’s on Apple to implement the standard to the fullest extent the device can utilize. If they don’t implement fast charging, that’s on them. There was a lot of complaints when the Nintendo Switch came out because they didn’t implement all the features.
I think there’s a good chance that they act like it was their idea and that they are doing a the world a huge favor by switching.
They’ll do like they always do and pretend it’s the greatest, most innovative feature ever. They’ll probably give it a hip new name like ‘light speed port’ and make it only compatible with Apple-branded products.
The EU specifically disallowed that in their terms.
- Harmonised fast charging technology will help prevent that different producers unjustifiably limit the charging speed and will help to ensure that charging speed is the same when using any compatible charger for a device.
Two possibilities:
- It’s a revolution. They give it a specific name and blablabla.
- They don’t say anything.
It’s a revolution. They give it a specific name and blablabla.
iBS™
Hm. For some reason, I felt like Apple was going to be petty enough to only make phones with USB-C ports exclusively for EU territories and leave the rest of the world with proprietary ports. Good for them for not doing that I guess.
If that were the cheaper thing to do I have no doubt they would’ve done it. Personally, I figured they were more likely go portless/wireless charging before being forced to USB-C but I guess that’s not entirely feasible yet.
It’s simply cheaper for them not to have two different devices.
They kinda already do different physical models for different regions. NA has no SIM card slot, China requires 2, rest of the world gets 1.
With that being said, charging ports might be a different beast.
That’s easy though because they just swap out a daughter board but with apples design the charge port is soldered directly onto the main board so they have to change that and it’s probably easy to not do that.
Very few phones actually have daughter boards for the charging port. Pretty much the only ones that are phones aimed at repairability.
