Apple's next iPhone reaffirmed to have smaller 19-pin dock connector
Joining earlier claims that Apple plans to shrink the dock connector on its next iPhone, Reuters reported on Monday that Apple's sixth-generation handset will feature a 19-pin port.
The change will "make room for the earphone moving to the bottom," Monday's report said, citing two unnamed sources. Authors Clare Jim and Lee Chyen Yee also reaffirmed that the next iPhone is expected to go on sale "around October."
Claims of a "mini dock" for the next iPhone are not new, but more specific reports of a 19-pin dock connector first surfaced over a month ago. The new standard will presumably be incompatible with current accessories, but would allow Apple to adopt new product designs, such as a larger battery or smaller form factor.
Analysts who spoke with Reuters believe that Apple will attempt to placate current iPhone customers who will upgrade to the new model and find their existing accessories no longer work. It was speculated that Apple will provide some sort of adaptor allowing the new iPhone to be used with legacy accessories that rely on the 30-pin connection.
Also supporting claims of a smaller dock connector on the next iPhone are device renderings and third-party cases that have leaked online in recent weeks. They also show a device with a larger, 16-to-9 display, along with a headphone jack moved to the bottom of the device.
Other parts that have leaked online suggest the next iPhone will have a centered FaceTime camera, while the home button below the front display will remain unchanged. The next iPhone is also expected to feature in-cell touchscreen technology that will allow the display on the handset to be even thinner than the current design.
The change will "make room for the earphone moving to the bottom," Monday's report said, citing two unnamed sources. Authors Clare Jim and Lee Chyen Yee also reaffirmed that the next iPhone is expected to go on sale "around October."
Claims of a "mini dock" for the next iPhone are not new, but more specific reports of a 19-pin dock connector first surfaced over a month ago. The new standard will presumably be incompatible with current accessories, but would allow Apple to adopt new product designs, such as a larger battery or smaller form factor.
Analysts who spoke with Reuters believe that Apple will attempt to placate current iPhone customers who will upgrade to the new model and find their existing accessories no longer work. It was speculated that Apple will provide some sort of adaptor allowing the new iPhone to be used with legacy accessories that rely on the 30-pin connection.
Also supporting claims of a smaller dock connector on the next iPhone are device renderings and third-party cases that have leaked online in recent weeks. They also show a device with a larger, 16-to-9 display, along with a headphone jack moved to the bottom of the device.
Other parts that have leaked online suggest the next iPhone will have a centered FaceTime camera, while the home button below the front display will remain unchanged. The next iPhone is also expected to feature in-cell touchscreen technology that will allow the display on the handset to be even thinner than the current design.
Comments
Quote:
Originally Posted by ifij775
I don't care if it's smaller, as long as it's way faster. Data transfers are excruciatingly slow.
The current form factor is good. If they really feel the need to increase the screen size, they can shrink some of the black space and barely change the case size. It doesn't need to be any thinner. Speaking of data speeds, Sprint just gave me a .11Mbps down and .28Mbps up check. Bleh. Yes its unlimited data but its so slow
I guess if you have enough reports on a rumour people consider it to be legit
as much as id like a new connector, there are so so so many third part devices (Car stereos, speakers, car chargers & lots more) that use the current style 30pin connector.
Bring Thunderbolt. A port to rule them all!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zozman
as much as id like a new connector, there are so so so many third part devices (Car stereos, speakers, car chargers & lots more) that use the current style 30pin connector.
Who cares? Why should Apple give a crap about the past if they know something is better?
They made a new MagSafe port. It's barely over a millimeter thinner. Should they have made it thinner than it is? I think so, but I know very little of electrical engineering to know if it would have been possible.
MagSafe was "fine", and would have been more than fine for any other manufacturer (because no other manufacturer even tries to make anything anywhere near similar to it), but Apple made it better because it was holding back their product development.
Just like the DECADE-OLD 30-pin Dock Connector is.
They'll make a new port, they'll make a $10 adapter for it, and the entire accessory industry will get $10,000,000,000 from people buying new accessories to be directly compatible with their new devices.
Quote:
Originally Posted by zunx
Bring Thunderbolt.
The pins, at least.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogifan
OK I'm confused, my car stero has a USB adapter. That's what I plug my iPhone into. Will that change with this new connector? Are they going to micro USB?
Not in the slightest. He's assuming that vehicles have the Dock Connector built physically into the car, and only a very few models have anything like that.
I'm sure there will be a simple inline adapter available either from Apple immediately or from Griffin et al a few weeks later.
Me being one, I paid $500 to have one installed prior to delivery on my new Jeep Grand Cherokee a few years back as Chrysler, the cheap bar stewards, didn't include one, and this a a Limited Edition!
So I for one trust there will be a simple inline adapter. It will no doubt cost an arm and a leg.
Quote:
Originally Posted by zunx
Bring Thunderbolt. A port to rule them all!!!
Right because Windows users (and they do make up a serious chunk of all iPhone users) have that port readily available.
That said, car sterios are almost always USB anyway and you generally only see direct interface on cheap sterios and mini, horrible sounding speakers. To me it doesn't matter. Everything I have at home is Air Play inabled, and when I get in my car my phone connects by Bluetooth without taking it out of my purse.
I will miss the fact that almost everyone you know has a charger for your phone. Even the Android folks own iPods. That statistic has been changing over the past years as everyone just uses their phone for music even at the gym. However that trend should reverse with all these giant Android phones coming out and maybe iPods will have a resurgence. Some of those phones wold look weird, like a tablet strapped to someone's arm, and you would either break it or it wold pull your pants down of you put it in your sweat pants pocket. Maybe the new fad will be leg straps instead of arm straps.
Is this all we've got to look forward to - 2 or 3 months of the same iPhone rumours over and over again?
I wish Apple was as prolific as some of the other consumer electronics companies so that we get new products every month.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vadania
So from a third party view it looks more economical to support the 'legacy' version.
There will be an adapter from one to the other released at the same time so everything will continue to work.
How can the headphone jack fit on the bottom of an iPod touch but no an iPhone?
Quote:
Originally Posted by digitalclips
So I for one trust there will be a simple inline adapter. It will no doubt cost an arm and a leg.
$10, I imagine. Same as the MagSafe-MagSafe2 adapter.
Quote:
Originally Posted by logandigges
How can the headphone jack fit on the bottom of an iPod touch but no an iPhone?
Dock Connector+speaker+microphone=no room.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
Not in the slightest. He's assuming that vehicles have the Dock Connector built physically into the car, and only a very few models have anything like that.
That's what I thought. I get why some might be concerned about the change. But they've had the 30-pin connector for 9 years now. I'm surprised it's lasted that long.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
Who cares? Why should Apple give a crap about the past if they know something is better?
They made a new MagSafe port. It's barely over a millimeter thinner. Should they have made it thinner than it is? I think so, but I know very little of electrical engineering to know if it would have been possible.
MagSafe was "fine", and would have been more than fine for any other manufacturer (because no other manufacturer even tries to make anything anywhere near similar to it), but Apple made it better because it was holding back their product development.
Just like the DECADE-OLD 30-pin Dock Connector is.
They'll make a new port, they'll make a $10 adapter for it, and the entire accessory industry will get $10,000,000,000 from people buying new accessories to be directly compatible with their new devices.
The pins, at least.
Haha yeah of course people will buy it, i'll be one of them lets face it, if there is an adapter that would totally work, but for a lot people out there it might put them off, i know people like this, i think they are nuts & they like living in the past.
I have friends that would still like to use win XP but the i7 processor to turbo boost properly needs vista or win 7, but i heard non-stop bitching about that
Sometimes i'm the devils advocate, trying to see things from the non technical persons point of view also, seeing things from the non apple fanboy point of view, which many many people here can't do, they just can't.
personally i don't mind if the doc connector changes, just means i would buy a few more spare cables & I'm good to go
Im kinda hoping they go for a magsafe style doc connector.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogifan
OK I'm confused, my car stero has a USB adapter. That's what I plug my iPhone into. Will that change with this new connector? Are they going to micro USB?
i've seen alot of car stereos, alpine ones, pioneer ones, they have a hard line with 30pin connector, without a usb port, my old car stereo was like that, alot of older BMWs are like that too, my current one is a usb port which is more of a standard these days but still, its sometimes easier to buy a new phone then a new car (or car stereo).
what i'm getting at is, if someone a BMW with hardline 30pin doc connector & the iPhone changes to a 19pin or whatever it is, they would have to consider not upgrading unless i could change get a new car stereo (or do what i do & leave my old 60GB iPod video in the car)