While this should satisfy the desire for a universal connector standard, it’s curious as to why Apple would want to limit the new capabilities when it’s so easy to give it full throttle. They actually have to work harder to limit it. I can’t see how such an artificial limitation is a benefit for Apple’s customers.
It probably depends on whether or not they think they can extract a premium to enable the higher data rates.
Which benefits Apple, not consumers, and artificially limits the device, giving competitors a bragging point.
Again, not helpful for customers, especially when they have to invest effort to limit the feature rather than let it run.
Apple recently was the company of tremendous value add. More recently, it seems to have become the nickel and dime avenue to corporate profits. Kind of sucks. Hopefully, we see Apple return to just msking the best products and letting customers pour in rather than milking existing customers for all they’re worth. It’s getting pretty crazy.
Separately, there has been some confusion over the European Union's law demanding that all smartphones use USB-C in 2024. It's not a retrospective law, so Apple is only really required to make the change for its 2024 release of the iPhone 16 range.
I'm still not clear on that part. If Apple still manufactures the existing iPhone 14 in 2024, it can or cannot sell them in the EU? Not sure what "retrospective" means in this context. That's still a new iPhone, right?
Not sure how a leaker with a "shaky reputation for accuracy" yielded a "Likely" badge on this article!
It's clear from the expected tech that the "Pro" models are the only ones worth having, especially for those of us who upgrade iPhones only once every 6 years or so. And until now, the rumors I've read suggested that only the base model phones would get slower USB transfer speeds, while the Pro models would get faster speeds, possibly Thunderbolt. If indeed even the Pro models get deliberately dummied down to USB2 transfer speeds, that would be very bad. People pay more for the Pro models to get more, and a mere connector change from Lightning to USB-C without any other change like connectivity speed would be absolutely ridiculous.
Name one computing device that comes with the fastest USB-C cable. No phone, tablet, laptop or desktop does. It’s always separate or with a peripheral.
This is a charging cable for the >99.9% of iPhone users that make all data transfers wirelessly.
The minority that transfer data over a wire from their iPhone can buy a specialty cable for that.
Stories like this reveal those who have an understanding of how USB works -- in both a technical and practical sense -- and how most don't. Often, that includes the writer of the piece. But they do serve well to whip up fervor about how Apple is greedy/cheap/evil, etc., and be good click generators.
Despite how Type-C has been positioned as the Wonder Connector of Tomorrow, it does not require implementation of the latest and greatest data transmission protocol. As a connector type, it accommodates any, and everything, so to speak. One could certainly argue that USB 3.x should have been made the minimum baseline, and I'd agree, but that's not how the USB IF chose to proceed.
Apple would still fully spec compliant, should it choose to ship iPhones with ports limited to USB 2, as well as with cables limited to USB 2 baseline data speeds. In practice that is the most common type of cable on the market, fully spec compliant, and suits the needs of the masses for a charging cable, the only type they'll ever desire or need. In this respect, the company would not be an outlier if/when it does so, according to these rumors.
MFi is a certification program, not a "chip" per se, and should Apple choose to utilize some sort of method to ID cables, it already has the tools available in the spec, via the Authentication standard, that provides to the ability identify and authorize cables based on their e-markers (which, BTW are required by spec for cables to carry >60W). It wouldn't need to roll its own chips to enable that functionality.
As for the EU, the official that was blowing smoke in response to the rumours about limited charging or data speeds doesn't even know his own law, which was written to harmonize charging standards, and ensure compatibility. It does not address data protocols, and with respect to power delivery, only requires the implementation of Type-C and the PD protocol, which aside from headroom capacity, counts adaptability as it other primary benefit. It does not address performance, nor specify any sort of minimum or maximum power level, which given the nature of the protocol, and breadth of different devices, would be impossible to begin with. Hollow threats with no basis to back them up.
While this should satisfy the desire for a universal connector standard, it’s curious as to why Apple would want to limit the new capabilities when it’s so easy to give it full throttle. They actually have to work harder to limit it. I can’t see how such an artificial limitation is a benefit for Apple’s customers.
It probably depends on whether or not they think they can extract a premium to enable the higher data rates.
Which benefits Apple, not consumers, and artificially limits the device, giving competitors a bragging point.
Again, not helpful for customers, especially when they have to invest effort to limit the feature rather than let it run.
Apple recently was the company of tremendous value add. More recently, it seems to have become the nickel and dime avenue to corporate profits. Kind of sucks. Hopefully, we see Apple return to just msking the best products and letting customers pour in rather than milking existing customers for all they’re worth. It’s getting pretty crazy.
I agree with you but Apple’s primary objective (as with all publicly traded companies) is to maximize shareholder wealth and they will charge whatever they think the customer traffic will bear and they have a lot of experience in getting Apple customers to pay premiums.
If Apple is going to give its customers a data transfer experience akin to a budget Android phone unless they buy additional cables, then the giant middle finger really isn't being pointed at the EU...
I think most of the people in this thread are fundamentally misunderstanding the story (and I’m assuming for the purposes of discussion that it is true, even though it’s just a rumour from a dodgy source).
1. USB cables can just be **charging** cables, just like some USB-C ports can be **charging** ports that don’t pass along data at high speed. So yes, I expect the cord included in the box is a USB-C **charging** cable, that would handle data at USB 2 speeds.
2. If the report that these are actually Thunderbolt ports that use the USB-C form factor, then I would hope Apple would include a Thunderbolt cable in the box. But they aren’t required to do so under the EU law — that law was about setting a **charging cord** standard so Android and iPhone people could use the same port and charging cords. Besides, doesn’t everyone use MagSafe and Qi to charge their phones now? Who uses a cord anymore?
3, The story does not rule out the possibility of Apple **also** including a TB cable in the box, but that doesn’t sound like Apple to me. Another report claims the included cord will be braided and longer than before, and so that’s likely the USB 2 charging cord. You want Thunderbolt speeds, you buy a Thunderbolt cable. Possibly Apple would offer a reduced-price TB cord at time of purchase to drive add-on sales …
4. Given the amount of 4K footage people are shooting with their iPhones, transferring that footage is currently a pain point. I expect the iPhone 15 will have an optional way to alleviate that pain point by using TB cords for that, since all the ports on the Macs are TB ports with TB speeds.
5. But let’s say you do have to buy a TB cable to get the most data speed out of your iPhone 15. Short ones (1 foot or less) are currently not that expensive, and may go down as more manufacturers jump on that market. In short, I don’t think this will be a huge issue, even if this report is 100 percent true (which I personally doubt).
Not sure what the issue is here - to my understanding, the EU regulations simply require a USB C connector which the phone (reportedly) will have. The majority of people don't use the cable for data transfer, simply for charging, so the slower reported speed of the cable won't matter. The few that need faster speeds can buy a better cable. Faster cables are also more expensive to produce meaning someone (i.e. the consumer) would be paying more for unneeded capabilities. Besides, the speeds are on par with what we have what the current lightning cables and how many complaints would there have been had Apple simply left everything the same?
I do find it rather entertaining and ironic how in a recent thread about the port having Thunderbolt capabilities there were a chorus of people saying USB 4/thunderbolt speeds are pointless and unnecessary. Now when there's a story about the cable (not even the port) only having USB 2 speeds there's a chorus of people complaining about that, too.
This sounds very plausibly Apple. I could imagine that Thunderbolt speeds are "available" on the Pro models, but you will need to buy an additional Thunderbotl USB-C cable that supports those speeds to achieve them. It's like wired mode on the $549 Airpods Max which requires an additional $35 cable to use and only Apple sells it. This would, however, be a giant middle finger to EU regulations since the phone's full capabilities couldn't be realized without buying an extra specialized cable, the very thing that the regulations were meant to stop.
Not at all. That would be Apple giving the middle finger to its own users.
The inclusion of a USB-C port resolves the EU requirement. That was to eliminate fragmentation and make charging universal.
The logical thing to do would be to offer a choice of chargers/cables at purchase and let the user decide.
USB-C cord in the box charges and moves data to legal (and adequate) specifications. If you want more muscle you go and buy a cord with the muscle. Seems pretty straightforward to me. Am I missing something?
If Apple is going to give its customers a data transfer experience akin to a budget Android phone unless they buy additional cables, then the giant middle finger really isn't being pointed at the EU...
I think most of the people in this thread are fundamentally misunderstanding the story (and I’m assuming for the purposes of discussion that it is true, even though it’s just a rumour from a dodgy source).
Which part of the story do you think I've misunderstood? It's extremely simple, the first three lines of the article couldn't be clearer. It's straightforward stuff....
Not sure why speed on USB-C on phone that much matters because the transfer speed of Cell / WiFi / BT has become good enough for most of the data transfer need for most of the users from the phone.
Name one computing device that comes with the fastest USB-C cable. No phone, tablet, laptop or desktop does. It’s always separate or with a peripheral.
This is a charging cable for the >99.9% of iPhone users that make all data transfers wirelessly.
The minority that transfer data over a wire from their iPhone can buy a specialty cable for that.
Spot on. The vast majority of users need the cable for only charging. Why increase the cost of the phone by including a high end cable that will allow high data transfers for a few users. Even when getting a new iPhone, I have been using the wireless transfer to move everything over without a cable. Very easy and seamless.
If Apple is going to give its customers a data transfer experience akin to a budget Android phone unless they buy additional cables, then the giant middle finger really isn't being pointed at the EU...
I think most of the people in this thread are fundamentally misunderstanding the story (and I’m assuming for the purposes of discussion that it is true, even though it’s just a rumour from a dodgy source).
Which part of the story do you think I've misunderstood? It's extremely simple, the first three lines of the article couldn't be clearer. It's straightforward stuff....
So then you think they've been giving their customers a middle finger by using lightning connectors? How about the USB C cables that come with MBPs?
Separately, there has been some confusion over the European Union's law demanding that all smartphones use USB-C in 2024. It's not a retrospective law, so Apple is only really required to make the change for its 2024 release of the iPhone 16 range.
I'm still not clear on that part. If Apple still manufactures the existing iPhone 14 in 2024, it can or cannot sell them in the EU? Not sure what "retrospective" means in this context. That's still a new iPhone, right?
You're right "By the end of 2024, all mobile phones, tablets and cameras sold in the EU will have to be equipped with a USB Type-C charging port". This is not new models - it is ALL models.
The exact date is December 28th 2024. From March 2025 India will do the same. Apple can't simply bundle dongles to their old devices as the requirement is very clear on this: "USB-C... receptacle shall remain accessible and operational at all times".
And it isn't just about phones. We're talking 1st gen Pencil, wireless mouse, wireless keyboard, all AirPods, and non USB-C iPads. This change does affect a lot of products and variants (colors, storage, languages). And it includes bundles like the iMac keyboard + mouse. Apple must also offer every iPad without a charger... so more changes to packaging across a lot of current products. Channel inventory must be fully cleared... and for that to happen new products must be shipping well in advance. HomePod mini is having an attached cable, but it isn't affected due to it not being rechargeable.
I expect for some products to get a "c" variant - like current AirPods and the iPhone 14. Question is Apple will do this for all markets. Selling MFI cables and chargers add $$ to Apple.
I don’t know why so many people are getting all bent out of shape about Apple potentially including a charging-only low data rate UBC-C cable in the box. Does anyone expect Apple to include an expensive TB or DP compatible/certified USB-C without passing along the extra cost to consumers?
Take a look at the comments section of 4K or 5K monitors that have USB-C with Display Port protocol. The display vendor, say Dell, will usually include a compatible USB-C cable in the box. Problem is, it’s often too short for certain mounting scenarios. So buyers go out and buy a longer inexpensive USB-C cable and are shocked to see that it doesn’t work. And they complain about it.
There is an easy solution to the above issue that’s guaranteed to work, buy a TB4 certified USB-C cable. Problem is, these aren’t cheap. The 1.8 m one that Apple sells will set you back $129 USD.
Compare this to USB-C charging cables. I bought a 2- pack of 1.8 m Anker braided USB-C charging cables today for $10 USD. Big difference.
I’d be more than happy with Apple including a USB-C charging cable with lightning level data xfer in the box, providing TB4 capability on the device port, and only allowing TB/USB-4 level capabilities with a TB4 certified cable. The ideal scenario for me would be allowing buyers to optionally select which type of USB-C cable to bundle with their device purchase.
I just can’t see Apple taking a big hit on their BOM cost to put a TB4 certified cable in the box when including a simple USB-C charging cable will satisfy the regulators. But who knows, maybe Apple will surprise us?
We won’t have to wait very much longer to find out.
Comments
It's clear from the expected tech that the "Pro" models are the only ones worth having, especially for those of us who upgrade iPhones only once every 6 years or so. And until now, the rumors I've read suggested that only the base model phones would get slower USB transfer speeds, while the Pro models would get faster speeds, possibly Thunderbolt. If indeed even the Pro models get deliberately dummied down to USB2 transfer speeds, that would be very bad. People pay more for the Pro models to get more, and a mere connector change from Lightning to USB-C without any other change like connectivity speed would be absolutely ridiculous.
3, The story does not rule out the possibility of Apple **also** including a TB cable in the box, but that doesn’t sound like Apple to me. Another report claims the included cord will be braided and longer than before, and so that’s likely the USB 2 charging cord. You want Thunderbolt speeds, you buy a Thunderbolt cable. Possibly Apple would offer a reduced-price TB cord at time of purchase to drive add-on sales …
5. But let’s say you do have to buy a TB cable to get the most data speed out of your iPhone 15. Short ones (1 foot or less) are currently not that expensive, and may go down as more manufacturers jump on that market. In short, I don’t think this will be a huge issue, even if this report is 100 percent true (which I personally doubt).
I do find it rather entertaining and ironic how in a recent thread about the port having Thunderbolt capabilities there were a chorus of people saying USB 4/thunderbolt speeds are pointless and unnecessary. Now when there's a story about the cable (not even the port) only having USB 2 speeds there's a chorus of people complaining about that, too.
Wired charging is also faster, more reliable and more efficient.
The inclusion of a USB-C port resolves the EU requirement. That was to eliminate fragmentation and make charging universal.
The logical thing to do would be to offer a choice of chargers/cables at purchase and let the user decide.
Even when getting a new iPhone, I have been using the wireless transfer to move everything over without a cable. Very easy and seamless.
The exact date is December 28th 2024. From March 2025 India will do the same. Apple can't simply bundle dongles to their old devices as the requirement is very clear on this: "USB-C... receptacle shall remain accessible and operational at all times".
And it isn't just about phones. We're talking 1st gen Pencil, wireless mouse, wireless keyboard, all AirPods, and non USB-C iPads. This change does affect a lot of products and variants (colors, storage, languages). And it includes bundles like the iMac keyboard + mouse. Apple must also offer every iPad without a charger... so more changes to packaging across a lot of current products. Channel inventory must be fully cleared... and for that to happen new products must be shipping well in advance. HomePod mini is having an attached cable, but it isn't affected due to it not being rechargeable.
I expect for some products to get a "c" variant - like current AirPods and the iPhone 14. Question is Apple will do this for all markets. Selling MFI cables and chargers add $$ to Apple.
Take a look at the comments section of 4K or 5K monitors that have USB-C with Display Port protocol. The display vendor, say Dell, will usually include a compatible USB-C cable in the box. Problem is, it’s often too short for certain mounting scenarios. So buyers go out and buy a longer inexpensive USB-C cable and are shocked to see that it doesn’t work. And they complain about it.