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submitted 1 year ago by aranym@lemmy.name to c/technology@beehaw.org

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.

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[-] lichtmetzger@feddit.de 63 points 1 year ago

One of the good things coming out of the EU.

I still wonder if Apple will do a split between EU iPhones and the rest of the world, though. Lightning accessories make money.

[-] CleoTheWizard@beehaw.org 34 points 1 year ago

It makes them a very small amount of money. But they’ve also been rumored to be making iPhones use a “Made for Apple” type of cable for faster charging speeds. I think that would be really dumb but here we are.

[-] lichtmetzger@feddit.de 29 points 1 year ago

a “Made for Apple” type of cable

That is absolutely ridiculous, but not surprising at all.

[-] moitoi@feddit.de 16 points 1 year ago

making iPhones use a “Made for Apple” type of cable for faster charging speeds

They can't do that. The iPhone must comply with PD.

[-] ArtificialLink@lemmy.ml 10 points 1 year ago

Yes they can. Its just all about labeling. They can label a cable that fits to the standard and say "made for apple"

[-] moitoi@feddit.de 24 points 1 year ago

No, the regulation isn't just usb-c, it's usb-c and power delivery. Apple can't magically escape both of them with a "made for apple" cable. It must accept all third party cable and charger.

[-] Rootiest@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Of course they can:

USB -PD support at limited speeds.

A proprietary Apple chip enables higher speeds, either using USB-PD still or another proprietary charging protocol.

They can just have both

[-] Oneser@lemm.ee 26 points 1 year ago

As I commented above, the regulation clearly states "any additional charging protocol allows for the full functionality of PD.. irrespective of the charging device used."

So they can't have both unless they split EU & RoW devices.

[-] CleoTheWizard@beehaw.org 12 points 1 year ago

I hadn’t heard this. Good on the EU not letting them squirrel out of this (hopefully)

[-] HairHeel@programming.dev 2 points 1 year ago

The question is more about "how much" of PD they support right? Like PD has standards for charging at higher or lower currents.

My understanding of the current-gen MacBook Pro is that they support some kind of "fast charging", but only if you use their MagSafe port. You can still charge on the USB-C ports, but not as fast as you could with MagSafe. I'm not sure if that's a violation of the regulations, or if PD simply doesn't have support for the amount of power they're pushing through the MagSafe.

But I think the point is that they'll continue to look for ways to offer a better experience with their proprietary stuff, even if they're forced to support a standard in addition.

[-] DonnieDarkmode@lemm.ee 5 points 1 year ago

Interestingly all Apple silicon Macs support fast-charging via USB C. The 16-inch can only do 140W fast-charging via MagSafe, but that makes sense since ports that support charging speeds >100W are fairly new

[-] Oneser@lemm.ee 4 points 1 year ago

Laptops are being gradually added to the list of devices within scope of this change. It only counts for any new device being sold on the market after the changes take effect.

The clause only makes sure that chargers do not limit, when connected to competitors devices. The regulation is coming from an e-waste perspective, which the EU has made it clear that it is not interested in entertaining or letting companies push them around.

[-] moitoi@feddit.de 13 points 1 year ago

No:

In so far as they are capable of being recharged via wired charging at voltages higher than 5 volts, currents higher than 3 amperes or powers higher than 15 watts, the categories or classes of radio equipment referred to in point 1 letters a) to m) shall:

(a) incorporate the USB Power Delivery, as described in the standard EN IEC 62680-1- 2:2021 ‘Universal serial bus interfaces for data and power - Part 1-2: Common components - USB Power Delivery specification’;

(b) ensure that any additional charging protocol allows the full functionality of the USB Power Delivery referred to in point (a), irrespective of the charging device used.

https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-10713-2022-INIT/x/pdf

[-] oktoberpaard@feddit.nl 8 points 1 year ago

The regulation actually enforces that PD is implemented if high speed charging is available and that it can’t be limited in speed compared to any other charging protocol that’s also available on the device, irrespective of the charging device used.

We don’t need to guess if we can just read the regulation: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32022L2380&qid=1691523718368.

[-] AnonTwo@kbin.social 4 points 1 year ago

Wouldn't that be false advertising? It needs some internal feature that makes it faster, and there's no way it'll naturally be faster than a regular USB-C.

[-] ArtificialLink@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 year ago

How is it false advertising? Apple makes a cord to spec and standard and slaps a "made for apple" tag line on it. Its just marketing. Nothing special about the cable. Its just a way to ensure apple fanboys buy it.

[-] AnonTwo@kbin.social 2 points 1 year ago

making iPhones use a “Made for Apple” type of cable for faster charging speeds

The bolded part is the problematic bit.

[-] ArtificialLink@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 year ago

I never said for faster speeds. All it has to say is "made for apple".

[-] AnonTwo@kbin.social 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Okay...but that's what the guy you were originally replying to had quoted...I think we can both agree it changes quite a bit if you don't include the faster speed.

[-] Rootiest@lemm.ee 14 points 1 year ago

At least then there will be no more confusion over who's fault it is when your iPhone doesn't charge as fast as you'd like.

It's always been Apple's fault, but now there will be no more saying it's because Lightning is somehow better.

[-] CleoTheWizard@beehaw.org 13 points 1 year ago

I’ll give them some fairness. When lightning originally launched, it was a great interface for lightweight power delivery and was more sturdy than the deplorable micro USB. I can’t explain just how bad microUSB is. So it made sense. I think USB-C just put in the legwork to be a much better adapter.

Also the giant plot hole missing here is that Apple sits on the USB forum I believe and so has some say in what the billions of devices they produce use to charge. They just can’t make money off of a standard now.

[-] BobKerman3999@feddit.it 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Don't be silly. I have an iPad mini with lightning and had a ton of phones with miniUSB and had exactly zero problems with any of them. (I still have that iPad because I couldn't sell it without losing a ton of money and I never found a use case other than watching movies for a tablet so I didn't buy another)

[-] min0nim@aussie.zone 11 points 1 year ago

Well my anecdote is that every single micro USB device I have has either a stuffed port or stuffs the cable. Those things are so incredibly flimsy.

[-] snowbell@beehaw.org 6 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I hate microUSB so much. I always feel like I have to treat microUSB ports like fine china or they will break on me. That nervous anticipation every time you plug something in that this will be the time it finally breaks. Too bad mini USB ports had that problem with getting loose over time.

[-] snowe@programming.dev 4 points 1 year ago

As someone that has soldered micro USB, mini USB, and USB c, micro and mini are absolutely horrendous. They fail constantly, so much so that they were literally deprecated one after the other due to their failure rates.

Lightning was perfect for the devices it was used in. Apple never split it out into laptops because that wasn’t its purpose, it’s incredibly thin and incredibly durable. USB C is pretty durable but not thin. I actually love the lightning port for how durable it is. The biggest problems with it are:

  1. It’s proprietary. Proprietary stuff sucks
  2. Apple’s brand cables are expensive junk that fall apart because design overrides functionality

USB c is great, for laptops and headphones and general peripheral connectors. It’s got a fuck ton of problems though, because you can literally have identical cables that do not have the same features. I had to buy a device to test USB C cables to determine what features they support. Also, did you know USB C is directional? Well it can be at least. I didn’t know that until the cable I soldered up only worked in a single direction.

[-] erwan@lemmy.ml 3 points 1 year ago

Don't worry, Apple fans will happily buy an official charger for 3x the price even if third party work perfectly well.

this post was submitted on 08 Aug 2023
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