Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable
bbc.com
bbc.com
In fact it probably works against Apple as it demonstrates that the churn of innovation doesn't really exist if new advances only occur every 9 years.
The article talks about trying to cut down on electronic waste:
> The regulator is determined to cut down on electronic waste being created by obsolete cables, which it estimates generate more than 51,000 tonnes of waste per year.
It's surely much less wasteful to extend the life of the cable standard than to ensure longer cable lifespans. Even if you had a cable that lasted 7 years, chances are the standard would have changed and you would be forced to replace it. You can always purchase higher quality cables that do have longer lifespans if Apple's aren't up to your quality standards.
> In fact it probably works against Apple as it demonstrates that the churn of innovation doesn't really exist if new advances only occur every 9 years.
I think you may have misunderstood the OP statistics. My understanding was that the industry standards have previously been churning at a higher rate than Apple's standards. So Apple's standards are often longer lived than the standard connections.
The cases where people end up replacing their cable because of a new standard is way less frequent than the cable breaking, this has been my experience at least considering the shifting standards which you talk about.
It sounds a bit like optimizing some process but ignoring what is actually the bottleneck. The problem in this case is not the standard on top, but the lifetime of the cable.
If the goal is to reduce e-waste then surely it makes sense to tackle the approach from a reduce, reuse, recycle perspective in that order and focussing on the EOL for the cable.
By shifting to one cable standard, you can reduce/reuse as at least other products can have better utilization as that old cable is still usable with other products. I have been less incentivised to buy new usb C cable for my phone because my switch and headphone cables still work just fine.
I can't do anything with a lightning cable if my iphone dies other than to use it for apple products. Just like I can't do anything with my old ipod connectors. That is just straight e-waste.
By shifting to one cable standard, we can more easily recycle the cable as there would be more manufacturers who would have the supply-chain/capabilities of recycling these chargers. Contrast that to the lightning cable which only apple and other companies with a lightning connector can handle effectively.
I think the folks on XDA kept OS updates available till Android 7.
I have a bunch of 30 pin cables for it though (eg one left plugged into charger at home, one always in my bag, etc). No idea which one is the original cable, and which are cheapo knock-offs.
Over the years, I think one of them went bad and needed replacing. The rest are fine though.
Does the average user really mistreat their cables that badly?
Apple phones also last longer than other phones, and because their connections remain so standard, you can use the same cable for multiple phones. I've definitely destroyed some Apple cables, but generally they've been on their second or third device.
> I suspect it's because they favor very thin casing and for greater flexibility -- a lightning cable winds tighter than typical charging cables for other phones.
I'm not so sure about this explanation—the cables usually fail at the very ends, where the connector meets the cable itself.
What do you do to your cables? I have a 30-pin iPad-charging cables that is from 2011, and it's working fine. Coming up on nine years.
I still regularly use a lightning cable (and charger brick) from 2013, just a year after lightning was introduced, and that's coming up on 7 years.
Your anecdotal evidence is that cables break before becoming obsolete. My anecdotal evidence is the opposite. I have a box full of USB-notC cables in a closet for devices I rarely use, or that are no longer usable, all the while I charge my iPad with a now-obsolete 30-pin cable.
An iPhone user buying an android phone will need a new set of cables, his old lightning ones have no purpose anymore.
87% vs 13%
You can't have it both ways!
One year ago, there were 1.4 billion[0] of us, each with one or more (many more, in my case) cables, docks, cradles, etc. That's a lot of waste to churn up for "not enough iPhone users."
[0] https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/29/18202736/apple-devices-io...
I was putting the op in another perspective, because he was being arrogant to Android users ;)
There's an infinite number of cases where getting rid of the lightning spec would reduce the number of cables.
A household with an iPhone and an android user would also buy an extra set of cables that could be avoided. Even having an iPad in the mix generates cable duplication: the iPad Pro is on the different connector, android users buying an iPad is also more common than one would think.
Broadening to charging stations in waiting rooms, shopping malls, cafes etc., including other portable devices like headphones, portable batteries, cameras, etc. and the iPhone having its own non standard and connector is more and more a waste.
Edit: Correction - it's a micro-USB cable.
By the way, I guess that your phone's standard cable is not mini-USB but micro-USB.
I've had iPhones since 2014 and still have all chargers and cables.
I guess some people just mistreat their cables alot more. If anything Apple has actually been the responsible one only using 2 different connectors, while the rest of the industry have been doing; mini usb, micro usb and now usb-c. And before they - with the advent of iPhone - started with usb connectors all phone manufacturers had their own proprietary connectors.
Who knows what comes along in 5 years on the usb side.
I sure hope Apple stays off USB-C on iPhones for a good while.
Edit: it's not just me, a simple Google search turns up the following: [0]. Apple phone/tablet hardware is great but the cables they ship are unfortunately not very good.
[0]: https://www.cnet.com/news/these-are-the-lowest-rated-product...
And even if the cable failed, it's worth noting that with the various USB variants before USB-C, it was likely the connector in the device that failed rather than the cable (because it bore the load). I had more than one device have the USB port destroyed under ordinary use.
I still prefer lightning to USB-C, but if it wasn't for Apple doing their own thing we'd probably be still on some ridiculous USB variant with a litany of design mistakes.
My favorite variant, though, are the magnetic Lightning chargers you can get for basically nothing on Aliexpress. Never have to worry about plugging in/unplugging your phone ever again; just put it into your phone once, and then whenever you need to charge just connect the magnetic cable to it.
Just looking at the tech specs for the iPhone 11 (lightning) [1] versus iPad Pro (USB-C) [2], the former is actually thicker at 8.3 mm compared to 5.9 mm, and yet the iPad Pro can have USB-C.
Especially given that it's so prevalent in their other hardware, it almost seems like stubbornness at this point that Apple doesn't want to switch, but admittedly that doesn't pass the test of Hanlon's razor. It seems like there must be a better explanation out there somewhere for why they've desperately clung to lightning for so long (backward cable compatibility within the iPhone ecosystem? inertia in circuit/case design?).
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Most Android flagships with Type-C are either similar or thinner than the iPhone (Samsung S10 for example which is 7.8mm and Moto Z3 is 6.8mm!).
The simplest explanation is that Lightning came out before USB-C did, and Apple did not want to risk another PR backlash from getting everyone to move to it after they'd just switched from the 30-pin connector cable.
The easiest explanation is that there is a vast accessory market for lightning and it creates stickiness within the Apple ecosystem.
Same way that the reason they removed the 3.5mm jack was "space" or "courage".
That was shown to be demonstrably not true, as thinner devices kept being released with the port.
Their PR makes less sense than the cynical reasoning, so I believe the cynical reasoning.
What is you benefit as a consumer to have each appliance have it's own unique cable, generally providing same functionality?
For example say I have a small < 100W device that needs to be powered and send data and I'd like to use the same connector for it. But wait, I'm going to put this gadget in an environment where people might knock the cable out so I'm going to use a different connector with a latching mechanism to prevent the cable from coming loose.
Oh no, I can't do that because the government says I can't.
Like OP said if it bothers you don't buy it. That's the market working for you. Diversity is good for the market and connectors aren't one size fits all, no regulation will change that.
Lockable USB C connectors exist. Why do you think these would be banned?
https://uk.farnell.com/neutrik/nmc-c-hr/usb-c-chassis-with-r...
fwiw the latch on those things is pretty terrible. What if I needed something like a Speak-On connector which twists? Can't do that with USB-C.
So now it's USB-C, and... that's it? Forever? No point in innovation in the cable space, because nobody will be allowed to use anything else.
And "all small appliances < 100w?" So either I'm paying for a cable capable of carrying data at high speed to power a lamp, or I have separate cables for lamps and phones, but using the same connector, and how do I tell the difference?
Hard pass.
Ideally you won't need to in most cases. That being said, USB used colors to match cables to sockets, with black being the old cable and blue being the newer, faster interface. You could use the old cable on new devices, but you're stuck with slower transfer.
For something like a lamp, it likely wouldn't matter what cable you use, so just use whatever is laying around. If it's for something high speed, just keep the cable separate.
Being able to use a device with a backup cable at degraded performance is better than not being able to use a device. I had a lamp that used a bespoke cable and connector, and when we lost one part, we threw the lamp away. We later found the part, but nothing else used the connector, so we threw that away as well. If it used a USB-C cable, I could just use one of the several I have laying around.
Would this forbid a certain type of product from using something better, and force new design to be via committees?
I mean, it's not like Europe uses all the same mains power plugs. Well, I guess UK leaving will help there.
"You must use the standard, unless doing so would have a substantial impact on your product's capabilities." (I wrote this in 30 seconds, replace with more legally sound version.)
I feel like Apple would have a hard time arguing the lightening is technically more capable than USB-C. But if they want to create something that is a clear improvement, they can go for it... until a standardized version catches up.
I think another good argument for phones is that it's surely much easier to clean lint out of a lightning port than a USB C port.
Edit: But probably, I'd guess, right now the main reason Apple has stuck to lightning to whatever extent it is is because it's more convenient for its customers. USB C is already the standard, and Apple would benefit from switching to USB C across its product line if its customers would like that more.
Regarding this specifically, I think it's because Apple makes money from licensing Lightning cables and lightning accessories.
I'll take the UK plug any day. It is bigger by far in two unimportant dimensions but thinner by far in the important one. The chord runs downwards on all UK plugs not at 90 degrees to the wall by default but I will accept that many Euro plugs also run downwards.
A UK plug is a big old beast which means it is easy to wire and it does not wobble and is very safe to insert and remove. The long earth prong of the UK plug makes it easy to insert even when blind/blinded.
At some point there are aspects that see little innovations, are “good enough” for their purpose, while having sizeable impact on their user or their environment.
We’re not forbidding phone makers to make holographic displays, just to settle on one standard plug because nothing happens there for years now and they don’t seem invested in making leaps forward in the domain either.
The day there is something revolutionary they can ask for an exception.
In Apple's defense, the lightning connector and previous iPod connector both served as a charging cable and computer interface cable. So it was never the same situation as the old devoted phone chargers.
And they invented them without any standard alternatives available. If this passes, the next time you think about inventing an interface and start with all your products and the whole accessory market, remember the EU Parliament might legislate away your right to use it.
They are not dictating which one.... and that the one they choose has to be set in stone (i.e. never change)
De facto it is going to probably be USB-C, and I think it is a good move....
If years down the road, there is a new connector called USB-D (or whatever it is called), they can switch to it.... Also, this is for charging, and not data..., so it shouldn't hamper adoption of new data transport protocols.
There's a bit of a chicken and egg problem. Somebody is going to have to build a device with a connector that isn't standard at some point to make progress.
This law would be great for anti-competitive practices. Lowest common denominator wins by default.
Mini USB (2000) Micro USB (2009) both predate the Lightning cable and could charge and communicate with phones at the same time.
Better to crush them in the market.
That's...how governments work? Government officials put out a proposal because the industry can't get its act together.
Someone decided to do it and everyone just copied
All you need is a link to a page describing your cookie usage
Companies then build solutions in reaction to these cases. The law is the ass.
Source: https://www.sueddeutsche.de/digital/cookies-eugh-urteil-webs...
"Außerdem müssen Nutzer der geplanten Cookie-Nutzung explizit zustimmen. Demnach reicht es nicht, dass Nutzer einmal bestätigen, dass sie die bereitgestellten Cookie-Informationen gelesen und verstanden haben."
"Users must explicitly agree to the planned use of cookies. It is not enough for users to confirm they have read and understood the provided cookie information."
I think we are another 10 years at least from having a device that could last long enough off a single charge to warrant occasionally leaving it on a pad over night as the main charging method.
Oddly it took a while for me to find an in car CD mount type, as most of them are air vent types.
That being said, how would you service a portless phone? There would be no more DFU mode.
It was an unsubstantiated rumor.
I don't want government telling me what ports I can use in my design to be frank. I get there are issues out there, but this is something that the invisible hand of the market has done a good job of culling. Remember how it used to be with every device having a wack connector? Nowadays you can count on pretty much anything being a common variant of USB.
What it does sound like a good way to get stuck with an obsolete and substandard cable format forever, because once the One True Cable Design is mandated by government fiat, changing it to something else is going to be hell.
In my experience, USB cables do not wear out quickly, especially if you buy braided ones. In the past 15 years or so, I think I've had a single cable fail (a cheap, crappy one that came free with something).
As a consumer, it benefits me greatly to only need one connector and charger, and the environmental argument makes a lot of sense to me too.
I like the idea of everything using USB-C, but in reality I have found USB-C cables to be unreliable (with power and with data) when used with a device other than the one it came with.
You could go on and on about power ratings and spec adherence, but I have never had such issues with Lightning cables.
For those of us old enough to remember we used to have dozens of different types of cables, We are now basically converging to CatX Ethernet Cables, HDMI, USB-C High Power and Low Power, and Lightning.
I dont understand why we need to further mandate this to "one" solution, especially when the "one" solution doesn't seems to be optimal in all situation.
We have a few, a little diversity, and it is good enough.
Edit: And if Apple were to adopt a new connector I would much rather they adopt the Smart Connector used in iPad Pro. It is magnetic, super simple and easy to use. Fully Sealed and Water Proof by design.
Let's be honest- only reason apple has lightning connector is that they can charge the hardware manufacturers.
Lighning port should die. Same as the previous 30-pin connector.
If they don't like cable waste, just slap a Pigovian Tax on cable waste (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pigovian_tax) and let the market sort it out.
> The regulator is determined to cut down on electronic waste being created by obsolete cables, which it estimates generate more than 51,000 tonnes of waste per year.
Giving a per capita figure would have been helpful.
I don't want the return of Sony Memorysticks and all that nonsense as every company tries to be the winner. 18V powertool batteries currently suffer from pointless brand fragmentation even though they're all basically the same capability.
I really don’t care what plug Apple uses (their own or something else) but I do want them to use a single one and stick with it.
No it doesn’t. Patents are a explicitly a time-limited, government-granted monopoly on a particular innovation.
Patents were originally established to create a financial reward which encourages investment and invention. Patents are often abused of course, but incentivizing the creation of an innovative tiny and durable connector is exactly what a patent is designed to do.
This is the sort of thing that allows the free market to work efficiently.
That is not true of a device connector, which only has to work between the device and the power brick.
History shows otherwise. As an example, lets say they pass this law and require all phones to use a specific charger standard.
In 3 months, an innovative company creates a new standard that is not only more efficient, but cheaper. Instead of just being able to sell it, they have to go through the government to get the standard changed..which will NOT be fast.
This will only stifle technology. If we ever want to curb things like climate change, we need less laws like this in the world.
I don’t know why they bothered at all, honestly.
The fact that it's an usb-c to lightning is because all their macbooks are usb-c ;-P
I also have an iPad Pro and a laptop that uses USB-C for power.
In fact, I had to look it up and was surprised to see that the iPhone 11 has a Lightning port. Odd.
Ironically, this change would instantly produce a ton of tech waste and user inconvenience when apple customers throw away their old lightning cables.
USB - 1998: A/B - 2000: Mini-A/B - 2007: Micro-A/B - (Skipping some that were not used for phones) - 2014: C