Apple Will Be Forced to Use USB-C Charger in iPhones
forbes.com
forbes.com
Reminds me of the Bill Burr bit about Steve Jobs: «New phone can't fit the old charger. This is your hero?»
I think it's because iPhone cable has the male adaptor with the female on the device, which is a lot simpler and less prone to debris, which is what you want with a cable that gets tossed around.
The USB C cables has the female adaptor on the cable which accumulates debris and moisture. USB C also oddly has the male adaptor inside of an indentation, so with USB C you basically have two female adaptors that can collect debris.
The Lightning port has less of this problem because it's smaller but I've seen my colleague use a SIM-card removal tool to pick things out of his iPhone connector too.
The reason "USB-C is bad" is because you're comparing some of the highest quality manufacturing (Apple) with others. Apples USB-C on the Macbook is really solid.
That's the wrong measure; outlasting cables is inadequate.
The correct measure is how long a USB-C connector lasts.
In my experience, the "tongue" in the USB-C connector gets broken in about two years. That forces me to buy a new phone, and hope that it arrives before my old phone's battery dies.
As to "you're doing it wrong" or "you're supposed to clean it every 30 insertions", it's freaking consumer connector. It should just work.
Meanwhile, I've never seen a lightning connector fail. The cords do, and they cost too much, but they're just cords.
And, yes, the lightning connector could/should be more robust.
Only if you don't realize the reason they're built that way is to not wear the connector down, they're designed to last "forever".
> In my experience, the "tongue" in the USB-C connector gets broken in about two years. That forces me to buy a new phone, and hope that it arrives before my old phone's battery dies.
I've never seen or heard anyone break the tounge of the USB-c.
> it's freaking consumer connector. It should just work
There are physical limitations to this and lightning are also prone to the issue.
> Meanwhile, I've never seen a lightning connector fail. The cords do, and they cost too much, but they're just cords.
All I see is broken iPhone cables, not that it matters though, since we're discussing connectors.
And, yes, the lightning connector could/should be more robust.
No.
https://media.idownloadblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/i...
See those teeny metal thingies in there? That's how an USB-c cable looks inside, why you ask? Because that's the most unreliable part of the connector (other than filling up with crap).
I mean if you're so incredibly violent you break the tounge then lightning would indeed be better, but that's not a common failure mode. It's designed for wear and tear, not violent bending forces.
The only thing that approximates this is that pocket lint can accrue inside the port, as small amounts of lint are repeatedly pressed into the port when inserting the connector. USB-C is susceptible to this too for exactly the same reasons: frequently-used female port that spends most of its life in a lint-generating pocket. As more is packed in, we push on the connector a little harder until the debris is deep enough to prevent contacts from connecting.
You can scoop it out in two seconds with a safety pin or other thin metal probe. And again, USB-C is equally susceptible to this failure mode.
I've never had an issue with my USBC ports on my phones or billion other USBC devices going bad.
OTOH, it's a frequent problem for iPhone users. In my circle, it's frequent enough that even my brother who works for Apple has this issue, and it's frequently (but not always) severe enough that the phones require replacements, instead of the $5 cable. And that was my point from the beginning: USBC is designed so that the failure mode affects the cheap, easily replaceable cable rather than the expensive device it is connecting to.
Almost every "universal" device I go out to buy today requires a usb-c adapter, despite the apparent prevalence of usb-c Android devices?
EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31652291 - June 2022 (839 comments)
Things that work: All Android phones, Macbook, System76 Laptop, Sony Headphones, JBL BT Speaker, some cheap-o tiny RC car.
All devices don't need to implement everything, I'm happy just being able to bring one charger, one powerbank and a couple of cables with me along with my devices. I was on a trip just the other day where I brought the powerful Apple charger I have, my Xiaomi powerbank, Phone, Speaker, Headphones and laptop.
I'd say this is a lot better than how it was not too many years ago, so I'd say they've succeeded.
My guess is that the Nitecore works with the RPI charger because it doesn't actually negotiate anything, just deliver a voltage on the power-pins. Your Nitecore gear is to blame for the trouble you're experiencing, I'd still say having one "smart" usb-c and one "stupid" is better than everyone having their own physical interface.
It's a really tiny one, with a one cell battery. The problem you'll experience looking for USB-C to charge your RC is that it's not "possible" (You'll need a charging controller on your car instead) since the batteries are usually more than one cell and therefore needs balancing and such. Also when you're charging you're allowing currents up to 5 amps in most common chargers, when I'm in a hurry mine goes to 20 amps, this is above what USB-C is rated for, so you'd have to negotiate the latest 200+w power, transform it to the right voltage etc...
I recommend you give that one up for now, sadly.
Just wish there was something you could plug into an existing charger and go
That'd be my recommendation, my father happens to be a reseller so I've got some know-how :)
Please don’t let politicians dictate technical design decisions.
I would support more of this kind of thing.
Every once in a while, we can bump the connector and get real gains along with savings due to far better alignment between devices and the various connections they require.
> everyone's accessories need to be replaced now
No. iPhone users can use/share with Android users.
You are correct, it's only ever lightning accessory that becomes junk, despite lightning preceding usb-c, and having more physically robust construction.
https://www.apple.com/shop/product/MK0W2AM/A/lightning-to-us...
Only accessories got access to those speeds, not charging cables (because just like USB-C, it would be a nightmare of telling fast and slow cables apart).
Rather than move 5 gpbs data rate support from iPad Pro to other devices like the iPhone, they decided to replace lightning with USB-C on the iPad Pro.
Lighting is not better, it slides out more easily, it’s connections are less consistent (if you’re using a headphone adapter you will get disconnects), and it just doesn’t feel as good.
I do know that I can’t really use headphones with my iPhone because the experience blows because they disconnect. I do know that often my phone isn’t charged because the connection from the charger wasn’t good. C type is a better experience and the only time I’ve had a defective or damaged C port was on a sub $100 BLU phone
Lightning is designed to wear out the contact, USB-C is designed to wear out the cable.