If they really wanted to they could have always waited for USB-C to mature to jump straight from the iPod connector straight to USB-C. Or they could have made Lightning an open standard. They did neither.
USB-C was published and finalized in August 2014.
Pour one out though. It’s still a fine connector. 11-12 years-ish ain’t too bad, shame that Apple never prioritize data transfer rates though and to be honest, still don’t seem to care that much judging by the base models.
And, perhaps a contrary opinion, but the I still think lightning is easier to insert than usb-C. The curved edges and smaller size mean you can begin inserting it at an odd angle and finish the insertion easily. Whereas you need to insert usb-C nearly straight on for it to get in.
Also because the lightning cable's male end is solid, there's no way for dust to collect in there, unlike USB-C where dust can collect inside both the cable end and the peripheral end.
Though overall I would trade that for 1 fewer cable/port that I need to manage in my life.
As testament to the durability, the lightning connector was sufficiently durable that Apple would display the iPhone on a spike with nothing more than the lightning connector at the very tip to hold up the phone, constantly being handled and replaced by curious store visitors - this approach was also mirrored in the lightning dock design, where the phone was held in place (at an angle no less) with no other secondary support, only the singular lightning connector holding up the phone with such robustness that one could interact with the phone without concern.
Lightning is and remains to be incredibly durable and sturdy, far exceeding the spec of the type-C connection standard. For a phone or accessories it's a much more pragmatic connector, and a pity to see it go.
USB-C because is not engineered for this level of abuse. From a fatigue perspective USB-C is absolutely a step backwards, tongued designs are weaker, there is no getting around that. I will be interested to see how apple show USB-C iPhones in store, if they keep the lightning-plinth or utilise a design with a back support to limit the wear on the plinth's connector.
-- From this point is a commentary on the politics that helped influence this change, feel free to skip it. tl,dr: The laws surrounding USB-C are short-sighted, focused on the wrong aspects of computing waste, and create a future problem. --
The dogmatic persistence in unifying the world on the cable of the day is short sighted and disappointing politicking to me. Type-C will be superseded, but getting the critical mass to transition to a new standard will be muted because manufacturers can't legally move major products to it. Legislators have created a problem for the not-too-distant future, there will be temporary harmony on type-C, and then invariably we will have country-to-country inconsistencies in legislation as newer, better, connectors emerge.
It's clear to me that regulation is focusing on the wrong aspects of phone design. Instead of mandating for year on year support, long term security software updates, clean manufacturing standards, appropriate materials & labour sourcing, plus a minimum performance benchmark to prevent cheap junk phones entering the market (and thus fast-tracked to landfill) we have the introduction of laws asking what cable an Apple user pulls out of their satchel when wireless charging isn't available. The idea seems to be that now a person would have one cable instead of two(?)
Here's a common example: When I signed up for my internet package, it included a free tablet computer - there was no way to opt out of receiving it, it came pre-installed with software that had known security vulnerabilities, it used microUSB, and its performance was too poor to hold any modern function. Even the person I gave it to had let me know that it was put into electronics recycling after less than a year. This product's manufacture, materials, and shipping created significantly more waste than any amount of lightning cables that a person could feasibly use in an entire lifetime.
It's utter insanity that legislators haven't attempted to address the real sources of environmental damage, human rights abuses, and the very real security issue that these junk devices present. Fixation on the connector has been nothing more than political hand waving. I'm not against type-C, I prefer it, but it's clear to me that people who think this is a real issue are blindsighted.
Another problem I had with USB-C, is that just because it fits physically, doesn't actually mean it will work since what's inside the cable can be dramatically different. In my personal life:
- the Nintendo Switch uses a proprietary USB-C interface for the power brick, they somehow feed ethernet internet through it
- thunderbolt docks need thunderbolt USB-C cables. And there's thunderbolt 2,3,4.
- my magsafe phone charger uses a USB-C end, but needs to be plugged into a special power brick to get full power
This is actually... somewhat worse because now I have multiple USB-C cables that all have a different purpose that I can't tell apart from a glance (because the connectors are all the same!)
Apple do label their type-C cables with the logo of the standard it supports, but for most consumers they're not going to be immediately familiar with this approach, especially as lightning just works for anything that it can be plugged into.
This is a bit of a dated article, but the points it makes still largely stand - people are going to run into some of these problems and not understand why they're happening. Imagine a scenario where you can plug a vacuum into a power socket, only to discover that it doesn't work - your first assumption will be that the vacuum is broken, and not an obscure standards mismatch.
https://www.howtogeek.com/353410/3-problems-with-usb-c-you-n...
I imagine they will use MagSafe mounts and anti-theft tethers, which they've been rolling out over the last few years.
"Apple’s connector supported USB 3.0 host, but the only accessory that fully supported this feature was the camera adapter that includes a USB-A port. Most Lightning cables to this day support only USB 2.0, with a maximum data transfer speed of 60MBps."
I seem to recall when lightning was announced, someone (probably Steve) said it was faster than the 30 pin. Then again Steve was known to blow smoke of products (remember, FaceTime was open source according to Steve when announced).
However, that would have required active/negotiating Lightning-to-USB-3 cables or adapters, since USB 3 requires three lanes, i.e. one more (two for SuperSpeed connections, and one for legacy USB 2.0 high speed connections), and the adapter/cable would have to figure out which one the connected host wants to speak and wire accordingly.
At least one iPad does support USB 3 speeds over Lightning, but only in the other direction, i.e. when acting as an USB host using the "Lightning to USB camera adapter", which was really a generic USB host adapter and supported many more types of devices like audio interfaces, hard drives etc. – I suspect that adapter must be doing just that.
There are two straightforward ways to avoid that and allow passive adapters/cables.
1. Use the two "Identification/control" pins to run the low speed lane.
2. Use both sides when supporting USB 3.
How much e-waste was actually created?
All my several Lightning cables from various Apple device purchases are sitting in my excess cable pile [1], along with a bazillion USB cables from all my non-Apple device purchases, because usually the only times I need a new cable when I get a new device is when every prior device I've purchased that uses the same cable is still in use.
If my Apple devices had used USB I'd still have the same number of cables in my excess cable pile.
From an e-waste perspective what we need to do is stop including cables with everything.
[1] My phone gets charged wirelessly. My iPad does get charged by cable, but I use an Anker 3-in-1 cable that has a USB micro-B end with a couple captive adaptors for USB C and Lightning. I use another of the Anker cables for charging my wireless mouse and keyboard.
Having more of one cable type reduces the need for people to buy replacements for damaged cables because there are more spares available. A significant amount of consumers have only 1 usb-c or lightning cable lying around.
Cables also aren't the only issue, various accessories are designed to be lightning compatible like AV adapters.
The e-waste between all these factors is significant just because over a billion smartphones are shipped yearly. Even a little unnecessary waste adds up quick at that scale. Which justifies the course of action the EU took.
Thinking about it the logistics don't work out for the iPhone 6 launch when I look more carefully. It would have been possible for Apple to ship usb-c with the 6s if they really wanted to get it done.
I'm not sure why you're being such a stickler. I did say "6 or 6s". You also made an even larger chronological error than the one I made in the process of correcting me, so you ought to emphasise with my carelessness. After all - if I'm supposed to be akin to somebody who believes diesel locomotives could have stopped climate change in the 19th century, what does that say about yourself?
I'm not them, but from observing the discourse it's clear they have a better grasp of past events and are being far more reasonable.
For example, perhaps they are mindful that:
1. At the iPhone 6 stage EU legislation was asking phone makers to use MicroUSB standard, not the type C connector.
2. Apple had only recently changed to the lightning connector, switching again so quickly to new, unproven, connector is not smart. Especially one that at the time didn't have much hardware support, didn't support all of the modes needed by Lightning and wasn't being requested by regulatory bodies.
3. The EU's USB Type C mandate isn't even active until late 2024 and only applies to newly released devices. i.e. Both the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 could have come with lightning.
4. Apple phone's are designed far longer than a year in advance. Apple have stated numerously that their product development is a many years long process and that they're actively planning multiple products for years in advance. This is also necessary aspect of developing products for mass production.
The product path and decisions suggested to implement the type C connector in an iPhone 6 is naive, largely ignorant to product development and based on present-day attitudes to USB Type C.
The Brussels effect once again.
It's switching connectors that's wasteful, and the EU thing is causing more switching sooner.
A better idea would have been to require Apple and others to switch to the standard connector the next time they change the connector for a product line, without a specific timeline.
Oh well. It may not be good for the planet, but at least we get to dunk on Apple!
Apple’s decision to switch to USB-C now might have to do with the EU mandated deadline to switch to USB-C.
If the EU had not set a deadline, then Apple might have waited longer. The longer between switches, the less overall switching in a given period of time, and therefore a reduced rate of switching-generated ewaste.
I guess this stuff is a little too complex for the average voter to follow and the EU politicians saw an opportunity for an easy win, never mind the extra ewaste generated.