It’s so sad that Apple couldn’t charge their gullible customers anymore with expensive yet flimsy Lightning cables.
After the EU passed a directive that all smartphones regardless of manufacturer and type should adopt USB-C, Apple announced that future iPhone models, starting with the 15, will get USB-C cables, even if they are “unhappy” with this move.
The law was mandated in response to the growing number of e-wastes and the European Union wanted a more efficient and reusable way of reducing it. Thus enter mandatory USB-C. The confirmation for Apple’s move was sourced from executive Greg Joswiak. Joswiak and fellow senior vice president for marketing Craig Federighi were interviewed by the Wall Street Journal. One of the questions was regarding Apple’s action in case the EU pushes for mandatory USB-C.
In the interview, Joswiak noted that Lightning and USB-C are two of the most popular connectors with over 1 billion using Lightning ports alone. He also said that the company has struck this perfect balance of using Lightning and then the other end would be any other connector, USB-C included.
He also noted the feud between Apple and the European Union, calling it a “bit of a disagreement” about the idea of using a common charger. He noted that even though the EU had good intentions, it’s a tricky thing to regulate as customers would simply just buy USB-C cables either from first party or third-party suppliers, even if they are given one, probably due to “just in case” mentality. In particular, he noted that the EU once attempted to make MicroUSBs universal.
Disappointed, Joswiak said that Apple had no choice but to comply. Newer iPhones would use USB-Cs. To recall, some of Apple’s devices, such as the iPad Pro, already uses USB-C. “For most iPhone customers, it’s all about charging” he said. Ming-Chi Kuo, a reliable Apple analyst said that the iPhone 15 will come with USB-C.
Take note this applies to countries in the EU so there are chances that Lightning will still appear on future iPhone models on different regions. For instance, there’s an eSIM and physical SIM variant of the iPhone 14 series in countries where eSIM is not yet supported.
Source: 9to5Mac
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