By At some point in the not-too-distant future, Apple will introduce an iPhone with a USB Type-C connection. A new European Union (EU) rule requires all smartphone manufacturers to equip their devices with a standardized USB Type-C connection by 2024.
On Tuesday, Apple confirmed rumours that it would soon replace the iPhone’s main cord, but it did not provide any specifics. Executives have said that all future smartphones would be compatible with a standard USB-C charging cable by the year 2024, as required by new European Union regulations.
At WSJ Tech Live Conference, Apple officials were less than thrilled while addressing the new regulations. Apple originally thought it had solved with EU authorities by including a chord with its iPhones hooked into USB-C on one side and its exclusive lightning wire on the other.
Now, one significant smartphone model does not have a USB Type-C connector: Apple’s iPhone. Even though Apple has explained, the corporation must comply with the decision if it wants to continue selling iPhones in Europe beyond 2024. The US tech giant is ready to make a move to USB Type-C.
In response to customer demand and regulatory pressure, Apple has switched the iPhone’s charger from the lightning port to USB-C. Pressure on the technology company to make the changeover was amplified earlier this month when the European Parliament approved a law requiring phone manufacturers to embrace USB-C ports by 2024.
What Apple Executives Think About USB Type-C Chargers
According to Joswiak, the corporation will follow this legislation as it does all others. As for when the iPhone would receive the new charger to replace Lightning, he wouldn’t say. His remarks were given during a Wall Street Journal conference. He recalled that ten years ago, European authorities wanted Apple to use Micro-USB rather than the proprietary connector used by Apple. Thus, he argued that Apple and the EU had conflicted chargers for that long. He said that if the iPhone had used the older charging method, neither Lightning nor USB-C could have been developed.
Bloomberg News that Apple is preparing to use USB-C in the iPhone next year. In 2024, the legislation will be enforced. Apple has already switched from Lightning and other ports to USB-C for its Macs, many iPads, and accessories.
“… we’ve come to a better place: a power adapter with a detachable cable. Everything becomes USB-A or USB-C, and you choose the right cable for your device. It allows more than a billion people to have that (lightning) connector and be able to use what they already have and not be disturbed and cause a lot of e-waste,”
said Joswiak
Joswiak’s response made it clear that Apple is unhappy about being forced to switch to USB Type-C for the iPhone. The Apple executive recalled how the EU once wanted Apple to adopt micro-USB as a common connector. Joswiak stated that had Apple done so, neither Lightning nor USB Type-C would have been invented. The Apple marketing lead said switching from Lightning to USB-C would cause lots of e-waste.
However, Apple is under no obligation to provide support for the USB Type-C connection in all iPhone models introduced in 2024 or later. Joswiak declined to say whether or not the connection will be included in iPhones sold in markets outside the European Union. Whether or whether iPhones sold elsewhere than Europe will have a USB Type-C connector is unclear from Joswiak’s statement.
It is nonetheless an unusually public admission of concern from the world’s most valuable firm over its goods’ long-term viability and, in particular, the impact of new government regulations on the company’s bottom line. Although Apple’s billions of dollars in revenues haven’t come from selling $19 lightning cables individually, its ability to protect its technology has allowed it to build a branded ecosystem of accessories designed particularly for its products.
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