Summary
- The European Union has successfully forced Apple and other brands to adopt USB-C by the end of 2024, leading to the iPhone 15 series likely adopting sharing a port with Android devices when they’re announced next week.
- While the ruling is a win for consumers, Apple is likely to present the transition as its own concept, despite vocally opposing the move in the lead-up to its passing.
- The switch to USB-C may frustrate die-hard iOS users, but it will offer plenty of benefits as well. In addition to working better with Apple’s other various USB-C equipped laptops and tablets, expect to see faster data transfer speeds on the iPhone 15 Pro.
Google may be unsuccessful in its quest to convince Apple to adopt RCS messaging, but legislators in the European Union successfully forced Apple, and other brands, into adopting another universal standard, USB-C by the end of 2024. As a result, the iPhone 15 series expected to debut at the company’s September 12 event next week could share a USB-C port with even the cheapest of Android phones, all of which abandoned microUSB years ago. While the ruling is a huge win for consumers — or anyone sick of carrying more than one charging cable for their phones — there’s sufficient reason to believe Apple will present the transition as its own concept, despite opposing the move vehemently prior to the legislation’s passing.
The iPhone 5 in 2012 was the first to adopt the Lightning connector, leaving the 30-pin connector behind in the dust. More than a decade later, Apple is poised to swap one of its last remaining gadgets using the port to USB-C, albeit not through its own accord. Since the EU ruling only left Apple with a couple of choices — adopt USB-C, make a region-specific iPhone, or go completely portless — it’s heavily rumored to be leaning into the switch, rather than trying to shy away from the truth behind this year’s swap.
In his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman explained that the change would cost Apple licensing revenue from Made for iPhone (MFi) accessory makers, and make the company more vulnerable to people conveniently ditching an iPhone for an Android device. However, Apple will probably paint the switch as a benevolent stroke of genius, planned with consumers at the center of its efforts.
For instance, you can finally travel with one cable and one charging brick that works with your MacBook, iPad, iPhone, and, thanks to a new charging case, AirPods. iPhone 15 Pro buyers will also benefit from faster wired data transfer and charging speeds, although Gurman speculates Apple could limit performance when you’re using non-MFi cables and adapters. Apple may be adopting a universal standard, but that doesn’t mean it can’t keep some of its classic pettiness alive and well.
To ensure the move doesn’t become a PR disaster — think of the headphone jack removal — Apple may never admit the EU’s role, at least on stage. The legislators opined that USB-C adoption in all phones would reduce e–waste generation, as more devices could share a uniform standard for cables and charging bricks. Apple argued that transitioning to USB-C would render all the current generation of Lightning accessories useless. Likewise, last year, Apple’s marketing boss Greg Joswiak expressed disdain that governments are now meddling with product design decisions.
While the switch has several advantages for consumers, there’s certainly a large swathe of iOS fans who will be annoyed to discover the sudden obsolescence of certain accessories, such as older USB-A charging brick that used to ship with older iPhones. It seems pretty fair to assume Apple as a brand that would have stuck with Lightning if the EU hadn’t intervened — at least until it follows through with those ever-present rumors of a portless device.
It’s only a matter of time before we see Apple fans and new buyers take sides on the USB–C iPhones arriving at store shelves. At the very least, you and your iPhone-owning friends and family will soon be able to lend and borrow a single charging cable. Now we just need RCS on iOS to delivery true harmony between the two platforms.
