EU Reaches Agreement to Force iPhone and AirPods to Adopt USB-C by Fall 2024

[TallManNY]

Typical user? Not so much anymore. Anyone shooting ProRes or just massive mounts of video in general may (does) need higher speeds but the cable itself is not the limiting factor as Apple has already demonstrated it can support USB 3 speeds because they did on one of the pre USB-C iPad Pros. I honestly believe we are probably a model cycle or two away from the Pro iPhones supporting Thunderbolt and the regular iPhones supporting USB-C just like the Pro and the Air models in the iPad line now.

Okay, but what percentage of iPhone owners shoot ProRes? Do you think it is even 1%? While every iPhone user has a lightning cable in their home right now and probably more than one. Still, many folks may charge by using a charging pad now a lot of the time. So the shift to USB-C won't be too hard for them. And many users already have some devices that charge by USB-C. So yeah, I agree that we are probably only a model cycle or two away. But I think it all happens pretty much at once for the iPhone (with the SE being the possible exception), where all the new iPhones come out as USB-C at the same time and the iPad being released at that time also has USB-C. Apple likes to keep the Pro and the non-Pro iPhones pretty darn similar physically. Though obviously they've gotten over that with the camera set up which is massively more complicated in its differences than the charging port difference between lightning and USB-C. So you might be right that they use this as a differentiating feature between Pro and non-Pro iPhone.

 

[bluecoast]

Yes, it kind of does.

My point though is the double standard people show when they say “I don’t see a problem with outlawing your preferred connector as long as they don’t outlaw mine.”


No. It doesn’t.



You mean, will the EU force Apple to choose between surrendering their intellectual property to the state and abandoning it entirely?

I like MagSafe but if it was outlawed in the EU due to e-waste concerns - and before we all forget, that's actually what's driving the legislation - I wouldn't lose sleep over it.

I'm happy to forgo a little bit of consumer freedom in the overall drive to us all stopping trashing the planet.

Overall it's an interesting dilemma though - when do we regulate for the common good and when does it stifle innovation? I suspect that there's always going to be a grey area here.

Finally, sure I'd be happy for Apple to surrender a bit of its IP re. MagSafe to help create a common standard and 'save the planet' - something that Tim Cook always seems to be very keen on. So I'm sure that he'd be up for that.

I mean not including plugs and headphones in new iPhones was all about saving the planet - and not about cutting down shipping costs and increasing the overall profit per iPhone sold, right?

 

[Analog Kid]

I like MagSafe but if it was outlawed in the EU due to e-waste concerns - and before we all forget, that's actually what's driving the legislation - I wouldn't lose sleep over it.

I'm happy to forgo a little bit of consumer freedom in the overall drive to us all stopping trashing the planet.

Overall it's an interesting dilemma though - when do we regulate for the common good and when does it stifle innovation? I suspect that there's always going to be a grey area here.

Finally, sure I'd be happy for Apple to surrender a bit of its IP re. MagSafe to help create a common standard and 'save the planet' - something that Tim Cook always seems to be very keen on. So I'm sure that he'd be up for that.

I mean not including plugs and headphones in new iPhones was all about saving the planet - and not about cutting down shipping costs and increasing the overall profit per iPhone sold, right?

You’re going to have to walk me through the e-waste argument, because what I see is containerships full of legacy Lightning peripherals being discarded in 2024 because they’re no longer usable and people having to replace phones sooner because the port they were built with is no longer supported by peripheral makers all for a common charger that is already commonly USB-C on the wall side.

And I didn’t say “Apple shares their IP”, I said “Apple is forced to surrender their IP”. I’m not sure which interpretation you’re saying you’re happy with but if governments can simply force a company to surrender IP on some flimsy justification like this then add that to the list of ways this is going to slow innovation.

 

[demodave]

The European Union has reached a landmark agreement to force a wide range of consumer electronics, including the iPhone and AirPods, to feature a USB-C port for charging by fall 2024.
[snip]
In a press release, the European Parliament's Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection announced that it has reached an agreement to introduce a law to make USB-C the common charging port across a large number of consumer electronics by fall 2024.
[snip]
[unrequested observation: trying to stnadardize wireless in its infancy is assinine. We don't yet know what "good" is.]


The legislation still needs to be formally approved by the European Parliament and European Council later this year. It will enter come into force 20 days after publication in the EU Official Journal and its provisions will start to apply to new devices after 24 months.

Both Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and Bloomberg's Mark Gurman have said that Apple is testing a version of the iPhone that has a USB-C port instead of a Lightning port. Kuo believes that Apple could switch the iPhone to USB-C starting with 2023's iPhone 15, before transitioning AirPods and other accessories at a later date. This timeframe would allow Apple to switch its affected devices to USB-C ahead of the EU directive coming into force.

Article Link: EU Reaches Agreement to Force iPhone and AirPods to Adopt USB-C by Fall 2024

I find it highly ironic that the EU is demanding changes to charging cables (and presumably connectors) given that, when I have traveled to Europe in the past, I have frequently had to travel with both UK and German wall fixtures. (I guess UK just doesn't matter anymore. <\snark>)

Talk about eWaste! Those fixtures along are far bigger by volume than all the cables that I plug into them.

I am excited, though, by the idea that my Mac laptop, my iPad Mini and (hopefully next gen) iPad and iPhone would all be able to run on one charger variety, USB-C. And I think USB-C is also a bit more useful then either Lightning or previous USB generations. So I think these are good changes, but as many others have said: "what happens if we find something better?" I do not think this should be legislated by the EU. And certainly not by the EU alone.

 

[bluecoast]

You’re going to have to walk me through the e-waste argument, because what I see is containerships full of legacy Lightning peripherals being discarded in 2024 because they’re no longer usable and people having to replace phones sooner because the port they were built with is no longer supported by peripheral makers all for a common charger that is already commonly USB-C on the wall side.

And I didn’t say “Apple shares their IP”, I said “Apple is forced to surrender their IP”. I’m not sure which interpretation you’re saying you’re happy with but if governments can simply force a company to surrender IP on some flimsy justification like this then add that to the list of ways this is going to slow innovation.

I don’t think I’m 2024 we’ll see a mass abandonment of lightening cables - people don’t upgrade that often anymore.

It’ll be a gradual thing in the same way that lightening gradually replaces the iPod connector.

The hope anyway would be that qi wireless charging becomes ubiquitous and is found in Starbucks everywhere etc. so that this legislation isn’t needed so much.

I’m not dating that apple should be forced to give up its IP. I’m suggesting - with my tongue in my cheek - that Tim Cook might want to share it with other manufacturers to ‘help the environment’, which he always seems keen to do!

I’m a bit puzzled though why you - and a few others - are riled by this.

Surely it’s like a government saying that everyone is going to have to drive on the left (or right) so manufacturers have to adhere to this in their cars.

Ditto standard electric power grids in nations and railway gauges before that.

There’s always a ‘Wild West’ period with new widespread technologies and then companies are invariably forced to adhere to standards.

Standards aren’t all that bad - after all, the internet on built on then.

 

[I7guy]

[…]

I’m not dating that apple should be forced to give up its IP. I’m suggesting - with my tongue in my cheek - that Tim Cook might want to share it with other manufacturers to ‘help the environment’, which he always seems keen to do!

[…]

Isn’t that called MFI?

 

[Diatribe]

Imagine they had implemented this earlier… we would still have micro-usb as a standard.

I am all for USB-C but there is nothing in this legislation to make sure we do not miss out on the next USB-C/lightning/etc.

 

[SactoGuy18]

Imagine they had implemented this earlier… we would still have micro-usb as a standard.

I am all for USB-C but there is nothing in this legislation to make sure we do not miss out on the next USB-C/lightning/etc.

I completely disagree. A LOT of people hated the fragility of Micro USB connectors and if properly implemented, USB Type C connectors are pretty durable themselves. At least with USB Type C connectors, the iPhone could get initial charging rates as high as 35 watts and support Thunderbolt 3/USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 gigabit/second connectivity.

 

[Appleman3546]

The EU is too late on this one, Apple will likely just make iPhones and accessories wireless charging only

 

[SactoGuy18]

The EU is too late on this one, Apple will likely just make iPhones and accessories wireless charging only

I think the EU may not allow that.

 

[Macative]

I dislike EU's bureaucracy a lot but I do love to have USB type C across all my devices so this is good.

That's exactly the wrong thought process and exactly why the EU is able to get away with this kind of legislation. When you can't separate "I want" from "I should be able to force this upon others" you've lost all meaningful perspective on reality.

 

[Macative]

I don’t agree with the EU on all things but usb-c on rechargable devices like phones is a win for consumers. I use the same tb4 or usb4 cables to charge all my devices except for iPhone. And these cables also support pcie, displayport, and Ethernet tunelling as well.

One cable, one charger, multiple devices. I will be glad when the iPhone finally brings usb-c support too. Lightning was a good run. But it’s time to move on.

Except no. There are at least 20 different cable specs with a USB type-C connector on the end. Try again.

 

[falkon-engine]

Except no. There are at least 20 different cable specs with a USB type-C connector on the end. Try again.

I really do use the same usb4 or tb4 cable to charge all of my usb-c devices.

I’m aware that there are plethora of usb-c cables with differing capabilities in terms of data speeds, charging speeds, etc.

But fully featured usb4 and tb4 cables support usb-pd 3.0 with up to 100W of charging. This is enough to charge everything except the most high powered devices like gaming laptops. I literally walked with a single certified usb4 cable from cable matters on my recent trip, and was able to charge everything (iPad, MacBook, Nintendo switch, etc) with that one cable except for my iPhone.

The same usb4 cable also supports thunderbolt signalling, so I use it to connect my MacBook to my tb4 dock, it supports pcie, DisplayPort, Ethernet. two 1440p monitors, a bunch of usb devices, a pcie 10gbs lan adapter, and some pcie nvme enclosures. My MacBook connects to all of these devices (via the dock) over one cable. and it also charges my laptop at the same time.

I’d suggest to get a certified usb4 or thunderbolt4 cable and use that. they work well. I can attest to it.

 

[Diatribe]

I think the EU may not allow that.

It specifically mentions wired chargers, so it would theoretically be possible for Apple.

 

[Diatribe]

I completely disagree. A LOT of people hated the fragility of Micro USB connectors and if properly implemented, USB Type C connectors are pretty durable themselves. At least with USB Type C connectors, the iPhone could get initial charging rates as high as 35 watts and support Thunderbolt 3/USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 gigabit/second connectivity.

You seem to misunderstand me. I am saying that if the EU had agreed on a standard during the micro-USB times we would still have that crappy plug as a standard and might have never gotten USB-C. Now though I like USB-C, we might not get whatever next innovation there would have been.

 

[UBS28]

If it was for the EU, we would all be stuck on USB-A is USB-C would have never been developed with this government overreach.

 

[Xenden]

That’s an almost impossible approach when we have a tech duopoly where the only two options are iOS and Android.

There is a duopoly in OS, not a duopoly in smartphones.

Google, Samsung, Sony, Motorola, ZTE, Xiaomi, etc…

There are even niche versions of android phones that exist.

Apple shouldn’t be forced by some shortsighted buracracy, especially the EU (who has a boner for attacking American tech companies), to pic a charging standard.

If a government is in charge, when companies what to roll out USB-D (made up example), they will have to go through endless hearings to prove it is a good thing for consumers to upgrade to.

 

[lartola]

There is a duopoly in OS, not a duopoly in smartphones.

That’s what I meant. We need at least one more global OS. It doesn’t make any difference that there are 1500 smartphone manufacturers out there when all but Apple are using Android for software. Then we really only have two options of cell phones to buy: iphone or Android (which regardless of the hardware manufacturer, are all basically the same).