EU regulations and restrictions are paying off at Apple, and that is that the USB-C connector should be mandatory on all Apple devices. Among them, the iPhone. If all goes as it seems, the iPhone 15 would already incorporate USB-C. However, this is where Apple could disappoint (and a lot) future buyers of the first iPhone with a standard connector.
Universal connector does not mean standardizing everything
Although the physical connector is the same and we can use the same cable in many devices, what is not seen can become even more important. The 9to5Mac news portal echoes a rumor that, if confirmed, could raise a lot of rough edges for all iPhone users. And it is that, despite the fact that they incorporate USB-C, there are other factors in the background, invisible at first glance, that can make a difference. In this case, we are talking about Apple’s ecosystem of cables and accessories, so that the future iPhone with USB type C works properly. In this case, we talk about the compatibility with cables to transfer data at high speeds.
9to5Mac echoes a sketch that a user has made public on the Chinese social network Weibo. “According to this sketch by a user on Weibo, Apple has developed a Lightning-compatible integrated circuit board to be used in conjunction with the USB-C port of the iPhone 15. This suggests that the firmware will limit how the USB-C port interacts with what is connected to it ”, mentions the web.
“Some additional features such as high-speed data transfer or ultra-fast charging are only available for certified cables and peripherals,” they comment in 9to5Mac regarding what it could mean for the user, for Apple to carry out this patent. Indeed, we would have a very good iPhone, with a price raised to the levels to which we are already accustomed, and with USB-C. But again, Apple would force us to have to go through the boxto buy their proprietary and certified cables, to be able to carry out functions that, out of the box, the iPhone can execute.
Apple has a bad name doing this.
If we use third-party cables or connectors, we will be able to charge the iPhone and transfer data. But without “permission” from Apple, we could not do it at high speeds, which is the least that can be expected from a phone that easily exceeds a thousand euros in initial price.
Apple has a bad reputation when it comes to compatibility issues. And although the iPhone is very good products, and the Apple ecosystem has been standardized in many aspects, Apple sometimes refuses to open it up completely, through “tricks” that are not seen with the naked eye. But this board couldn’t be a bad thing. 9to5Mac comments on the possibility that this leaked board may have an “even more benign” end. “The Lightning circuit board could play a role in backwards compatibility, allowing users to millions of existing Lightning accessories continue to work with iPhone 15through the use of an adapter”, they explain.
Apple is not the first time that it carries out a practice of layering functions in a product, which we can only “unlock” with the purchase of its official cables. A relatively recent case is that of the AirPods Max. We can connect them by cable, but we can only use the official Apple Lightning to Jack cable. The same cables, but from third-party manufacturers, are not compatible with this product, nor with this specific function.
