4 ms·

Macs come with usb-c. Why can’t iPhones be also usb-c? I’m not sure I fully understand why everything in the world can’t be usb-c?

• fastbeef 7y ago
  The iPad pros are USB-C only, so I think it’s just a matter of time
• vineyardmike 7y ago
  Because not everything should be USBC, and not everything needs to be USBC. USB C won’t be the standard forever, and it’s a standard that takes many forms and has caused lots of confusion, so it’s not exactly the gold standard. USB C isn’t forever, eventually USB D will come around, and what’ll happen? The EU and their (often targeted anti-American-tech) laws will hold phones back, or leave themselves out of the market.
  • visarga 7y ago
    EU isn't legislating USB-C, it's demanding that the industry standards body have a common standard for charging, and continue to develop it as a common standard. The manufacturers are going to be collaborating on the specs. It will be like TCP/IP, DNS, UTF and many other things.
    • freepor 7y ago
      But why does the EU bureaucracy know that charging ports cannot be an important part of product differentiation? I would hope they wouldn’t legislate a common screen size or a common operating system... why legislate a common charging port? I STRONGLY prefer Lightning and would hope that people who prefer Lightning like me can buy Apple and people who prefer USB-C can buy Android.
      • nindalf 7y ago
        Given a choice between having one or two charger for both phone and laptop, you'd prefer having 2?
      • atoav 7y ago
        Because the EU isn't there to pamper big corporations, it is there to strengthen the rights of consumers and citizens by strengthening competition. If your company can't survive without selling adapters or locking in customers with unnecessary differing standards (and therefor avoiding competition), maybe it isn't really healthy to begin with. I would have a different perspective if there was really a practical reason for apple to go the different route — but there isn't.
        • freepor 7y ago
          There absolutely is — Lightning is far easier to plug in in the dark.
        • dhxudkwjwhh 7y ago
          How is there no practical reason? The practical reason is implied by context. Apple is among the single most profitable companies in existence, consumers vote with their wallets and their wallets overwhelmingly vote in a manner that supports Apple's decisions. It's a very European thing to point at the purpose of a government entity and assume it's true. Helping consumers? If consumers prefer universal cable standards then they'll favor products with cross compatability standards. The only people who benefit from this government intervention are the EU businesses that can't be bothered to examine themselves long enough to find a way to compete effectively. This sort of disconnected legislation is just another reason the EU has lost significance as an innovator, they'd rather settle for a comfortable and unchallenging norm.
          • Miraste 7y ago
            Isn't it possible that consumers don't like needing separate proprietary chargers for iPhones, but it's a small enough part of the overall iOS experience it doesn't noticeably harm sales? After all, phone ecosystems are a duopoly. It's not an area where free market arguments hold water. This legislation lets the industry decide on their own standard. Do you think customers would also enjoy incompatible Wi-Fi standards, or cell modems?
            • 7y ago
      • llampx 7y ago
        To me it's the same as fridges and TVs. I should be able to buy a common cable that plugs into a Samsung or an LG TV and the same for an Apple or Google phone.
• shpx 7y ago
  One day they might be, but they probably think switching now is too soon. Like the person above said, lightning came out before UBS-C. Apple switched from their long https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dock_connector#Apple_30-pin_dock_connector https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dock_connector#Apple_30-pin_... only 8 years ago. Everyone had to throw away their docks and charging cables. Now just 8 years later you want them to make everyone throw all those away again? Wikipedia says the 30 pin connector lasted from 2003 to 2014, so let people use the things they paid for a couple more years. Maybe Apple will come up with something better than USB-C in that time. Lightning being a better connector than USB-C doesn't help.