4 ms·

I kinda don't have a problem with the omissions, but the "marketing spin" seems a little over the top. How standard are these usb-c bricks and are people going

I kinda don't have a problem with the omissions, but the "marketing spin" seems a little over the top. How standard are these usb-c bricks and are people going to be worried about cooking their phones? (Apple's chargers are of pretty high quality, but it seems weird to plug a phone into a usb c device that can charge a notebook). Also I feel that the headphone ommission to save the environment would be more believable if they weren't selling $100 wireless earbuds without replaceable batteries. Much like "Reuse your towels in the hotel" is as much about saving the hotel money as saving the environment.

wmf 6y ago
it seems weird to plug a phone into a usb c device that can charge a notebook I love using the same charger for my laptop, phone, and tablet. When traveling I only have to carry one charger.
duxup 6y ago
I really haven't had a problem charging an iPhone and all my other devices from a handful of USB bricks. I suppose the charging tech might mean they don't charge at optimal speed, but I've never noticed the difference.
samatman 6y ago
Here's how I see it: the phone industry is in a bad Nash equilibrium. Chargers should be sold separately, they tend to last longer than a phone, cheap ones are dangerous, and people buy phones, the chargers just come with because everyone sells phones with chargers. Apple is big enough to shift out of that equilibrium, by pulling the good-ol' reality distortion field and encouraging everyone else to stop bundling chargers on environmental grounds. Which grounds are actually valid, though not the actual motive in play. A world where chargers aren't included is better than one where every manufacturer feels bound to bundle one in to every single phone purchase. So I think Apple is doing a good thing here, just like when they were the first to stop including floppy drives.
- paulryanrogers 6y ago
  Apple is also big enough to include user replaceable batteries. So patting oneself on the back in that case may come across as hypocrisy.
  - samatman 6y ago
    ...did you intend to post this under my comment? I can't for the life of me see the relevance. Sealed phones aren't an industry Nash equilibrium, they're a good design that users and manufacturers both prefer. There are also no ecological grounds whatsoever to prefer user-replaceable batteries. The fact that it requires a few professional tools and some patience is irrelevant: when the battery stops holding a charge, it can be replaced, and this happens routinely.
    - paulryanrogers 6y ago
      > There are also no ecological grounds whatsoever to prefer user-replaceable batteries. Really? I used to routinely replace batteries in my family's phones. Now they're more inclined to get rid of an otherwise working phone since I no longer have the skills to keep up. And the battery is usually the first thing to need attention as a device ages.
- firebird84 6y ago
  The unfortunate part of this is that in a world where manufacturers compete independently on chargers, I think it will be a race to the bottom. Even apple users may accept the drastically lower cost of a $10 charger vs. Apple's. I expect to see more electrical fires in the future as a consequence. The build quality of some of the chargers that get sold online is downright dangerous.
UweSchmidt 6y ago
That's "greenwashing". It's everywhere. Optimistically I think that's just the process of rethinking everything and retooling every single industry and changing deeply ingrained consumer habits to tackle our enormous environmental problems. This "marketing spin" in the iPhone 12 keynote is a commitment that paves the way for truly environmental friendly products, behaviour and legislation.

wmf 6y ago

it seems weird to plug a phone into a usb c device that can charge a notebook I love using the same charger for my laptop, phone, and tablet. When traveling I only have to carry one charger.

duxup 6y ago

I really haven't had a problem charging an iPhone and all my other devices from a handful of USB bricks. I suppose the charging tech might mean they don't charge at optimal speed, but I've never noticed the difference.

samatman 6y ago

Here's how I see it: the phone industry is in a bad Nash equilibrium. Chargers should be sold separately, they tend to last longer than a phone, cheap ones are dangerous, and people buy phones, the chargers just come with because everyone sells phones with chargers. Apple is big enough to shift out of that equilibrium, by pulling the good-ol' reality distortion field and encouraging everyone else to stop bundling chargers on environmental grounds. Which grounds are actually valid, though not the actual motive in play. A world where chargers aren't included is better than one where every manufacturer feels bound to bundle one in to every single phone purchase. So I think Apple is doing a good thing here, just like when they were the first to stop including floppy drives.

paulryanrogers 6y ago
Apple is also big enough to include user replaceable batteries. So patting oneself on the back in that case may come across as hypocrisy.
- samatman 6y ago
  ...did you intend to post this under my comment? I can't for the life of me see the relevance. Sealed phones aren't an industry Nash equilibrium, they're a good design that users and manufacturers both prefer. There are also no ecological grounds whatsoever to prefer user-replaceable batteries. The fact that it requires a few professional tools and some patience is irrelevant: when the battery stops holding a charge, it can be replaced, and this happens routinely.
  - paulryanrogers 6y ago
    > There are also no ecological grounds whatsoever to prefer user-replaceable batteries. Really? I used to routinely replace batteries in my family's phones. Now they're more inclined to get rid of an otherwise working phone since I no longer have the skills to keep up. And the battery is usually the first thing to need attention as a device ages.
firebird84 6y ago
The unfortunate part of this is that in a world where manufacturers compete independently on chargers, I think it will be a race to the bottom. Even apple users may accept the drastically lower cost of a $10 charger vs. Apple's. I expect to see more electrical fires in the future as a consequence. The build quality of some of the chargers that get sold online is downright dangerous.

UweSchmidt 6y ago

That's "greenwashing". It's everywhere. Optimistically I think that's just the process of rethinking everything and retooling every single industry and changing deeply ingrained consumer habits to tackle our enormous environmental problems. This "marketing spin" in the iPhone 12 keynote is a commitment that paves the way for truly environmental friendly products, behaviour and legislation.