4 ms·

Maybe next year's refresh will have USB-A ports again!

by nfriedly 5y ago

gjsman-1000 5y ago
Apple, according to the rumors, considered even bringing back USB-A but decided against it.
colinmhayes 5y ago
Would USB-A fit in a macbook? No way for the air right?
- elzbardico 5y ago
  I am happy if USB-A dies.
  - lostlogin 5y ago
    For me C can die. Having multiple specs on one plug and various cables that all behave differently is ridiculous.
- nfriedly 5y ago
  I mean, Apple gets to decide how thick the laptop is, so they could make it work if they wanted to. Didn't the original Macbook Air have a USB-A port? Also, HDMI ports are approximately the same height as USB Type-A ports, so presumably it would fit in this design.
  - bart_spoon 5y ago
    > Didn't the original Macbook Air have a USB-A port? It did
ghaff 5y ago
It would be nice if they could have squeezed one in again so you don't need to pull out a dongle/hub every time you want to connect a "legacy" USB device when traveling. But not really a realistic wish and wouldn't have wished they took anything out to accommodate it.
- fastball 5y ago
  What legacy USB devices are you plugging in while traveling? Traveling is when I'm least likely to do that. And regardless, I travel with this[1] anyway, so no problemo. [1] https://www.amazon.com/Purgo-Adapter-2018-2016-Delivery-Thunderbolt/dp/B07K5ZR6HS/ref=sr_1_8?dchild=1&keywords=MacBook+USB+C+Hub&qid=1634604857&sr=8-8 https://www.amazon.com/Purgo-Adapter-2018-2016-Delivery-Thun...
  - nfriedly 5y ago
    I'm not the one you asked, but heres a few things that I might need to use a USB-A port for when traveling: * My yubikey to perform 2-factor auth * The checkra1n jailbreak for my work iPhone (I do some iOS dev and occasionally need a jailbroken device. For whatever reason, it doesn't work with a USB-C-to-lightning cable, it has to use a USB-A-to-lightning cable + a dongle.) * A USB flash drive for transferring a presentation or whatever. (I know these come in USB-C variants, but I don't have one.) * Charging all the random things that charge from USB-A ports.
    - fastball 5y ago
      Gotcha. Well except for the weird checkra1n thing, everything else is easily migrated to USB-C. To help with that migration, I highly recommend this[1] cable (or one similar to it) as a technological Swiss Army Knife. I made the transition at the beginning of the year to "USB-C everything I can" and it's very liberating. Ironically the only devices I have left that are not USB-C are my iPhone and AirPods (and my Kindle, but they just released a USB-C model which I will soon use to replace my current one). [1] https://www.amazon.com/SDBAUX-USB-Compatible-Electronic-Tablets%EF%BC%88Silicone/dp/B0892ZJ161/ref=sr_1_8?dchild=1&keywords=usb+a+and+c+cable+all+in+one&qid=1634612764&sr=8-8 https://www.amazon.com/SDBAUX-USB-Compatible-Electronic-Tabl...
      - nfriedly 5y ago
        Yea, fair enough. I am generally migrating in that direction, but probably a bit slower than you. Looks like a handy cable.

Maybe next year's refresh will have USB-A ports again!

gjsman-1000 5y ago

Apple, according to the rumors, considered even bringing back USB-A but decided against it.

colinmhayes 5y ago

Would USB-A fit in a macbook? No way for the air right?

elzbardico 5y ago
I am happy if USB-A dies.
- lostlogin 5y ago
  For me C can die. Having multiple specs on one plug and various cables that all behave differently is ridiculous.
nfriedly 5y ago
I mean, Apple gets to decide how thick the laptop is, so they could make it work if they wanted to. Didn't the original Macbook Air have a USB-A port? Also, HDMI ports are approximately the same height as USB Type-A ports, so presumably it would fit in this design.
- bart_spoon 5y ago
  > Didn't the original Macbook Air have a USB-A port? It did

ghaff 5y ago

It would be nice if they could have squeezed one in again so you don't need to pull out a dongle/hub every time you want to connect a "legacy" USB device when traveling. But not really a realistic wish and wouldn't have wished they took anything out to accommodate it.

fastball 5y ago
What legacy USB devices are you plugging in while traveling? Traveling is when I'm least likely to do that. And regardless, I travel with this[1] anyway, so no problemo. [1] https://www.amazon.com/Purgo-Adapter-2018-2016-Delivery-Thunderbolt/dp/B07K5ZR6HS/ref=sr_1_8?dchild=1&keywords=MacBook+USB+C+Hub&qid=1634604857&sr=8-8 https://www.amazon.com/Purgo-Adapter-2018-2016-Delivery-Thun...
- nfriedly 5y ago
  I'm not the one you asked, but heres a few things that I might need to use a USB-A port for when traveling: * My yubikey to perform 2-factor auth * The checkra1n jailbreak for my work iPhone (I do some iOS dev and occasionally need a jailbroken device. For whatever reason, it doesn't work with a USB-C-to-lightning cable, it has to use a USB-A-to-lightning cable + a dongle.) * A USB flash drive for transferring a presentation or whatever. (I know these come in USB-C variants, but I don't have one.) * Charging all the random things that charge from USB-A ports.
  - fastball 5y ago
    Gotcha. Well except for the weird checkra1n thing, everything else is easily migrated to USB-C. To help with that migration, I highly recommend this[1] cable (or one similar to it) as a technological Swiss Army Knife. I made the transition at the beginning of the year to "USB-C everything I can" and it's very liberating. Ironically the only devices I have left that are not USB-C are my iPhone and AirPods (and my Kindle, but they just released a USB-C model which I will soon use to replace my current one). [1] https://www.amazon.com/SDBAUX-USB-Compatible-Electronic-Tablets%EF%BC%88Silicone/dp/B0892ZJ161/ref=sr_1_8?dchild=1&keywords=usb+a+and+c+cable+all+in+one&qid=1634612764&sr=8-8 https://www.amazon.com/SDBAUX-USB-Compatible-Electronic-Tabl...
    - nfriedly 5y ago
      Yea, fair enough. I am generally migrating in that direction, but probably a bit slower than you. Looks like a handy cable.