7 ms·

Well they asked everyone to agree on a standard 10 years ago, but that didn't happen (just because of Apple). So now they forcefully decided.

trasz 4y ago
10 years ago USB 3 wasn't really a thing yet, and so it would be a significant downgrade compared to Lightning.
mmastrac 4y ago
This is the truth of the matter. Apple has been dragging their feet on switching away from lightning. Why? No idea. It's a much slower standard, and puts the wearing parts in the port instead of the cable. USB-C is designed by committee, sure, but the port itself is better than lightning in nearly every consumer metric there is.
- thebean11 4y ago
  Isn't USBC more fragile because of the middle piece that lives in the port? Lightning has always felt sturdier to me, though not enough to warrant carrying different types of cables..
  - vvatermelone 4y ago
    The middle piece is thin and does look fragile, but you can't put any real side load on it. The outer wall of the connector takes that force before you can put any real force on the middle. Unless you're jamming a flathead screwdriver or something in it. Beyond that, the springloaded contacts are on the cable end with type-c, with lightning it's inside the phone. I don't think it's a particularly common failure mode, but having less moving parts in the expensive bit is generally a good idea.
- monocasa 4y ago
  Apple gets a patent license fee on every lightning cord. If they switch to a standard they didn't patent, they lose a revenue stream.
  - tradertef 4y ago
    That is one of the reasons for Apple. Another one is to be able to sell their own cables to consumers at a premium price.
- pwinnski 4y ago
  USB-C is perfectly fine, and I'm happy to switch, but let's not go overboard. Lightning is still arguably better than USB-C. USB-C exists because Apple was in the process of creating Lightning. Also, in my experience, you seem to have the fragility point backward: the nub on lightning cables may break, but the port is fine, while the reverse is true for USB-C, where the fragile bit is in the port.
- dreamcompiler 4y ago
  Apple has repeatedly said their phones are so thin that they don't have room for a USB-C port. This of course is total bullshit because many phones as thin or thinner than iPhones have USB-C ports.
morcheeba 4y ago
Yep. Apple came out with their own connector because USB Mini (where everyone else wanted to go) sucked. We got a robust, flippable connector. All in all, using only two kinds of connectors over 14 years (so far) seems far better than the industry average (proprietary, mini, micro, C)

trasz 4y ago

10 years ago USB 3 wasn't really a thing yet, and so it would be a significant downgrade compared to Lightning.

mmastrac 4y ago

This is the truth of the matter. Apple has been dragging their feet on switching away from lightning. Why? No idea. It's a much slower standard, and puts the wearing parts in the port instead of the cable. USB-C is designed by committee, sure, but the port itself is better than lightning in nearly every consumer metric there is.

thebean11 4y ago
Isn't USBC more fragile because of the middle piece that lives in the port? Lightning has always felt sturdier to me, though not enough to warrant carrying different types of cables..
- vvatermelone 4y ago
  The middle piece is thin and does look fragile, but you can't put any real side load on it. The outer wall of the connector takes that force before you can put any real force on the middle. Unless you're jamming a flathead screwdriver or something in it. Beyond that, the springloaded contacts are on the cable end with type-c, with lightning it's inside the phone. I don't think it's a particularly common failure mode, but having less moving parts in the expensive bit is generally a good idea.
monocasa 4y ago
Apple gets a patent license fee on every lightning cord. If they switch to a standard they didn't patent, they lose a revenue stream.
- tradertef 4y ago
  That is one of the reasons for Apple. Another one is to be able to sell their own cables to consumers at a premium price.
pwinnski 4y ago
USB-C is perfectly fine, and I'm happy to switch, but let's not go overboard. Lightning is still arguably better than USB-C. USB-C exists because Apple was in the process of creating Lightning. Also, in my experience, you seem to have the fragility point backward: the nub on lightning cables may break, but the port is fine, while the reverse is true for USB-C, where the fragile bit is in the port.
dreamcompiler 4y ago
Apple has repeatedly said their phones are so thin that they don't have room for a USB-C port. This of course is total bullshit because many phones as thin or thinner than iPhones have USB-C ports.

morcheeba 4y ago

Yep. Apple came out with their own connector because USB Mini (where everyone else wanted to go) sucked. We got a robust, flippable connector. All in all, using only two kinds of connectors over 14 years (so far) seems far better than the industry average (proprietary, mini, micro, C)