4 ms·

Lightning seems to be a kind of drug for Apple that they can't get rid of even if threatened with punishment.

by Ringz 3y ago

smoldesu 3y ago
Granted, the pluggy-end of a battery is a pretty benign place to put it. Apple probably has warehouses full of these connectors that need somewhere to go now that OEMs won't pay to license it. Dropping it in a battery is sorta annoying and arguably obsolete but also not the end of the world. Now, if they could axe Lightning on the Magic Keyboard/Trackpad, that'd be greaaaaaat.
- rx_tx 3y ago
  It's actually different than the OG Lightning, it's quite wider. (the tweet has comparison pics) There's actually another undocumented pin-hole ejection feature in apple hardware. ifixit found during their teardown of airpod Max that you can disconnect/remove the earcup in one go with a sim tool, allowing for theoretical easy mix and match (or headband replacement) [1] [1] : https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/AirPods+Max+Teardown/139369#s278310 https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/AirPods+Max+Teardown/139369#...
  - smoldesu 3y ago
    Interesting, thanks for calling that out. Hopefully Apple will adopt this on iPhone and finally bring us sweet, sweet expandable storage!
  - SushiHippie 3y ago
    Comparison pics: https://nitter.perennialte.ch/raywongy/status/1752810208278061096 https://nitter.perennialte.ch/raywongy/status/17528102082780... (as long as nitter is still alive) Otherwise: https://twitter.com/raywongy/status/1752810208278061096 https://twitter.com/raywongy/status/1752810208278061096
- rasz 3y ago
  Apple doesnt warehouse parts, and it doesnt care if Foxconn has too much connectors left over. Its not a $ issue, we are talking $0.06 USB C connector here on a $3500 product.
TaylorAlexander 3y ago
It's a mechanically sound connector. I always found it weird that with USB-C, you are inserting a plug with an open center in to a port with a small tab on the inside. It seems like inserting a thicker tab in to an open slot would be stronger. But then there could be some peculiarities of cable manufacturing that make USB-C smarter than it seems. That or it isn't better because it was designed by committee, and we only use it because that committee sets standards.
- kjkjadksj 3y ago
  Lightning isnt indestructible its just proprietary
  - TaylorAlexander 3y ago
    Well nothing is indestructible. My point is that it is a well-designed connector, and in some ways superior to USB-C. Lightning was introduced in 2012 before USB-C was commonplace. It makes sense that once Apple decided to use it, they would be hesitant to move away from it.
- amomchilov 3y ago
  The springy contracts are the more fragile part. The USB-C design puts those in the cable, to optimize the sturdiness of the (more expensive) devices. Though the tab itself could be a point of failure, but it’s probably less so.

Lightning seems to be a kind of drug for Apple that they can't get rid of even if threatened with punishment.

by Ringz 3y ago

Lightning seems to be a kind of drug for Apple that they can't get rid of even if threatened with punishment.

Granted, the pluggy-end of a battery is a pretty benign place to put it. Apple probably has warehouses full of these connectors that need somewhere to go now that OEMs won't pay to license it. Dropping it in a battery is sorta annoying and arguably obsolete but also not the end of the world. Now, if they could axe Lightning on the Magic Keyboard/Trackpad, that'd be greaaaaaat.

rx_tx 3y ago
It's actually different than the OG Lightning, it's quite wider. (the tweet has comparison pics) There's actually another undocumented pin-hole ejection feature in apple hardware. ifixit found during their teardown of airpod Max that you can disconnect/remove the earcup in one go with a sim tool, allowing for theoretical easy mix and match (or headband replacement) [1] [1] : https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/AirPods+Max+Teardown/139369#s278310 https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/AirPods+Max+Teardown/139369#...
- smoldesu 3y ago
  Interesting, thanks for calling that out. Hopefully Apple will adopt this on iPhone and finally bring us sweet, sweet expandable storage!
- SushiHippie 3y ago
  Comparison pics: https://nitter.perennialte.ch/raywongy/status/1752810208278061096 https://nitter.perennialte.ch/raywongy/status/17528102082780... (as long as nitter is still alive) Otherwise: https://twitter.com/raywongy/status/1752810208278061096 https://twitter.com/raywongy/status/1752810208278061096
rasz 3y ago
Apple doesnt warehouse parts, and it doesnt care if Foxconn has too much connectors left over. Its not a $ issue, we are talking $0.06 USB C connector here on a $3500 product.

TaylorAlexander 3y ago

It's a mechanically sound connector. I always found it weird that with USB-C, you are inserting a plug with an open center in to a port with a small tab on the inside. It seems like inserting a thicker tab in to an open slot would be stronger. But then there could be some peculiarities of cable manufacturing that make USB-C smarter than it seems. That or it isn't better because it was designed by committee, and we only use it because that committee sets standards.

kjkjadksj 3y ago
Lightning isnt indestructible its just proprietary
- TaylorAlexander 3y ago
  Well nothing is indestructible. My point is that it is a well-designed connector, and in some ways superior to USB-C. Lightning was introduced in 2012 before USB-C was commonplace. It makes sense that once Apple decided to use it, they would be hesitant to move away from it.
amomchilov 3y ago
The springy contracts are the more fragile part. The USB-C design puts those in the cable, to optimize the sturdiness of the (more expensive) devices. Though the tab itself could be a point of failure, but it’s probably less so.