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Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

bbc.com

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Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#121

Post by timw4mail »

kd913 wrote: post #73
bjtitus wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is it pointless? The article talks about trying to cut down on electronic waste: > The regulator is determined to cut down on electronic waste being created by obsolete cables, which it estimates generate more than 51,000 tonnes of waste per year. It's surely much less wasteful to extend the life of the cable standard than to ensure longer cable lifespans. Even if you had a cable that lasted 7 years, chances are…

It's pointless because , the chance of a cable lasting 7 years doesn't happen. Even the phone isn't typically designed to last that long. The cases where people end up replacing their cable because of a new standard is way less frequent than the cable breaking, this has been my experience at least considering the shifting standards which you talk about. It sounds a bit like optimizing some process but ignoring what i…

It has not been my experience that cables break often at all.

Does the average user really mistreat their cables that badly?

Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#123

Post by pier25 »

diebeforei485 wrote: post #91

I think this is dumb. I like the idea of everything using USB-C, but in reality I have found USB-C cables to be unreliable (with power and with data) when used with a device other than the one it came with. You could go on and on about power ratings and spec adherence, but I have never had such issues with Lightning cables.

Same here. I've had nothing but bad experiences with USB-C.

Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#124

Post by kovacs_x »

GhostVII wrote: post #71

I can't believe this legislation is actually being seriously considered, why would you want the government forcing you to have a certain port on your phone. By all means have regulations for things like electrical outlets and radio frequencies and other protocols that interfere with each other, but when it comes to individual devices it is just going to completely stall any innovation. I don't want a manufacturer to…

why do you think it's a bad idea that all small appliances with power requirements What is you benefit as a consumer to have each appliance have it's own unique cable, generally providing same functionality?

Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#125

Post by justinclift »

drcongo wrote: post #113
kd913 wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's pointless because , the chance of a cable lasting 7 years doesn't happen. Even the phone isn't typically designed to last that long. The cases where people end up replacing their cable because of a new standard is way less frequent than the cable breaking, this has been my experience at least considering the shifting standards which you talk about. It sounds a bit like optimizing some process but ignoring what i…

Until recently my daughter was still using a 30pin cable that came with a first gen iPad. So "the chance of a cable lasting 7 years doesn't happen" is patently false.

Still using my first gen iPad here, though it's only for reading ebooks.

I have a bunch of 30 pin cables for it though (eg one left plugged into charger at home, one always in my bag, etc). No idea which one is the original cable, and which are cheapo knock-offs.

Over the years, I think one of them went bad and needed replacing. The rest are fine though.

Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#126

Post by ace32229 »

wvenable wrote: post #57
Xixi wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It only means that device makers will have to agree on a new standard before they can drop the previous one. I agree that it will slow down things, but there is no chicken and egg problem.

And what if they can't agree? Maybe apple make a device so thin that even USB-C won't fit and other manufacturers explicitly decide to hobble them by not supporting a thinner connector. This law would be great for anti-competitive practices. Lowest common denominator wins by default.

The iPad with a USB-C port is less than 6mm thick. How thin do you think tablets can actually go?

Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#127

Post by planetzero »

flukus wrote: post #60
planetzero wrote: post #37

Government mandated technology. What could go wrong?

This is exactly the sort of thing governments are good at. Previous successes are things like railway gauges, power connectors, power voltages, measurement units, etc. This is the sort of thing that allows the free market to work efficiently.

"This is the sort of thing that allows the free market to work efficiently."

History shows otherwise. As an example, lets say they pass this law and require all phones to use a specific charger standard.

In 3 months, an innovative company creates a new standard that is not only more efficient, but cheaper. Instead of just being able to sell it, they have to go through the government to get the standard changed..which will NOT be fast.

This will only stifle technology. If we ever want to curb things like climate change, we need less laws like this in the world.

Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#128

Post by hughw »

timw4mail wrote: post #121
kd913 wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's pointless because , the chance of a cable lasting 7 years doesn't happen. Even the phone isn't typically designed to last that long. The cases where people end up replacing their cable because of a new standard is way less frequent than the cable breaking, this has been my experience at least considering the shifting standards which you talk about. It sounds a bit like optimizing some process but ignoring what i…

It has not been my experience that cables break often at all. Does the average user really mistreat their cables that badly?

Apple cables are notorious for wearing badly. I suspect it's because they favor very thin casing and for greater flexibility -- a lightning cable winds tighter than typical charging cables for other phones. MacBook Pro chargers also suffer from the syndrome.

Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#129

Post by Seanambers »

deogeo wrote: post #97
kd913 wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a rather pointless stat though. None of the cables currently available are rated for 9 years and most have a ridiculously short lifespan of 1-2 years anyway. In fact it probably works against Apple as it demonstrates that the churn of innovation doesn't really exist if new advances only occur every 9 years.

2 year lifespan, seriously? My phone's standard mini-USB cable is at least 5 years old by now, and shows zero signs of wear. What the hell is Apple doing to make such awful cables? Edit: Correction - it's a micro-USB cable.

This is just false.

I've had iPhones since 2014 and still have all chargers and cables.

I guess some people just mistreat their cables alot more. If anything Apple has actually been the responsible one only using 2 different connectors, while the rest of the industry have been doing; mini usb, micro usb and now usb-c. And before they - with the advent of iPhone - started with usb connectors all phone manufacturers had their own proprietary connectors.

Who knows what comes along in 5 years on the usb side.

I sure hope Apple stays off USB-C on iPhones for a good while.

Re: Apple may have to abandon Lightning connector cable

#130

Post by jpxw »

kovacs_x wrote: post #124
GhostVII wrote: post #71

I can't believe this legislation is actually being seriously considered, why would you want the government forcing you to have a certain port on your phone. By all means have regulations for things like electrical outlets and radio frequencies and other protocols that interfere with each other, but when it comes to individual devices it is just going to completely stall any innovation. I don't want a manufacturer to…

why do you think it's a bad idea that all small appliances with power requirements What is you benefit as a consumer to have each appliance have it's own unique cable, generally providing same functionality?

The benefit is that I prefer the lightning cable. It’s lightweight, small and looks nice. That’s the only reason I should need, but also competition means that in the future we will be able to have better chargers.
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