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EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

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Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#831

Post by mcphage »

xdennis wrote: post #728
blue_light_man wrote: post #607

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is such a short sighted view. What just happened is, EU, a political organization enforcing the use of a technology on a company which operates on free market. It's Apples best interest to make technology that the consumers want so that they can sell more units of that. A political organization like EU has no say in this. EU citizens already make this decision for themselves by voting with money and choosing to…

> This is such a short sighted view. It's not. The EU tried to do it the easy way, where companies would agree amongst themselves. This was finally accomplished in 2009[1] by every one except Apple. [1]: https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2009/06/10-companies-agree-t... After 13 years, the EU is finally forcing Apple. > EU citizens already make this decision for themselves by voting with money We're also voting with our…

The interesting thing there is, the connector discussed in 2009 was the micro-USB connector. Had the EU forced tech companies in 2009 to use a micro-USB connector, would that mean they would still be on it now, and not using the (far better) USB-C connector?

I think I'm for this decision overall, but otoh I'm really glad that the EU didn't force everyone onto micro-USB back in 2009. If they EU hadn't done this now, I wonder how I would feel about the possibility when 2035 rolls around?

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#832

Post by NaturalPhallacy »

_trackno5 wrote: post #49

Why do people think it is a good thing to have this enforced by law is beyond me. I don't see any win besides a minor convenience. A lightning cable weighs almost nothing and it's not a big deal to have one around. As to lightning port limitations, I question whether usb-c will give average iPhone users any other advantage other than charging their phone. What are people gonna do with it other than charge their phone…

>I don't see any win besides a minor convenience.

A minor inconvenience multiplied by the number of smartphones (7.33 billion) is not a minor problem.

It's not that it's a problem on the individual level, it's that we're roughly doubling the number of cables needed and halving their utilization at the same time. Yes I know android is more popular, but the issue is the two different cables needed.

https://www.bankmycell.com/blog/how-many-phones-are-in-the-w...

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#833

Post by Auracle »

bodge5000 wrote: post #51

I'd certainly much rather type-c than lightning or, god forbid, micro usb, but it also has its own issues. Issues that one would hope would be solved by the usb-d, and so on. The problem with this law is that it makes it much more difficult to start using future usb standards. The EU addressed this by saying that they'll keep up with technology as it moves, but one thing that technology is famous for, and the EU is i…

They could have addressed this by having a built in sunset on the law - say, in 5 years. That would get everyone (Apple) on the same page in the short term but it would allow for further innovation.

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#834

Post by bombcar »

tomonl wrote: post #550
mdrzn wrote: post #33

LET'S GO EU! These headlines make me proud. Let's reach a global standard for charging stuff. I wish everything that had to be charged sometimes had a USB-C plug. But also I hope that the USB standard gets less messy in the future.

Luckily this law is not just for phones! > Regardless of their manufacturer, all new mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras, headphones and headsets, handheld videogame consoles and portable speakers, e-readers, keyboards, mice, portable navigation systems, earbuds and laptops that are rechargeable via a wired cable, operating with a power delivery of up to 100 Watts, will have to be equipped with a USB Type-C port.

Introducing the iPhone 15 EU edition, now with 101 watt charging via lightning.

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#835

Post by spookthesunset »

TheYumasi wrote: post #555

As an EU citizen, I am really happy with this decision. I am an iPhone user, but having an iPhone is not ubiquitous here, almost all of my friends/special other, use an Android phone with USB-C. Most of their laptops, Mac or not, use or allow USB-C for charging. This as been the case for a few years now, yet, if I go somewhere for more than a full day and forget my lighting cable, my phone will become a useless paper…

Going wireless charging only is probably not gonna happen anytime soon. Wireless charging is significantly less efficient than wired. The difference might not matter much if you are using power from the wall*, but if you are charging off a battery bank you want as much efficiency as you can--you don't want to waste power!

*(being less efficient while charging from wall might not matter to you as an individual but consider if everybody was charging with such an inefficient means... that might add up to a lot of waste)

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#836

Post by HWR_14 »

crote wrote: post #771
mgraczyk wrote: post #757

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Serious question, why is is it a problem to put a tiny cable in a landfill? The amount they leach is essentially zero. The EU would have done more for the environment by spending $20k cleaning up an extra few car batteries. This is so obviously pandering and protectionism and it's surprising to me people believe the "e-waste" justification. Seriously, is there an accounting of the environmental damage caused by cell…

The problem is that it is a lot of tiny cables, and a lot of chargers with them. Additionally, it also protects the consumer by preventing companies from locking consumers into buying device-specific chargers at greatly inflated prices. It might even become common for devices to come without chargers: why have 10 chargers lying around when all your devices use the same charging connector?

iPhones already come with a USB-C -> Lightning cable. They already don't come with chargers.

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#837

Post by dzhiurgis »

acheron wrote: post #283
moolcool wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Why do people think it is a good thing to have this enforced by law is beyond me. Personally, I am happy to see that some governments still care about consumer protection.

Protecting me from using my existing cables? Gee, thanks.

Opposite. Allowing to use my existing cables. Geez.

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#838

Post by joe-collins »

WithinReason wrote: post #156
Fiahil wrote: post #129

Fast-Forward to Autumn 2023 or Spring 2024 : Tim Cook: (40:20) Now let’s talk about iPhone. iPhone has forever changed the world. Every single day people rely on iPhone, from their most demanding tasks to capturing the moments of their lives, streaming their favorite TV shows, playing their favorite games, staying up to date with the news of the world and connecting with friends and loved ones. Tim Cook: (40:42) This…

I thought it was going to have no ports and only wireless charging

Notably absent from the list of product categories is wireless charging pads.

So, Apple ditches the wired charging port, and continues to sell their MagSafe Qi chargers with Lightning.

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#839

Post by [deleted] »

Jtsummers wrote: post #713
codexb wrote: post #706

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's nothing wise or moral about this decision. Mandating a technology standard, purely for personal preference and convenience reasons -- not for reasons related to safety, or pollution, or security -- especially for things that change as fast as phones, is one of the most short-sighted and naive things any government could do. There's a long history of Apple using proprietary connectors to achieve performance sp…

> There's a long history of Apple using proprietary connectors to achieve performance specifications above what the currently available standardized connectors could provide. Lightning was good when it came out (compared to the various micro-USB options), but it's not held up. Even Apple knows this and they've moved away from it on their iPads.

[deleted]

Re: EU Passes Law to Switch iPhone to USB-C by End of 2024

#840

Post by csmpltn »

barsonme wrote: post #818
csmpltn wrote: post #454

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "what a shame a law needs to specify a specific port for ~iPhones~ devices." The only shame here is that companies consistently chose lock-in over open standards, even when it's clearly detrimental to the user's experience and the environment. If the "adults in the room" can't figure it out (out of greed), it's fair game for governments to step in and make a choice for everybody. That's what a government should do:…

> even when it's clearly detrimental to the user's experience This is entirely subjective. Personally, I’ve never been bothered by the different port type. I’ve also never really known it to be a problem for friends and family. That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t prefer USB-C for the iPhone. Just that for me it’s not been “clearly detrimental.”

> "This is entirely subjective."

What's positive about having to buy different cables, chargers and converters every year for your phones, cameras, laptops and whatnot? Maybe you're just used to it, but if you truly think about what it means and the implications of doing this at-scale, I seriously doubt there's any benefit to it.

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