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EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

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Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#211

Post by epolanski »

frankfrankfrank wrote: post #154
epolanski wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The regulations get updated, you aren't stuck on usb-c. What EU wants to avoid is Apple giving "unfair" advantages to their own chargers (which could either come from Apple making better chargers or artificially slowing third party ones) defeating the purpose of having less electronic waste.

I’m all for some kind of universality, but this authoritarian method does not strike me as a good idea. You lament their concern with fairness, by giving unfair advantages to the USB-C license holders/patent holders? I’m not even sure people understand that Apple also contributed heavily to the development of USB-C along with other companies, some of them European. The irony is that I believe the Lightning Connector,…

I don't think this is in any way authoritarian, no one's personal freedom is at stake here. The regulation is for hardware companies, not you.

There is no "unfair advantage" to USB-C patent holders, it's a standard that the industry settled on in a cooperative fashion in which Apple was itself a major player.

No one prevented the industry from working on a "patent-free" different standard.

Point is, you can't and shouldn't promote _different brands of connectors_ as it defeats the purpose of having less waste if in a household iPhone users are gonna use a different charger from the others.

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#212

Post by ghaff »

UncleEntity wrote: post #187
tezza wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At Glastonbury, the largest line inside is for the free phone charging. People queue for hours, a tragic waste of festival time. Wireless pads would make charging times longer and hence the queues too. Camping / trekking you still want cables for speed of charge

> People queue for hours, a tragic waste of festival time. Back when I went to such things nobody carried around cellphones and didn’t have any less of an experience. We even had plans like “if anyone gets separated we’ll all meet up at the beer tent” because nobody wants to get left a couple hours from home because they didn’t pay attention to where the car was parked. Kids these days…

The idea that people would go to a festival and feel that their experience couldn't be complete without a smartphone or that, if they did feel that way, they wouldn't have made really sure that they had made backup plans for if their phone did run out of juice boggles my mind. People make themselves ridiculously dependent on devices that can run out of power, break, or get lost/stolen.

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#213

Post by Deukhoofd »

hartator wrote: post #209
Deukhoofd wrote: post #193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They can propose it to the USB Implementers Forum, standardize it as a new USB standard, and pass it to the EU.

So, the EU is now in charge of deciding USB implementation?

No, the EU follows the industry standards. The industry standards for connectors are currently decided on by USB-IF, as almost the entire industry is a member of it. This means that when USB-IF releases a new standard, the EU will add it to the legislation.

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#214

Post by [deleted] »

vidarh wrote: post #185
frankfrankfrank wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m all for some kind of universality, but this authoritarian method does not strike me as a good idea. You lament their concern with fairness, by giving unfair advantages to the USB-C license holders/patent holders? I’m not even sure people understand that Apple also contributed heavily to the development of USB-C along with other companies, some of them European. The irony is that I believe the Lightning Connector,…

The EU tried the soft approach for many years, and Apple stubbornly refused to play. "This authoritarian method" of representing the populations they are meant to represent as part of a democratic society rather than letting companies continue to do what they want came with ample warning. EDIT: Someone asked about the mandate for it, and deleted, but worth pointing out that the EU parliament supported this with a maj…

[deleted]

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#215

Post by red_trumpet »

viktorcode wrote: post #87
raverbashing wrote: post #75

I plug my USB-C Android phone into any USB-C charger (including monitors, etc) and it charges rapidly Apple can go F themselves if that won't be the case with the iPhone

Apple devices do exactly the same, and has been for many years. I charge my stuff with a third party chargers, all I need is a lightning cable.

That's the point, you need an additional cable. I charge most of my stuff with my laptop cable: laptop, Smartphone, Ebook reader, portable speaker. Only my headphones are still in MicroUSB.

As the laptop cable doesn't have an outgoing USB A/C port, I would have to carry an additional cable and charger if I had an iPhone.

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#216

Post by arlort »

rmm wrote: post #97

I just realised I rarely plug a cable into my phone at all these days. Genuinely I think the last time I did was in a hire car that only had cable CarPlay. At my desk I got a wireless charger as well as my bed side. Data is over the cloud now etc Serious question how long until they drop the port full stop? Like what if they achieve serious wireless charging speeds And actually does anyone know if that’s allowed with…

> And actually does anyone know if that’s allowed with these new regulations? Like what if the iPhone 16 they drop it entirely???

Yes the wording of the law is:

> In so far as they are capable of being recharged by means of wired charging, the categories or classes of radio equipment referred to in point 1 of this Part shall: [ Legalese way of saying USB-C charging ]

So if a device has no power ports it's fine

Wireless charging was considered for standardization in the early stages of the law (preparation, it never made it into a draft iirc) but the landscape was still too much in flux for a similar regulation to make sense, they'll revisit it in 2026

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#217

Post by kaibiprime »

f_devd wrote: post #122
blurrybird wrote: post #109

As somebody who last night got an Apple stem out of their daughter's lightning port using a SIM card ejector tool, I'm torn. You can't do that (safely) with USB-C because of the female plug design.

You can clean USB-C the same way (I have before) but you need a needle or a very thin sim ejector

Wouldn't a metallic pin increase risk for shorts inside the port?

I personally use the toothpick end of flossing picks. They're usually very thin and the plastic material doesn't cause any hard abrasion.

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#218

Post by mmarq »

taf2 wrote: post #118

What happens when there is a better USB-C plug - isn't there a concern that locking into the current standard means in 50 years the EU is still stuck. I imagine we're in uncharted territory given in less then my lifetime USB was invented and has gone through at least 14 iterations e.g. it's been changing very fast. Unfortunately I fear even asking this question probably angers some, but I think it's an interesting qu…

In 50 years a new plug will be standardised and people will use that

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#219

Post by DJHenk »

perryizgr8 wrote: post #151

I don't understand the rationale. Does the EU not have a free market where consumers can choose what they pay for? If lightning connector is an important enough issue for someone they can choose not to buy an iPhone. There are n number of alternatives available in the market, unlike the software ecosystem situation.

Having lots of alternatives is not always beneficial for society as a whole.

Re: EU sends Apple stark warning over USB-C charging on new iPhones

#220

Post by crote »

taf2 wrote: post #118

What happens when there is a better USB-C plug - isn't there a concern that locking into the current standard means in 50 years the EU is still stuck. I imagine we're in uncharted territory given in less then my lifetime USB was invented and has gone through at least 14 iterations e.g. it's been changing very fast. Unfortunately I fear even asking this question probably angers some, but I think it's an interesting qu…

The law explicitly states that it has to be reviewed every couple of years to determine whether USB-C it is still the best choice, or there has been sufficient technological progress to warrant a switch to a newer standard.

The fear for a "lock-in" is completely unfounded, as the EU previously quasi-mandated Micro USB and switching to USB-C was no issue whatsoever. Besides, nothing is stopping manufacturers from including both USB-C and another charging connector.

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