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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

#281

Post by jackvezkovic »

crote wrote: post #220
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 incl…

This EU regulation diminishes the incentive of researching and developing a new technology in this area. This is a fact.

And no, innovation usually does not come from a bunch of companies sitting down to cooperate on a new version. First there is individual innovation, then there is consolidation, even if these come with changes from the original.

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

#282

Post by auggierose »

viraptor wrote: post #263
nonethewiser wrote: post #241

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 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. But under these rules, wouldn’t that necessitate that a new standard develops and becomes the more popular one despite not being used because it can’t be sold in all the places that ban non USB…

> it can’t be sold in all the places that ban non USB C? How would you imagine that happening? The same way it happened for microusb->usb-C. Think of the law as more of a "get along shirt" applied to misbehaving kids/companies than a specific ban/enforcement. The big players can still decide on a new standard and start using it. The process would be something like this: someone has a need that usb-C connector can't s…

Isn't the regulation now different for usb-C than it was for microusb? In that, Apple could ignore microusb, and still sell their phones in Europe? What if Apple now comes out with a new standard much better than usb-c for their newest iPhone? They could not ship it now in Europe. So, all these examples referring to microusb are just really sloppy thinking. Which is exactly what I would expect from a huge bureaucracy.

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

#283

Post by lwhi »

jackvezkovic wrote: post #281
crote wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 incl…

This EU regulation diminishes the incentive of researching and developing a new technology in this area. This is a fact. And no, innovation usually does not come from a bunch of companies sitting down to cooperate on a new version. First there is individual innovation, then there is consolidation, even if these come with changes from the original.

Absolutely not true.

There's still an incentive to be the company that replaces the technology.

FUD.

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

#285

Post by mmmmmbop »

nozzlegear wrote: post #246
doikor wrote: post #232

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The spying is still be illegal in EU without user consent no matter if it is technically possible or not.

But then for those of us not in the EU, Facebook et al suddenly have access to a plethora of data they didn’t have before via side loading thanks to a European law.

No need to worry. EU laws concerning iOS only apply to products sold within the EU. Apple is within their rights to keep their operating system locked down outside the EU, and all recent reports indicate that this is exactly what they'll do. So unless your country decides to pass similar legislation, you're free to enjoy Apple's restrictions.

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

#286

Post by Y-bar »

jackvezkovic wrote: post #281
crote wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 incl…

This EU regulation diminishes the incentive of researching and developing a new technology in this area. This is a fact. And no, innovation usually does not come from a bunch of companies sitting down to cooperate on a new version. First there is individual innovation, then there is consolidation, even if these come with changes from the original.

Case in point: Look at how much innovation Apple managed to squeeze into Lightning after its launch… right?

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

#287

Post by tankenmate »

elzbardico wrote: post #221

This is definitely not good news for iPhone users. The thing with lightning is that it is fucking robust. USB-C may not be as bad as the micro-USB but it is still more fragile than lightning. People should be able to choose, if you love One Connector To Rule’em all just get and Android phone.

My personal experience is just the opposite; I have a number of children (more than the average number of kids), and I replace lightning cables more frequently than USB-C cables. And I do buy both Apple lightning cables and 3rd party ones. In my experience the cable case between the cable and the metallic connector tends to crack and degrade faster than USB-C equivalents. And the USB-C cables tend to be cheaper too.

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

#288

Post by hutzlibu »

nonethewiser wrote: post #262
epolanski wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Isn't there a chicken and egg problem there - no one will release products with new power interfaces Yes, that's the point. Instead of anyone releasing products with new power interfaces the goal is to have industry-wide discussion on adopting new standards for everyone. I think it's reasonable and only a positive thing. If the industry will decide that USB-C isn't enough they will revise the standard.

> the goal is to have industry-wide discussion on adopting new standards for everyone. That’s not part of the regulation whatsoever > If the industry will decide that USB-C isn't enough they will revise the standard. But the industry doesn’t come together and pick a standard. The EU did. The closest industries came to picking a standard were freely choosing from many different formats that emerged. Imagine what it wo…

"Imagine what it would take for the executives at Apple, Samsung, Motorola, etc. to come together and all agree on some new format that perhaps one of them developed. Now consider that the EU would still have to approve it. The conclusion made from that Herculean effort might just be null and void."

The EU does not really care on the standard and does not judge the technical decision - it cares about that there is one standard.

So if Samsung, Apple and co come together for the next improved standard, then this is exactly the purpose of this legislation and no one has to fear if the EU is in a good mood afterwards.

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

#289

Post by detourdog »

tankenmate wrote: post #272
detourdog wrote: post #244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The lightning cable has whatever you want on the other end. The only thing needed is a cable. I only want 1 port on my phone. I don't really care what that port is. I'm very uncomfortable with government mandated ports.

Using the lightning cable has more onerous standardisation and compliance requirements (not all of which are purely technical requirements) than USB. This is one of the reasons that there is less availability of lightning port accessories.

Please elaborate. Whatever onerous issues I have with a lightening port pale in comparison to the usability of any USB port of comparable size.

I understand standards and think many are great.

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

#290

Post by giantrobot »

ghaff wrote: post #212
UncleEntity wrote: post #187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 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.

There's this new feature on some phones that might catch on. They have cameras. Now granted those cameras aren't great, they can only take 20MP photos in low light and record 4K video, but some people are using them as their main camera! It's pretty crazy.

Some people that go to festivals or concerts take pictures so I guess for them a bad camera is better than no camera.

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