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

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131–140 of 868 posts

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

#131
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…

How do you handle situation when you want to use your phone while charging it? Then you need to hold it together with charging pad which must not move otherwise your charging speed will drop significantly, which is synonymous to have it connected to the charger, but with much finicky "connector"

iPhone has magnets on the back that hold the charger in the correct position. I rarely used wireless charging before that because of how terrible it was… now I rarely plug my phone in.

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

#133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be clear, I am pro USB-C, but I do get the arguments from the other side. If I have a lightning cable and a device with a lightning port, I can plug it in and not really think much about it. If I have a device with a USB-C port and a USB-C cable, I have no idea whether I can charge at full speed or even charge at all. As an example, I plug my Xbox controller into my PC via USB-C. It keeps it fully charged. Recentl…

USB-C is so frustrating. I have different cables to charge headphones, keyboard, switch, iPad. Cos they don’t “just work”. And I’ve had more lightening cables break in the last 2 years than I have had lightening cables in the last 7 years.

What kind of piece-of-shit cheapest junk cables do you guys buy? Is it another 0.99$ Amazon/aliexpress cable that you expect handles 130W charging while transmitting 10GB/s or similar?

I have cca 10 different usbc devices, and use all their provided cables to charge all other accessories. All works as expected, charges fast, transfers fast. The key is to not cheapen out and buy the cheapest crap. Just like with anything else in life.

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

#135
post #8

The EU stance and strictness on this is one of the things making me happy to be an EU citizen.

Thank you for this! Next up: make "side loading" apps a thing. Do it with these stipulations: 1. Make it easy, part of the normal flow. Not hidden in an obscure panel or behind three or four dialogues. 2. Make it non-scary (no negs from Apple saying you'll destroy your device or safety) 3. Make it so it isn't called something negative like "side loading", but a part of normal user behavior: "download app", "web insta…

This has already been achieved with the Digital Markets Act, which will fully come into force by March 2024.

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

#136
post #13

“Owing to the significant amounts of electronic waste caused by unused chargers …” Really?

It probably is hard to remember the time when Apple wasn't the only company with its own proprietary connector because it has been already well over a decade since the EU first issued its ultimatum for the industry to fall in line behind one standard or get a law slapped into their face. Apple has been the only remaining holdout for almost just as long and basically single-handedly forced the EU to come through with its threat and write a law to force compliance.

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

#137
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…

How do you handle situation when you want to use your phone while charging it? Then you need to hold it together with charging pad which must not move otherwise your charging speed will drop significantly, which is synonymous to have it connected to the charger, but with much finicky "connector"

I usually charge phones wirelessly, and since I built the charger into my desk it's easy to pick up the phone, do what I want to do, and put it back down again. There's no friction at all, so unless you want extended use there's no issue.

I rarely even think about charging it anymore.

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

#138
post #123

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.

This is one of the strongest pushbacks against USB-C that Apple have: USB-C: You break the stem, you have a useless device and functioning cable Lightning: You break the stem, you have a functioning device and useless cable. One of these is clearly more optimal considering the cost difference between the two. Anecdotally, I have had problems with USB-C ports that I did not have with Micro-USB and (so far) with Lightn…

I recently repaired a family member's iPhone. A crappy Lightning cable had been used and the tip metal piece of the plug had somehow broken off and gotten stuck inside the socket.

Like this:

https://www.ifixit.com/Answers/View/163391/lightning+connect...

Here's a decent 2 minute video that explains the problem and the fix:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eujHf-ry8zw

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

#139
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 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.

Like you point out, the “unfair[ness]” of making better chargers faster than the EU standard can keep pace threatens to revert to least common denominator experience in the name of less waste.

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

#140
post #4

I don't understand why Apple are dragging their heels on this so much

At least this thing should be clear. Apple's motto has always been "Think different". They were selling personal computers but wanted them to be different from PCs. In order to do that, they would introduce many changes that were presented as superior. And in fact, many (if not most) were actually excellent. Some, such as removal of ports, gluing parts together and making devices hard to repair, were plain user-hosti…

Removing ports is ironic as, other than headphone jacks from phones, USB type A being dropped from MacBooks (iMacs and Minis have always had USB Type A) in favour of USB-C is the port HN loves to moan about, and here we are, arguing for USB-C on an Apple device. The money, as others point out is a rounding error.
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