After months of endless speculation and announcements from third parties, Apple has finally acknowledged that it will indeed be switching its iPhones to USB C soon. The company has given its most direct confirmation that the news is true following the mandate from the European Union.
For those unaware, the European Union has passed a new law that forces Apple to sell all iPhones in its member countries with a USB C port, a connector that is already present on a multitude of devices from other OEMs including mobiles phones, laptops, tablets, and more.
The Wall Street Journal asked Apple’s VP of worldwide marketing, Greg Joswiak, about whether they are planning to replace Lightning ports, to which he replied “Obviously, we’ll have to comply; we have no choice.”
The question was brought up during the WSJ’s Tech Live conference with Joswiak and Apple’s software VP Craig Federighi. The Apple officials were asked when we can expect to see USB C on iPhones to which they replied “the Europeans are the ones dictating timing for European customers.”
Since the current law dictates that the change should happen by “autumn 2024”, it is possible that we may not see it on iPhones until that year, but there is no confirmation from Apple on this matter. Note that he also says “for European customers”, which may be a hint that only European iPhones will switch over to USB C.
Joswiak also made it clear that Apple is not happy about being forced into USB C by law. He said that Apple has always preferred to go its own way and trusts its engineers rather than being forced to adopt hardware standards by lawmakers.
He brought up other arguments as well such as the potential increase of e-waste from switching to USB C, but it was not as compelling since Lightning cables also need to be replaced every few years.
Source: Pro Pakistani
