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Comment by Andrew_nenakhov | Hacker News Reader

Still no USB-C port. Disappointing.

For new or transferring Android users this would be amazing, but I have to say at this point I'm so deep into the Apple ecosystem that I'd be more mad if they switched to USB-C. Haha I realize the Band-Aid will most likely have to be ripped off at some point, but currently I still am fine with no USB-C.

What are you replacing besides the cables?

Worst case is you add another dongle to your collection.

A dongle attached to my IR camera would make the IR camera much more annoying to use, for example. It operates directly flush against the bottom of the phone. Cables tend to wiggle around.

It's really weird how folks talk about e-waste and environmental factors, as if a switch to USB-C wouldn't mean three trillion Lightning cables getting yeeted into the ocean… like, I personally am quite over Lightning, but come on, folks

also deeply weird and annoying that the Magic Keyboard and Magic Mouse use lightning for charging, that was a dumb call out of the gate

It's not like lightning cables have an infinite lifespan though. And they won't actually be sent into the ocean

double-check the little paper pamphlet that came with your iPhone, it literally says "please drive to the closest ocean — Pacific if you're in Kansas — and throw your lightning cable into the water when it reaches the end of its finite lifespan" in fine print.

That's such a backwards way of thinking about it, e-waste could be cut down so much if people only had one charger for everything. You're overstating the magnitude of a short term side-effect, instead of focusing on the long term benefit.

> It's really weird how folks talk about e-waste and environmental factors, as if a switch to USB-C wouldn't mean three trillion Lightning cables getting yeeted into the ocean… like, I personally am quite over Lightning, but come on, folks

This argument is bollocks.

People won't throw lightning cables if the iPhone 14 had USB-C because their current phones STILL use Lightning.

Current phones' ports wouldn't magically become USB-C overnight.

> I'm so deep into the Apple ecosystem that I'd be more mad if they switched to USB-C

What do you mean? Macbook is USB-C, iPad is USB-C etc. It's a pain in the ass to have the iPhone still lighting

EU Law stipulates it's got to be USB-C by Autumn 2024. Will be interesting to see if they implement it next year or hold off again.

do they require USB-C on every computer? just checked all my desktops, none of them have USB-C.

According to this article, laptops will be following 40 months later so end of 2027/start of 2028

https://www.euronews.com/next/2022/06/07/eu-agrees-all-mobil...

Won't Apple just provide a dongle or adapter?

I look forward to EU landfills receiving tonnes of Lightning cables. And 10 years from now, receiving more tonnes of USB-C cables once the next USB standard makes the current set of cables obsolete (even assuming they share the same port shape).

I won't be surprised if Apple removes the port completely instead.

Same, I think a magsafe only iPhone is very possible next year.

MagSafe would need an update to support high bandwidth data transfer but that seems feasible.

The are going eSIM only in NA. If they go portless, they are just adding more reasons for me not to buy an iPhone.

Does this apply to the phone or only the transformer? Last iphone i unboxed came with a charger that has a usb-c outlet and a usb-c to lightning cable.

Even if i would be more than happy to hear that the phone requires it as well. The transformer is the biggest source of e-waste and the biggest nuisance to carry around while traveling. Cables are smaller factors in both aspects.

Mechanically, I'd much rather have Lightning on a phone than USB-C. The USB-C connector fucking sucks for a device that plugs and unplugs multiple times a day. The device-side connector is more fragile since it's a thin center fin vs Lightning's edge connections. Lightning's device side connectors are backed by the body of the device itself. In my experience the retention mechanism is far more secure as well.

I don't hate USB-C but it's far from perfect for every use case.

Same. The Lightning connector does double duty as a holder for the phone. You can support the weight of the phone cantilevered from just that connector.

I wouldn't trust USB-C to hold up to the same abuse I deal to my lightning connectors.

Typically the ends of the cable has a steel part that goes into the slot. Torque applied to the cable would be limited by the steel end and not affect the inner electrical connection.

Rumor is it'll be in the 15.

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