USB-C is on the good track to become an international standard. New MacBooks only have USB-C connectors. Is it time for iPhone to join that company?
All in all, we think that implementing USB-C connectors on iPhone was a great move for Apple. Just imagine that you can charge and connect all devices via a cable with a TV, display, external hard drive, and a USB flash drive. Future generations could remember Apple as a company that had the courage to do things in its own way, which proved to be the best decision.
However, more than a year and a half since then, new generation iPhones have been launched, we have new iPad devices, and a few more manufacturers have now switched to USB-C. In fact, all Android devices use this standard, as well as several devices that we’ve had a chance to test in the past.
So the next question is inevitable. If all devices (from MacBook to iMac Pro) use the same standard, why did the iPhone and iPad stay old?
Pros and cons
In this context we need to consider several facts:
1) USB-C is larger than Lightning. The difference is minimal but given that Jony Ive has been trying hard to keep up the equipment, it’s a kind of precedent. You can see the bottom illustration of an iPhone with a USB-C in front of the existing Lightning.
2) USB-C is a global standard. On the other hand, it would be great if all the devices were compatible, but that would certainly be less flexible. Apple with Lightning can do whatever it wants, which does not apply to USB-C. And we know that this company is not too tolerant of the lack of full control.
3) Switching to USB-C is a change. All the previously purchased additions would become useless. The change of Dock after ten years of use caused a great scandal, and we doubt that the change of Lightning after six years will pass completely unnoticed.
4) It is time to forget the cables. All the signs indicate that in the very near future we will use less cables and connectors. It is very likely that in just a few years all mobile phones will be without any input. It will boot up wirelessly, and data will be sent through Wi-Fi and Bluetooth as is still the case today.
There are so many arguments for introducing USB-C, but it’s almost the same as that.
Golden solution
There seems to be no ideal and clear answer. Any decision will imply compromises. What would it take to be done then? We believe that implementing the USB-C adapter and the USB-C Lightning cable in the iPhone device while retaining the existing input, is the most convenient solution.
Why would that be the best solution? Because it would be easy. Apple would keep control of its ecosystem, which it could not achieve if it gave up Lightning. However, it is currently a major drawback that you cannot connect your iPhone to the latest MacBook models.
If the iPhone contained everything, the problem would be resolved in seconds and everything would come back to its place. The MacBook adapter could always be used to quickly charge the iPhone, which would be a great convenience.
The only mystery is what Apple really thinks about this. If they were in agreement with the idea, it would have done so long ago. Though, rumors have begun to be introduced again this year.
We’ll see … Source: iMore
