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Apple iPhones, AirPods to have C-type chargers by 2024?
In the past week, a new regulation by the European Union parliament standardised USB-C single chargers for all smartphones, tablets, and cameras starting in late 2024.
In the wake of new European Parliament law, Apple is now planning to shift from the Lightning charging port on the iPhone and other devices to USB-C. In a report by Bloomberg’s tech reporter Mark Gurman, iPhone 15 could include a USB Type-C charger by 2023 and that transition should complete by 2024.
He continues by stating that the next versions of the regular AirPods, AirPods Pro and AirPods Max will have USB-C. While a USB Type-C charger might be available for the entry-level iPad by the end of the year. The new iMac and Mac Pro are among the significant Mac improvements he anticipates to have a USB Type-C charger in the next year.
In the past week, a new regulation by the European Union parliament standardised USB-C single chargers for all smartphones, tablets, and cameras starting in late 2024.
Nearly all Android phones at the moment have a USB Type-C charger. However, Apple still charges iPhones and AirPods through its own lightning port. With the passage of the regulation, the technology giant Apple has been forced to remove the Lightning port from its iPhones, at least in Europe, because of the decision.
Gurnam further added, even so, the USB-C era for Apple will be comparatively shorter-lived. He believes Apple’s future is wireless and that some adaptation of the cancelled AirPower dream will ultimately come to materialisation.
Apple has a troubling set of chargers for its devices. One will need at least three distinct chargers to charge an iPhone, AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and MacBook: a Lightning charger for the iPhone and AirPods, a USB-C charger for the iPad Pro and MacBook, and a MagSafe charger for the Apple Watch.
The European Union law is expected to reduce the amount of electronic trash in the EU by more than a thousand tonnes annually and save at least 200 million euros annually. However, Apple argued against the change and pushed it, claiming that tight legislation mandating only one type of connector stifles innovation instead of fostering it, which in turn will affect consumers in Europe and around the world.
