New iPhone, new charger: Apple bends to EU rules

Apple’s latest iPhone will almost certainly feature a USB-C charge point when it is unveiled on 12 September.

The firm’s phones currently use its proprietary Lightning adaptor, unlike rivals, including Samsung.

A European Union law requires phone manufacturers to adopt a common charging connection by December 2024 to save consumers money and cut waste.

Most new Apple products such as the latest iPads already use USB-C, but the firm had argued against the EU rule.

When it was introduced in September 2021, an Apple representative told BBC News: “Strict regulation mandating just one type of connector stifles innovation rather than encouraging it, which in turn will harm consumers in Europe and around the world.”

Lightning to USB-C adaptors are already available from other electronics brands including Amazon, and all iPhones since the iPhone 8 which launched in 2017 have supported wireless charging.

As the current iPhone 14 now looks to be the last Apple device to exclusively use it, this could mark the beginning of the end of the Lightning cable – which retails on the Apple store for £19.

It’s unclear whether this will be a global change to the product, although the tech giant is less likely to make a different version of the handset for the European market alone.

The changes are anticipated in the new iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro devices which are set to be unveiled next week at the firm’s annual autumn event.

According to a report by Bloomberg news, benefits of the switch for users will include customers being able to use a single charger for iPads, Macs and iPhones, as well as faster download speeds.

The EU common-charger rule covers a range of “small and medium-sized portable electronics”, according to the EU, including:

  • mobile phones
  • tablets
  • e-readers
  • mice and keyboards
  • GPS (global positioning system) devices
  • headphones, headsets and earphones
  • digital cameras
  • handheld videogame consoles
  • portable speakers.

Any of these charged using a wired cable will have to have a USB Type-C port, regardless of who makes the devices.

Laptops will also have to abide by the rules but manufacturers have longer to make the changes.

According to the EU, it will save consumers “up to €250m [£213m] a year on unnecessary charger purchases” and cut 11,000 tonnes of waste per year.

-BBC

POST TAGS

ABOUT: Nana Kwesi Coomson

[email protected]

An Entrepreneur, Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Communications Executive and Philanthropist. Editor-in-Chief of www.233times.com. A Senior Journalist with Ghanaian Chronicle Newspaper. An alumnus of Adisadel College where he read General Arts. His first degree is in Bachelor of Arts - Political Science (major) and History (minor) from the University of Ghana. He holds MSc in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Energy with Public Relations (PR) from the Robert Gordon University in the United Kingdom. He is a 2018 Mandela Washington Fellow who studied at Clark Atlanta University in USA on the Business and Entrepreneurship track.

View all posts by: Nana Kwesi Coomson  

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

ABOUT 233TIMES

233times is a Ghanaian media house which serves as a major source of exclusive interviews ,music and video downloads, news and more.

233times reports on major events,news covering entertainment, politics, sports, business, technology, etc from within Ghana, Africa and beyond.

We have a platform for the amateur artistes to portray their staggering talents ...more...

CONTACT US

For further enquiries, please contact us via our contact us page link: CONTACT

WE ON SOCIAL MEDIA. FOLLOW US


To advertise with us or make enquiries, please visit 233times.net/advertise or call Selorm (Selorm) | Selorm (Nana Kwesi)