Apple confirms to implement USB-C on the iPhone

Apple executive Greg Joswiak today—during the Wall Street Journal Tech Live conference—has given the most direct confirmation yet that the tech giant will implement USB-C on the iPhone.

“Obviously, we’ll have to comply. We have no choice,” Joswiak replied on WSJ’s Joanna Stern question if the company would be replacing the Lightning port. However, he refused to answer whether the company would ship USB-C connectors on phones sold outside the European Union region.

Recently, the EU have passed a law requiring USB-C as a common charging port for all mobile devices by 2024 which directly impacts Apple still using its proprietary Lightning port on its iPhones and other devices.

(From left) Joanna Stern, Craig Federighi, and Greg Joswiak discussed wide range of topics regarding Apple products.

Joswiak along with Apple Software VP Craig Federighi made it clear that the company is unhappy with being forced to make the switch. According to Joswiak, Apple has historically preferred to have it their own way trusting their own engineers.

Apple’s Craig Federighi and Greg Joswiak (@gregjoz) join @JoannaStern at #WSJTechLive to discuss products, privacy and power at the tech giant https://t.co/fNo2JGwMB4 https://t.co/aGrTlZrUo4

— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 26, 2022

He also brought up the environmental issues that would arise in making the switch, claimed that lots of electronic waste would ensue.

We may expect the USB-C on the iPhone 15, however there’s something else that Apple may exploit to get around the EU law: wireless charging, removing the port entirely, which is theoretically allowed according to The Verge.

ALSO READ: Quick Guide to Knowing What USB Type-C You Need

On a personal view, having USB-C would be an upgrade on the iPhone as it allows higher charging rate and transfer speeds. Currently, the Lightning port has maximum of 480Mbps transfer speed and 27W charging. In contrast, the USB-IF announced the latest specification of USB-C (USB 4 version 2) with up to 80Gbps operation, and 240W of charging.