Legislators within the European Union have chosen one charging port to rule all of them. And that charging port is USB-C.
On Tuesday, EU officers dominated that any cell digital units offered inside the EU should include a USB-C charging port by the autumn of 2024. The new mandate applies to rechargeable cell units like telephones, tablets, laptops, handheld sport consoles, headphones, and cameras. This transfer to standardize charging ports was executed as a option to restrict e-waste—shoppers will have the ability to purchase units with no charger within the field in the event that they so select—but in addition to make it simpler for individuals to wrangle the vitality wants of their many units.
“This is a bit of a victory for common sense,” says Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight. “Consumers are fed up with having lots of different chargers, lots of different ports.”
Standardization round USB-C because the tech trade’s major connection interface has been a long time coming, with many producers making the swap years in the past. After all, USB-C usually boasts quicker charging and switch speeds than competing requirements, and the cables are simple to seek out and use.
Still, there’s one massive participant that’s going to essentially really feel this ruling: Apple. All present iPhones and the bottom mannequin iPad use the proprietary Lighting port, which is unique to Apple units. There are more than 1 billion iPhones on this planet, and each mannequin of iPhone Apple has launched since 2012 has include a Lightning port.
The almost definitely plan of action for Apple is to simply make the swap to USB-C throughout all its units. It’s not like the corporate hasn’t seen this coming. It already makes use of USB-C connectors on MacBooks and most iPad fashions. Last month, Bloomberg reported that Apple has already been testing out new iPhones with USB-C ports.
So with the EU forcing Apple’s hand, there’s a likelihood we could quickly see a USB-C iPhone after years of hypothesis. However, a extra radical situation is simply as probably.
“Then there’s the nuclear option for Apple,” Wood says, “which would be to kind of pay homage to Jony Ive’s obsession with minimalism and get rid of a charging port altogether and go completely wireless.”
Wireless charging is already supported throughout the entire iPhone lineup. And though numerous equipment and dongles connect to iPhones through the Lightning connector, Apple has confirmed it’s not scared of creating massive design adjustments that break that gadget compatibility; the corporate confronted an enormous backlash when it eliminated the iPhone’s headphone jack, however solid forward anyway.
Apple has not responded to a request for remark.
This additionally is not the primary time in current historical past that an EU ruling has pushed massive adjustments at shopper tech corporations. The GDPR, the EU’s sweeping on-line information privateness laws, precipitated what amounted to a world redesign of the online’s person expertise. A legislation handed in France final 12 months requiring gadget producers to incorporate repairability rankings on their merchandise led to Apple and Samsung establishing shopper restore packages of their very own.
“What’s interesting is that the legislators in the EU are able to almost shape global technology trends,” Wood says. “Whether it’s right to repair, safety and environmental guidelines that they enforce, or something like this with the universal connector, the sheer size of the European Union as a market of 500 million consumers means that no major consumer electronics company can ignore this.”
