iPhone 15 likely to come with USB-C port, but there’s a catch

Published On: October 26, 2022

Highlights

Apple executive says that the company will have to comply with new EU law that makes type-C ports mandatory on all new smartphones
Apple’s marketing head says that a move to USB-C will also lead to a lot of e-waste
Greg Joswaik did not say if iPhones with type-C ports will only be limited to Europe

Europe is tightening its grip on Apple, with the European Union passing a law that makes it mandatory for all smartphone manufacturers to launch smartphones with USB type-C charging ports by 2024. This will force Apple to finally move the iPhone to a USB type-C port instead of the Lightning port that the company has been so loyal to since the last decade. Now, an Apple executive has hinted in an interview that Apple will have to comply with the new EU law and the iPhone 15 may indeed have a USB type-C port.

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With the new EU law, Apple will have to let go of the Lightning port for iPhones being sold in 2024. While the Cupertino-based giant has, on multiple occasions, explained its reason to stick to Lightning, Apple will have no option but to comply with the new EU law, if it plans to sell the Apple iPhone in Europe in 2024 and beyond. In an interview with Wall Street Journal, Apple’s marketing lead Greg Joswaik said that Apple does not have a choice and will have to follow the EU’s order. “Obviously we’ll have to comply, we have no choice,” Joswaik was quoted as saying.

While the executive said that Apple has no other option than to switch to USB type-C, he expressed the company’s sentiment towards the move. In the interview, Joswaik recalled that EU once wanted micro USB ports on the Apple iPhone. However, the marketing head said that had Apple complied with the order back then, neither lightning nor USB type-C would have been invented. He also said that moving the iPhone from Lightning to USB type-C will lead to a lot of e-waste.

iPhone with Type-C to be region exclusive?

While the move is something a lot of people are waiting for, it is not necessary that iPhone all over the world will move to USB-C ports. When asked if Apple will move to USB type-C in all markets, Joswaik refused to comment. This hints that Apple may come up with a way to only give USB type-C ports on iPhone models in Europe, similar to what the company has done with the eSIM-only models in the United States.

Apple products like the MacBook laptops and Apple iPad have already transitioned to USB type-C. Only the Apple iPhone and AirPods are the mainstream Apple products that still use the Lightning port. A recent report had hinted that Apple accessories will all get a USB type-C port by next year. The company’s decision to put USB type-C port on an iPhone is more of a business decision than one that promotes innovation.

While it is likely that Apple iPhones in the European Union will get a USB type-C port starting with the iPhone 15, we will have to wait and see if the company brings the USB type-C port to iPhones in all markets or just keep it in Europe to avoid legal issues in the European Union.