electronics
Apple’s difficult farewell to the Lightning charging cable
Apple boss Tim Cook announcing new products on the Apple campus in Cupertino. photo
© Jeff Chiu/AP/dpa
For a long time, Apple has resisted switching its in-house charging cable to the USB-C standard – now the time has come. The iPhone company could have delayed the switch required by the EU.
In September 2021, after a long and controversial debate, the EU made USB-C the uniform charging standard. In the long term, this could prevent electronic waste because only one cable is needed for all devices – from laptops to tablet computers and smartphones to headphones and other small devices.
Fear of trouble with customers
Apple had previously tried in vain to dissuade the EU from its plan. The iPhone manufacturer argued that politicians should not make small-scale regulations. The group referred to an initial attempt by the EU to make the technically inferior micro-USB port a standard. Apple also feared trouble with its own customers, who would then no longer be able to use their existing Lightning cables and other accessories with new devices.
At the one and a half hour presentation of the new iPhone generation on Tuesday at the company campus in Cupertino, the manager responsible for iPhone marketing, Kaiann Drance, took less than two minutes to talk about the far-reaching change for the Apple universe. She pointed out that MacBook laptops and iPad tablets have been able to be charged with USB-C for some time. You can also use it to synchronize data and connect accessories. Not a word about the EU’s requirements, which would only have taken effect in a year.
Behind the scenes, however, it was said in Apple Park that it was right to defend itself against the fiddly Micro-USB standard years ago. The time is now ripe for a change. It is not yet clear whether Apple will also certify suitable USB-C cables in its “Made for iPhone” program (MFI) for a fee, as it did with the Lightning cable.
iPhone 15 Pro attracts with innovations
If you ignore the topic of USB-C, the iPhone 15 Pro in particular attracted innovations at the Apple event. Among other things, it gets a titanium housing and a new chip with greatly improved graphics performance. Making the more expensive Pro models more attractive is an effective way to keep sales high in a shrinking smartphone market.
The largest and most expensive iPhone – Pro Max – gets another innovation: five times optical zoom. A few months before the launch of Apple’s VR glasses, the camera on the Pro models will also be able to take 3D images, which you can then immerse yourself in with the headset. Apple hopes that the content generated with the iPhone 15 Pro Max will facilitate the market launch of the computer glasses next year.
Meanwhile, the innovations from the Pro version from last year are now included in the new standard model. The iPhone 15 gets the image sensor with 48 megapixels for more detailed photos and the area for dynamically displaying current information.
For many buyers, however, the price is an important argument. And here Apple was able to announce good news, at least for the euro area. After Apple raised prices in Europe a year ago, in some cases significantly, given the weak euro exchange rate at the time, there is now a countermovement. The cheapest iPhone 15 now costs 949 euros – 50 euros less than the 14. The Pro entry-level model is now 100 euros cheaper at 1199 euros, but the price of the large Pro Max remained unchanged at 1449 euros.
Apple Watch also with new functions
Pricing helps Apple offset declines in the smartphone market. Recently, Apple was no longer able to defend itself against the general downturn: According to the analysis firm IDC, a good six percent fewer iPhones were sold in the second quarter than a year before. However, sales only fell by around 2.4 percent – so Apple managed to sell more expensive models. The iPhone is Apple’s most important product and brings in more than half of its revenue.
The new version of the Apple Watch computer watch has, among other things, a faster chip and can now process requests to the voice assistant Siri directly on the device. The display can be twice as bright as the previous model.
What’s new is that you can trigger watch functions by tapping your thumb and index finger together twice. This is intended to help you operate the watch when your other hand is not free. For example, you can use it to accept or end a call. The watch detects the type of movement using its sensors and machine learning.
Apple devoted a large part of the presentation to environmental issues. The responsible top manager Lisa Jackson announced that the new Apple watches are completely CO2 neutral. In addition, the group will no longer introduce new leather products. Even future bracelets from the luxury group Hermes will be made of fabric. The iPhone 15’s casing is made from 75 percent recycled aluminum. In the Pro model, the chassis inside is made only from recycled aluminum. The cobalt in batteries also comes from recycling.