Apple, the US technology company, has confirmed that it will switch to the USB Type C connector for its iPhone in accordance with European Union regulations requiring all phones sold in its member countries to use the connector for charging and data transfer.
The European Parliament passed the reform on October 5, and it goes into effect in 2024. On Tuesday, the multinational confirmed for the first time that it will have to comply with the new regulation, even though it disagrees with it.
Speaking at the Wall Street Journal’s WSJ Tech Live event, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Marketing Greg Joswiak stated that the company will comply with the EU’s ruling without providing further details.
Apple currently uses the Lightning connector, which it introduced nearly ten years ago, as the primary connector for the majority of its devices, including the iPhone, iPad, and AirPods.
According to Joswiak, Apple believes it has struck a balance by using a cable that can be disconnected from the power brick, which means one side can have Lightning and the other can have whichever connector is most convenient for the user, such as USB-C or USB-A.
“…we got to a better place which is power adaptors with detachable cables. All of them being USB-A or USB-C and you choose the cable which is appropriate for your device. That allowed over a billion people to have that (lightning) connector and to be able to use what they have already and not be disrupted and cause a bunch of e-waste,” Joswiak said.
According to Joswiak, the EU and Apple have been entangled “in this little bit of a disagreement” over the common charger regulation, which he describes as “a tricky thing to regulate.”
He claimed that EU legislators once attempted to standardize on the now-outdated micro-USB connector, which Apple also opposed.
Apple has recently introduced a USB-C port in products such as the latest iPad.
According to Bloomberg, Apple plans to switch to USB-C with the iPhone 15, which is expected to be released next year.
