Yes, there are basically no reasons to not move to USB-C. Up until this point, I have been saying that it is a matter of convenience. But it is also economical.
The other day, my wife and I were out and planned to get lunch and go back home. We had outdoor seating and it was a beautiful day, so she decided to stay and work.
She did not have her lightning headphones and asked me how much a cheap pair would cost. Well, since it is lightning it would be about 3x as much as a USB-C pair.
I was so close to just pulling the trigger on an iPhone 13 since my iPhone XR is constantly freezing and has terrible battery life. This instance reaffirmed my decision to wait for a USB-C model iPhone.
If the iPhone 15 for some reason does not have USB-C or it is wildly expensive, I am just going to get an iPhone 13 and use that until is no longer works.
The only pause I have with USB-C is that the connection ≠ function.
The world of USB-C is a clusterfuck of differing abilities and standards that all share one common plug. I remember listening to a podcast a while back, where one of the hosts was complaining that he bought a new USB-C headphone dongle for his Samsung that didn’t have a mic input, or something along those lines. Or more to the point, it did, but not for his model of phone. Meanwhile, a Lightning headphone dongle does in and out, regardless of the device you’re plugging it in to.
Add to that that USB and Thunderbolt now share a common plug, and it’s kind of a mess. I was trying to explain to my dad the other day that the sockets on his M1 Mini are both USB and Thunderbolt, which can be just confusing.
At least with Lightning I know that the cable / dongle I plug in to my phone or iPad will do what I expect it to. Mostly.
(As an aside, I recently replaced my old XR with a 13 Mini, which has been a wonderful upgrade)
I think most of us here agree
I love your icon btw. I made a post here earlier today about those games. I just finished played the remake of the second game.
Yeah, it’s absolutely time for USB-C. Apple itself is switching since several years. More and more products switch to USB-C. Started with the iPad (I ignore the Macs as the never had lightning), and now even the AppleTV Remote has USB-C.
But on the other hand: I have a 14 Pro and I don’t really care about the connector. Charging only wireless (MagSafe), headphone also wireless (AirPods or Beats for cycling). I could live with no connector at all. ;)
Nevertheless I expect the 15 to come with USB-C.
I had air-pods and I really loved them, but they only lasted like two years before the battery was garbage. It is a shame as they just became trash. It is too expensive for me to replace them every two years.
My 1. Gen AirPods were absolutely a mess. After two years, the battery lasted maximum 5 minutes.
I currently use AirPods Pro 1. Gen, which I bought in September 2020 (but got replaced due sound problems) one year ago. Both work absolutely fine by now. I don’t know how long the battery still lasts (I’m not using them for several hours every day), but I don’t have a feeling the battery’s degraded a lot.
So, in my experience it became much better.
It’s a given that the next iPhone is USB C. Notice that the Vision Pro also uses USB C. And for extra evidence, take a look at this Unbox Therapy short where he shows us a mold of the new iPhone 14. You can clearly see a USB C Port.
Having said that, I may be in the minority on this, but I’ll miss Lightning. It’s just such a small, elegant connector. It doesn’t have a “tongue” like USB C so it’s easier to clean both the male and female ports. USB C is great and all, and I know it has more capabilities with more pins and everything, but man I’ve really liked Lightning.
I mean, at this point, it’s hard to disagree with this. Before the C-type ecosystem was fully established, there was maybe still room to make arguments for and against… but in this day and age, the transition from Lightning to C is a no-brainer really.
I admit however that I’ll miss the haptic feel of Lightning. Yes, a well made USB-C / Thunderbolt connector come pretty close, but even the best C-type plug has that an inherent “wonkiness” due to to the hollow ending and the springs inside. Still no comparison to Lightning, where the plug is a solid chunk of metal.