At the risk of incurring the wrath of most of the commenters in this forum, I really don't get the big deal over the cables.
Aren't these cables priced the same as the old ones?
Sure many of you bought cheap knock off 30 pin cables, but most people bit the bullet and bought the $20 apple 30 pin cables.
Sure it sucks to have to buy new cables - I bought three of them the day after I bought the iPhone 5, and had to drive almost 80 miles to the Apple store.
Yeah they weren't cheap - but they weren't cheap when they were 30 pin cables either...
Sure Apple over engineered lightning, just to that we could get a reversible cable, but it's not like they used top secret techniques to make the cables impossible to duplicate. How was it described - "not even as strong as the Ink jet cartridge companies use".
It's been what - a month since the lightning cable was unveiled, and we already have Chinese knock offs.
If everyone is freaking out about the the lightning cables, why are you still buying into the Apple ecosystem?
This is the way Apple works. They design great products and they work together with other Apple products in a way that works for most of us. They make decisions because THEY feel they are right - we're just along for the ride.
Two years from now, are we going to care? No. These issues will be a distant memory. Change happens and it sucks - move on.
If you don't like that, then you are only causing more pain by continuing to purchase Apple products.
It;s only going to get worse for you...
You are going to be upset about Apple making you jailbreak your iOS devices; you will hate Apple Maps; the iPhone 5 gets scratched; the iPad Mini is too expensive; you can't change the memory on the new 21" iMac, and on and on and on...
None of this matters to most of Apple's customers. It's the way Apple works, and you can take it or leave it.
As all of you keep saying there are lots of alternatives - and most of them use Micro USB cables for charging!
You have Android phones and Tablets, Amazon Tables, Microsoft (Nokia) phones and Tablets. Heck, you can even get Blackberry phones and tablets.
You have more GOOD choices than ever before!
Just make a choice - stick with Apple and take the few bad items that come along with great products, or make the switch and go with a platform that doesn't cause you so much grief...
I'm happy with my Apple devices, and I'm not ready to switch. Even if my iPad 3 is now outdated after 7 months, and I had to pay $60 for new cables.
Thats the end of my rant...
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Yes, the monster cable mentality and therefore you are paying much more for the "secret sauce" of the cables. Consumer Reports and AVF have dubunked the myth of "special cables." They charge more because the marketing startegy is to sell the razor and hose the customer on the accessories/consumables.
I don't think you can compare Apple's $20 cables to Monster's cables.
Monster is trying to tell you their cables are better performing and have some intangible benefit.
Apple's cables have been $20 for as long as I can remember - that's just what the price is.
Their HDMI cable for $20 is a relative bargain compared to what you would pay for an HDMI cable at a RETAIL location...
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I'd still like a nice official dock. I know Apple is going to supply one, but a good sanctioned one would suffice.
I'm disappointed about the loss of the dock also. Seems like a perfect opportunity for a third party though. Not sure you would need any fancy electronics either, if you used an existing USB to lightning cable to plug into the dock...
It's only been a month - lets see what products pop up down the road...