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Apple Working on 'Ultra Accessory Connector' for Made for iPhone Program [Updated]

I love my Apple devices, and I can live without the headphone jack... Bluetooth is far easier, just move to USB-C already Apple so I can finally have universal connectors on all my devices. :(
 
localman said:
Haha. Oh the kids these days. Anyone else remember pre-USB with bent PS2 pins and SCSI terminators? Can anyone name a superior connector (or standardized bus) from *before* USB? I sure can't. I'm not against further progress, but let's be realistic here.
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I'm 100% with you on USB type A but the parallel port is still going today for printers

https://www.cdw.com/shop/products/E...aspx?enkwrd=LEFTNAVATT:P2|All Product Catalog

How long has that been around; thirty-odd years?
 
GucciPiggy said:
I hardly see it as interesting rather than just plain stupid. Why in the world are they introducing ANOTHER connector?
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No, I think it's very interesting to see where this will go. It could be very stupid depending on the implementation.
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JGIGS said:
Strange yes. I think you meant annoying instead of interesting.
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No, it can be both annoying and interesting. More interesting at this point (for me at least).
 
Bluestrike2 said:
The different USB connector designs were created to reflect changing technology, the devices in question, and new use cases over the course of years. The development of USB started in 1994, with 1.0/1.1 only offering the standard type A and B ports. Mini-USB connectors came out in 2000, when cameras and other devices became more common; Micro-USB in 2007, when thinner devices demanded a smaller connector. Compared to the alternative before USB, while there might be madness today, overall it was much less so than before.

While you might be able to make USB-C connectors smaller than they are now, I wouldn't bet on it anytime soon. USB-C is a reversible 24-pin connector in a form-factor that's only slightly larger than Micro-USB. That means there are more, smaller pins in a tighter configuration. The metal sheath is especially important in that context to prevent damage. A significantly smaller connector would be more likely to be physically damaged, with fewer insertion and removal cycles for a shorter expected lifetime. So while it's certainly physically possible, it's unlikely when other engineering goals such as durability are considered.

By comparison, while Lightning connectors are slightly thinner, the actual receptacle in the device itself probably makes it a moot point for the most part as the receptacle and plug pinouts are physically reversed relative to USB-C. Meaning, the USB-C plug encloses the receptacle pinout whereas the Lightning receptacle pinout encloses the plug.

Lightning receptacle:


USB-C receptacle:


Anyhow, you can't really compare this so-called 'Ultra Accessory Connector' Apple may be working on to USB-C. It's a slightly less wide 8 pin connector that's functionally limited by design. USB-IF isn't going to publish a similar spec because if they did, it would no longer be a universal cable design, USB 3.0 or otherwise. It's a proprietary port for a specific type of accessory input. That's literally the opposite of the entire idea behind USB.

It'd be limited and specific, not universal.

The only madness here is Apple's need to replace the headphone jack with nothing, and now, a proprietary accessory connector with limited functionality in an effort to correct a problem that didn't exist. It's a return to the worst of the 90s, when peripheral use required the inclusion of everything from PS/2 to serial ports, giant parallel ports, DA-15 ports, and more in order to give consumers a bad form of flexibility.
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USB-C is a bilateral connection, if I am understanding the UAC proposal Apple is trying to make a lateral connector. So components in a headphone maybe smaller, this will add confusion as you will have a USB-C cable with a 8pin connector on one end and a 24pin connector, while at present it is 24pin on both ends.

Are we now going to start seeing USB-C/24, USB-C/16, USB-C/8. Or better yet a USB-C/8 to USB-C/24 dongle, why am I not surprised, stick to the standards if it cannot be shrunk then have a magnetic connector similar to the Apple Watch and this issue of space will be resolved.
 
USB-C is the right way to go. If a new smaller, thinner, and lighter connector is in the works then Apple has really lost it unless there is something extremely magical about it.
 
Appleaker said:
No, I think it's very interesting to see where this will go. It could be very stupid depending on the implementation.
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No, it can be both annoying and interesting. More interesting at this point (for me at least).
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History lesson, where is FW400/800, TB1/2, Apple Display Connector, etc. Why waste time with an 8pin USB-C connector, focus on updating the Mac product line already. When a company like Apple is more concerned about saving physical space on an accessory like headphones we all need to be concerned considering Apple claimed that wireless is where we are heading. Have a mag connector similar to the Apple Watch if you need to re/charge the product, its available and more time can be confused on developing Mac hardware.
 
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I have no clue what this all means.
..other make me wonder what they have up their sleeve.
 
They're making their own proprietary port so they can patent it and license it, to rake in more revenue, passing along the costs to consumers. It's ridiculous. USB-C is a perfectly good standard to adopt industry-wide. Let's just make one port and be done with it for a few years, at least. How much smaller does a connector have to be before it's completely impractical?
 
So wait? Is just it a new dongle, or are they changing the iPhone 8 charger like they did with iPhone 5? If they're changing the connector, it's going to piss a lot of people off I'm sure, just like with the iPhone 5 chargerchange
 
Doom! Doom! So much dooom!

With all that doom everywhere we turn, where will they stash all that doom money! It just keeps growing!

Doom! Doom! So much doom I say! Doom!
 
Intell said:
FireWire. Not only is it two years older, it supported computer to computer connections, faster speeds, higher power, and less CPU overhead than USB 1 and 2.
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I think I've burned out nearly every FireWire port I've ever owned by unplugging at the wrong time or whatever the heck the issue was.
 
Update: As Ars Technica points out, the "Ultra Accessory Connector" is a new name for an existing port that's already used in digital cameras and other accessories.

Apple told Ars Technica that the port has been added to the Made for iPhone program at the request of licensees, not because it is trying to push accessory makers to adopt a new type of connector.

Similarly, sources told The Verge that Apple has no plans of replacing Lightning or using this port on any of its devices -- it will be used as "an intermediary in headphone cables."
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Macrumors commenters mega-fail.

Try to activate the brain before falling for a nonsensical rumor. I know it's asking for something.
 
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