New Images of Rumored 'iPhone 12' Braided Lightning to USB-C Cable Emerge [Update: Black Cable Likely From Mac Pro or Future iMac Pro]

[PaulpBenitti]

I guess the black version is for the Pro versions in an attempt from Apple to make them look more premium. Extremely annoying but expected from them.

LOLOL. Why is that "extremely annoying"? Because you want want want but don't want to pay? Give me a break.
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Which highlights my point, its just a greed move. They will spin it as environmentally friendly when on the stage “we removed the power brick as most people already have one, this will save x tonnes of e-waste” everybody will clap and woot and then after the product is released people will have to get rid of their current adapters creating x tonnes more e-waste.

This is just a massive anti consumer move and a massive middle finger to the customer. I actually didn’t mind the rumoured removal of the power adapter as I already have plenty, but changing the cable connector on the adapter end on the same product cycle is just a kick in the teeth.

Imagine going to buy your iPhone and the salesman asks if you need an adapter, most people (who might not be technically savvy to know the differences between USB-A and C) will probably say nope I already have one only to get home and realise they cant charge their phone, especially those who have come to iPhones from Android so might not have a stack of lightning cables.

I just hope people don’t buy the overpriced Apple stuff and goes for the cheaper and better built stuff from companies like Anker.

The only thing that Apple may do which would make this a non issue for most would be to include a USB-A male to USB-C female dongle that you can attach to your new cable to make it compatible with your existing chargers, but I suspect this is highly unlikely.

I can't wait until my 70 year old mother in law who has never owned an iPhone but says wants to get one this fall goes to actually buy it and finds out she has to buy the charger separately.

She'll end up not buying it, I guarantee.
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Your mother in law is part of a very tiny majority of customers.

Nope, the minority are people with drawers full of chargers who are happy be ripped off when purchasing their next iPhone. Get lost.

 

[Stuey3D]

LOLOL. Why is that "extremely annoying"? Because you want want want but don't want to pay? Give me a break.
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I can't wait until my 70 year old mother in law who has never owned an iPhone but says wants to get one this fall goes to actually buy it and finds out she has to buy the charger separately.

She'll end up not buying it, I guarantee.

Well that is the point I’m trying to make, a lot of people won’t buy something if they think they are going to have to buy a load of stuff to go with it. I can imagine phone providers doing some sort of bundle deal and just selling the iPhone with a generic power brick and maybe absorbing the costs or hiding it in the monthly plan for a couple of pence a month.

 

[^^BIGMac]

Lightning Cable Pro $74.99 USD.

Gotta admit —- Apple knows how to make money.

 

[Zdigital2015]

Apple is preparing everyone for both a wireless charging future and a no USB-A ports future as none of the future Apple Silicon models is going to have a USB-A port, not even a future AS Mac Pro in 2-3 years. Apple has been shipping USB-C since 2015, and only USB-C on MacBook Pros since Late 2016. I bought a 29w charger and USB-C to Lightning cable the second Apple confirmed it worked with my 2015 12.9” iPad Pro. It works great and still works to this day, no frays or ripped jackets.

If you’re steadfastly clinging to USB-A, that’s fine. However, the rest of us have accepted the reality that technology is always changing and this is just one of many.

If you’re crying because you actually might have to go out and buy a new USB-C cable and/or a USB-C adapter, suck it up. Or, better yet, move to Android.

 

[Adoniram]

2020: braided cables
2021: no lightning or USB port. AirPower mat (which also provides USB functionality) sold for $200

 

[alexandr]

oh man, that white cable is going to get so disgustingly dirty within a few weeks...

 

[Stuey3D]

Apple is preparing everyone for both a wireless charging future and a no USB-A ports future as none of the future Apple Silicon models is going to have a USB-A port, not even a future AS Mac Pro in 2-3 years. Apple has been shipping USB-C since 2015, and only USB-C on MacBook Pros since Late 2016. I bought a 29w charger and USB-C to Lightning cable the second Apple confirmed it worked with my 2015 12.9” iPad Pro. It works great and still works to this day, no frays or ripped jackets.

If you’re steadfastly clinging to USB-A, that’s fine. However, the rest of us have accepted the reality that technology is always changing and this is just one of many.

If you’re crying because you actually might have to go out and buy a new USB-C cable and/or a USB-C adapter, suck it up. Or, better yet, move to Android.

Explain that to non techy granny who has been recommended an iPhone by her family as it’s an easy to use phone.

Explain to her that she has had to spend a large sum of money to get said iPhone but it doesn’t come with a charger in the box and the cable it comes with won’t work with her other chargers that she has in the house.

Granny might think twice about spending big money on said iPhone because it doesn’t come with all the bits she needs to actually use the thing, but hey don’t worry about non techy granny she isn’t forward thinking enough for this world.

 

[David1964]

Ah yes comes with the same "timeless design"(the plastic thingy that breaks in 2 years). My 2 and 1/2 year old cable from my iPad is held together by tape and my wife's work iPhone cable was replaced last month...
I never had a cable where the plastic broke like that and I have some 10 year old Micro-USB cables which I still use to this day.

I’ve never had an Apple lightning cable fail on me.I still have an 8 year old one in use that came with my iPhone 5 in 2012.It all depends on how you handle them.

 

[friedmud]

This just looks like a Mac Pro keyboard/trackpad cable (I have one connected to my keyboard in front of me right now).

I do hope that the cable with the iPhone 12 will look like this. It's one of my favorite cables.

As for USB-C... that's the future everyone. I've already moved everything to USB-C charging: MacbookPro, Keyboard, Trackpad, iPad, even Headphones!

Presumably, if you have a USB-A charger... then you already have a USB-A -> Lightning cable... I know I have ~10 or so. I don't need more...

 

[Eriamjh1138@DAN]

I’m more interested in the fact that this cable may come with an updated intel iMac Pro before dumping it/switching to Apple Silicon.

But probably not.

 

[friedmud]

Explain that to non techy granny who has been recommended an iPhone by her family as it’s an easy to use phone.

Explain to her that she has had to spend a large sum of money to get said iPhone but it doesn’t come with a charger in the box and the cable it comes with won’t work with her other chargers that she has in the house.

Granny might think twice about spending big money on said iPhone because it doesn’t come with all the bits she needs to actually use the thing, but hey don’t worry about non techy granny she isn’t forward thinking enough for this world.

I don't get it. If she already has chargers then she already has cables.

If she doesn't have a charger then it doesn't matter that it's USB-C you just need to buy the charger.

 

[compwiz1202]

USB-A needs to die, full stop. Lightning does too, but I'd rather have 1 legacy cable end than 2.

Lightning can live since it can be inserted either way. Anything one way like USB A and B need to die yesterday.

 

[DeputyFife]

Well it’s nice I guess but I don’t really care that much about a cable...

 

[compwiz1202]

Embarrassment? Such drama. I've been using them since the first iPhone. And have never had one fail.

Never had an A>L cable bought from Apple fail to function, but the casing has definitely frayed enough that it didn't look safe. C>L have definitely been more durable.

 

[Drogba11]

No USB-C, no smaller notch, smaller battery than last year rules out ProMotion display, no headphones, no charging brick, a braided cable- Man this lineup really represents 2020

 

[Stuey3D]

I don't get it. If she already has chargers then she already has cables.

If she doesn't have a charger then it doesn't matter that it's USB-C you just need to buy the charger.

You get USB-A chargers with most things nowadays including dumb phones, also most TV’s have a USB-A port her wireless router, her old clunky desktop pc that’s in the corner of her bedroom.

My point was a lot of people are very money conscious if they are spending a large sum of money on a iPhone then they expect it to come with all they need in the box for it to be used. If they then have to spend extra for an adapter and let’s face it if she is getting it from the Apple Store then Apple chargers are very expensive for what they are it may put her of buying it.

 

[compwiz1202]

Explain that to non techy granny who has been recommended an iPhone by her family as it’s an easy to use phone.

Explain to her that she has had to spend a large sum of money to get said iPhone but it doesn’t come with a charger in the box and the cable it comes with won’t work with her other chargers that she has in the house.

Granny might think twice about spending big money on said iPhone because it doesn’t come with all the bits she needs to actually use the thing, but hey don’t worry about non techy granny she isn’t forward thinking enough for this world.

Plus Granny is the type of person who will spread the word faster than wildfire to all her contact.
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I don't get it. If she already has chargers then she already has cables.

If she doesn't have a charger then it doesn't matter that it's USB-C you just need to buy the charger.

But that's not how people like Granny think, She will think why the **** would I pay so much for something that doesn't even come with a way to charge it,

 

[Stuey3D]

Plus Granny is the type of person who will spread the word faster than wildfire to all her contact.
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But that's not how people like Granny think, She will think why the **** would I pay so much for something that doesn't even come with a way to charge it,

This is a situation close to home for me.

My mother in law (late 60’s) was still running an iPhone 4S and iPad 2 these are 30pin dock connectors pre lightning port.

I had been getting on at her for ages telling her she needed to upgrade and she finally did a few weeks ago. I found her a great deal on an iPhone SE with an iPad and 100GB of data per month for £33 a month. Now I don’t live near her so she ordered it online and waited until lockdown restrictions were lifted so she could come to mine to set it up.

Now if the SE had only come with its USB-A to lightning cable then she wouldn’t have had an issue as her old chargers would’ve still worked. However if it had come with a USB-C to lightning and I hadn’t realised it when I advised her of the offer and the website didn’t advise her then she would be then frantically rushing out to buy a charger which she will see as an additional expense on top of the phone.

Luckily the SE came with both a USB-A to lightning and a power brick, but new iPhones after 2020 this could’ve been a different situation.

In her case her iPhone 4S was just about still doing what she wanted it to do and had she had thought about having to buy the phone and then the accessories separately it might have put her off upgrading costing Apple a sale.

All I’m saying is if Apple includes a cheap Male USB-A to Female type C then this situation can be avoided. Do that for a couple of years until USB-C becomes more mainstream and everything has type C then drop the dongle from the box. Exactly like the lightning to headphone adapter.

 

[now i see it]

and today serial leaker L0vetodream has shared...

Isnt that what happens to tourists in foreign countries when they drink the water?

 

[PaulpBenitti]

If you’re steadfastly clinging to USB-A, that’s fine. However, the rest of us have accepted the reality that technology is always changing and this is just one of many.

Lol. No. That isn't representative of reality at all. USB-A is still very much ubiquitous and isn't going anywhere any time soon.

USB-C barely exists outside of tech blog circle jerks. Sure, you can selectively surround yourself with USB-C products and pretend that this represents the world now, but it just isn't true.

I also find it interesting that everyone who has this fantasy perspective ALSO always mentions the type-C connectors on Macs...as if that has any bearing on the iPhone market whatsoever.
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2020: braided cables
2021: no lightning or USB port. AirPower mat (which also provides USB functionality) sold for $200

Anyone who (seriously) thinks Apple will be shipping an iPhone without a physical port any time in the foreseeable future is extremely, extremely confused, and does not understand the iPhone market at all.

 

[Pakaku]

USB-A needs to die, full stop. Lightning does too, but I'd rather have 1 legacy cable end than 2.

The thing is you don't need USB-C just to charge a phone with a power brick, unless there's some magical reason I don't know of.

 

[M0001]

oh man, that white cable is going to get so disgustingly dirty within a few weeks...

This is my biggest takeaway. Seems like it will be much harder to clean. Easy to disinfect current cables; braided sheath - not so much.

 

[alexandr]

This is my biggest takeaway. Seems like it will be much harder to clean. Easy to disinfect current cables; braided sheath - not so much.

exactly. the black cable will be ok visually, but we can't seriously expect apple to just hand out these obviously "pro" cables out to just anybody)

 

[john9876]

I think this would be a great move. I would far rather have just a high-quality USB-C cable than another landfill 5W or 10W charger and cable. In fact drop the cable too, as I can get a good quality third-party 2m cable cheaply.

How do Apple enthusiasts on this forum not already have USB-C power adaptors? Fast charging has been supported since at least the iPhone X. A decent third-party 18W USB-C PD charger is £9 on Amazon here. As well as a couple of MacBook Pro/Air USB-C adaptors I have one Apple and three Aukey/Anker USB-C chargers of at least 18W. Two metre USB-C to Lightning cables from Anker or Amazon are also cheap.

For the comparatively low cost (compared to the price of an iPhone) switching to fast charging has been a no-brainer. I certainly don't need to pay extra for more Apple branded adaptors, and I definitely don't need more landfill 5W or 10/12W USB-A chargers which will join all the others in the cupboard!

 

[friedmud]

You get USB-A chargers with most things nowadays including dumb phones, also most TV’s have a USB-A port her wireless router, her old clunky desktop pc that’s in the corner of her bedroom.

My point was a lot of people are very money conscious if they are spending a large sum of money on a iPhone then they expect it to come with all they need in the box for it to be used. If they then have to spend extra for an adapter and let’s face it if she is getting it from the Apple Store then Apple chargers are very expensive for what they are it may put her of buying it.

Plus Granny is the type of person who will spread the word faster than wildfire to all her contact.
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But that's not how people like Granny think, She will think why the **** would I pay so much for something that doesn't even come with a way to charge it,

If someone doesn't buy a $1000 device because they would need to buy a $10 charger... that's just dumb. I think that cross-section of people is smaller than people on here are thinking.

It would be "worse" if your new iPhone couldn't plug into your new MacBook pro you just bought... "Why don't these things work together?!"