A little poll to see how the MacRumors community feels about USB-C vs Lightning ports on iPhones. Thought this was timely, given that the first iPhone modified with a USB-C port just sold on eBay for $86K
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Other Poll: USB-C or Lightning?
- Thread starter czaffa
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Most people aren’t educated enough about the plusses and minuses of USB-C vs Lightning on an iPhone to make an informed decision. Yeah - everyone has an opinion but that doesn’t mean they really understand to nuances of what they’re actually voting for.
With that being said - this poll is worthless (sorry)
With that being said - this poll is worthless (sorry)
I personally like Lightning from a form factor standpoint, USB-C has a tip inside that is more propense to break on a accident and harder and more expensive to fix compared to lightning which is just a hole, but ith that said, USB-C is more convenient, faster and versatile, if apple insist to stay at lightning they should at least improve it's speed to at least USB3.0 speeds.
Maybe you’d do the community a favour of laying out these pluses and minuses to help those you’re guessing aren’t educated enough.
Care to enlighten us pleebs? I just want to be able to have *one* cord when I travel that works to charge my MBP, iPhone, headphones, etc
I think he's one of the people he's talking about.
If you already have an iPhone, then you already have a charger and everything you need, right?
When you get your next iPhone, it will then come with a different charging cable in the box.
Not sure where that pain is.
The EU mandating standardization of smartphones to utilize USB-C will likely make the iPhone 14 be that.
If I use the example of nearly all iPads being USB-C, it greatly enhances the ability for a iPhone to interface with many other devices. Example you can readily connect large external SSD storage, even monitors.
We still do have a lot of smaller devices where lightning is predominant so lightning won't fade away for awhile, and people do like the smaller connector comparably.
If I use the example of nearly all iPads being USB-C, it greatly enhances the ability for a iPhone to interface with many other devices. Example you can readily connect large external SSD storage, even monitors.
We still do have a lot of smaller devices where lightning is predominant so lightning won't fade away for awhile, and people do like the smaller connector comparably.
It's not so much about charging as it is accessories, things that cost money and have Lightning plugs and that you don't want to have to replace, such as headphones, microphones, docks, etc…
By that logic, shouldn't we just have stuck with the 30 pin connector?
No, it'll just accelerate Apple's goal towards a portless iPhone. Apple would love if instead of buying a simple Lightning cable you now have to buy MagSafe charger.
The current infrastructure is all Lightning. iPhone doesn't take advantage of 100W PD charging or external displays. Stick with Lightning.
Its funny I only hear people in the tech space complain about iPhones not having USB-C but the average person doesn't know or care. For me I'm indifferent. Would it be nice to use one cable for all my devices? Sure. But i never had an issue throwing a lightning cable in my bag when I need it. People act like its such an inconvenience to take one more cable.
And data transfer? Now that the iPhone shoots ProRes and you can fill up a 1TB phone in a few hours, they definitely need a higher-speed connector. Lightning is laughably slow.
Also, the current infrastructure is all lightning is you only use an iPhone. The minute you bring a Mac, an iPad, or any other modern tech into the mix, the iPhone is the outlier. Apple abandoned the connector on their other products because it wasn't good enough, it's time for the iPhone to catch up.
In the long term, I think Apple is betting on Wi-Fi 6E for AirDrop and iCloud Photos for those large files. It's a teething problem while we're waiting for it.
You're probably right, but it still seems so dumb to have multiple connectors across the their product lines when one (that they helped create as a standard and championed) can do the job.
Looks like Wi-Fi 6E might top out at about 9.6 Gbps - and that's under optimal conditions. USB-C (USB 3.1) could top out at 10 Gbps, which, in my experience, is more reliable. If Apple chooses Thunderbolt 4, that ups it to 40 Gbps as well.
My main concern with going from Lightning to USB-C/Thunderbolt 3+ is that man accessories already use Lightning. That means manufacturers would have to redesign the accessories (if they don't have USB-C versions already), plus end users will have to rebuy many products. This would be expensive, especially for places like school district's which might not have a lot of money.
Plus, USB-C is a little thicker than lightning. I know a few people who want things as thin and light as possible. Personally, I don't mind too much. I remember the original iPad and it was fine. With thicker phones, I'd hope to see bigger batteries leading to longer battery lives.
How many households has Wi-Fi 6 router at home. Most people will just use ISP provided router, which mostly is crap.
AirDrop or not, unless Apple make AirDrop working with Windows, people with iPhone and Windows (like me) will still need transfer large photo to PCs.
If Apple can put USB-C to iPad and Mac, I am struggling to see why not iPhone. There is no technical issue, it is more or less if Apple wants loss profits with certification programs
I know it might be coming but USB-C would require me to buy a bunch of new cables and probably a charging block or so - home, office, brief case etc. Would also need USB-C to USB-A to do carplay and charge at a bunch of places that still have USB-A
I think the 3rd choice should of been both. I don’t mind it on apples headphones or apple tv remote. Everything especially the devices labeled pro should be usb-c. At least the rumors of apple going port-less on the iPhone have died down.