The iPhone 14 Is Unlikely to Be Portless, Here's Why

[MacAddict1978]

CrazyForCashews said:
Why would Apple make their iPhones port-less when they make bank from all of the accessories they sell for it like lightning cables?

Because they can make bank.., umm, -ER from MagSafe accessories?

OMG.... and not include any in the box. Think about how many cables everyone has. You have a car cable, maybe one you keep in a bag you travel around with to and from work/school, etc., a couple at home, one you keep at work.... and they charge $30 a pop for the MagSafe version. They also do everything they can to make 3rd part accessories not work (like throttling their charging speeds using software to make it slow and suck).

 

[SFjohn]

If wireless charging didn't suck, I might be ok with this. As it is, I gave up trying to use wireless charging because it failed more than it succeeded and I wake up in the morning only to discover that the phone didn't charge.

Your iPhone doesn’t have MageSafe does it? (If you have an iPhone)

 

[MacAddict1978]

Why are you acting like WiFi 6 doesn't exist?

What are you acting like everyone has run out and bought $500-$600 WiFi 6 network hardware?

Most people are lucky if they even own 1 WiFi 6 device.

(Yes, there are cheaper models but All the cheaper models do not get the speed that makes WiFi 6 really worth while or have a third channel which makes the speed degrade when multiple devices are connected.)

 

[wigby]

Did you read the article? It takes an extra 47% to charge an iPhone wirelessly right now. In the future, I’m sure Apple will figure things out.

I read the article but that 47% stat is misleading because it's comparing power used to charge from dead to full. I've only charged a dead phone about twice in my life. Most people charge their phone to top it off (50% or more capacity still left in battery) and that means that both wired and wireless chargers are usually just trickle charging which is lot less Wh than the tests that Debugger performed.

Also, Apple's MagSafe is even more efficient than the wireless charging they used and we expect it to get better. Also, the article doesn't take into account all the wasted energy and materials connected with wired charging that doesn't affect wireless at all. I believe the two methods of charging are much closer than they appear when you you don't focus only on power wasted during wireless charging.

 

[DC7222]

Is there even an argument to be made for a portless iPhone? What exactly is the benefit?

 

[Devin Breeding]

CarPlay wasn’t mentioned, but that’s probably one of the most important features people would lose.

I just purchased a new vehicle that doesn’t have wireless CarPlay so the chance of me buying a portless phone is pretty well zero.

Maybe they will consider a usb dongle for wireless carplay? That would be nice even on a phone with a port with a wire only carplay unit.

 

[SFjohn]

Is there even an argument to be made for a portless iPhone? What exactly is the benefit?

No moving parts, waterproof, dustproof, more room for battery (perhaps), more reliable/longer life, unique look that no one else has (yet), controversy = free advertising. I’m sure there are more, these are just off the top of my head. Perhaps Apple will find a way to give it the fastest data transfer speed yet and even faster charging. Lots of opportunities for Apple, could have a huge upside.

 

[soheilk]

CarPlay wasn’t mentioned, but that’s probably one of the most important features people would lose.

I just purchased a new vehicle that doesn’t have wireless CarPlay so the chance of me buying a portless phone is pretty well zero.

I get your point but honestly wireless CarPlay is the future. Any car manufacturer that is still making new cars with wired CarPlay is not future proofing themselves!

 

[AppliedMicro]

The inefficiency isn't good but there are so many more factors to consider if we're really talking about energy waste. Billions of cables are manufactured cheaply, replaced often, damage the phone's connector and fill landfills

It's not as if nobody will make wireless charging cables and accessories - and they use way more components and raw materials than a standard Lightning cable.

Did you read the article? It takes an extra 47% to charge an iPhone wirelessly right now. In the future, I’m sure Apple will figure things out.

They won't. They may make charging speed acceptable. Probably will. But they will never make it nearly as efficient as wired charging - for the simple reason that they can't change the laws of physics. Electricity has been transmitted over metal wires for 150 years or so, and there's good reason why, due to their high conductivity and low resistance.

They pushed Lightning everywhere, once again for years, but now it's a dead issue

Not really. The newest 3rd AirPods have a Lightning port, as do the most recent Apple Magic Mice and Keyboards - all updated last year.

No moving parts, waterproof, dustproof, more room for battery (perhaps), more reliable/longer life

You've got to charge that battery somehow. From a teardown, the charging coil looks anything but smaller than a Lightning port (which can be located in-between speakers and microphone.

 

[arvinsim]

If Apple want to screw over people who work with music related stuff, yeah sure go portless.

 

[Shirasaki]

Why are you acting like WiFi 6 doesn't exist?

Why are you thinking apple is the magic company that can defy physics and overcome thermal throttling?

 

[Christiandflores]

Terrible idea. I only wireless charge when I’m going to forget about the phone for a few hours or overnight.

I never use Bluetooth on my car. A lot of bluetooth in cars are archaic and clunky with iOS. Lower audio quality Audio too.

Also higher energy consumption because wireless charging isn’t as efficient for charging and audio playback. The extra heat will lower the battery life. Loss of quality microphone integration.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

Not really, personally, I haven't used the wire to transfer data with my phone for years (not since I can backup with icloud). I'm sure it's a vocal minority who wants that. Those "deaf" pucks would not go to waste, I would buy one. They can charge more for that data version.

Sure, they could, but they would have to change the color or find some other way to differentiate them from the 'deaf ones'. It could ruin someones week if they grabbed the wrong one before heading off for holiday, or a 'conference'...

 

[Jamie0003]

Apples idea makes zero sense here in regards to the environment.

Sure, moving to type C would make lightning cables and accessories obsolete, but at least it would be standardised and consistent with literally every apple device that has type C. And every other device on the planet at this point.

However, moving to wireless charging would be just moving from one proprietary technology to another. Yes, it’ll work with QI chargers, but those don’t work when you’re using the phone the same way you do with magsafe. I never understood why apple didn’t design magsafe to use the same puck that charges the Apple Watch, at least then the cable would work with more than one device. Or better yet design a magsafe cable that works on the macs and iPads too.

 

[Shirasaki]

Someone forgot to mention the EU legal requirement, USB-C for charging, unless Apple decide to leave the EU market.

I bet tons of US users begging Apple to leave every single market except theirs so they could brag about iPhone exclusivity again since 2007.

 

[travelsheep]

Can anyone explain to me what's "clean and streamlined" about a smartphone with no buttons and ports? They maybe mixing up a smartphone with a piece of soap?

 

[Tagbert]

As someone who travels a lot with their iPhone Pro AND iPad Pro… I for one would LOVE if Apple switched to USB-C for their iPhone Pros. Then I’d only have to bring one cable & charger when I travel.

Apple’s MagSafe wireless charge helps a lot with that problem

 

[Tagbert]

I get your point but honestly wireless CarPlay is the future. Any car manufacturer that is still making new cars with wired CarPlay is not future proofing themselves!

Yes, but there are a lot of cars out there, even now, begging sold with only wired CarPlay. All the reviews of the third party wireless adaptors make it sounds like they have problems. If they do go portless, I hope that Apple at least makes their own wireless CarPlay adaptor because the third parties aren’t cutting it.

 

[B4U]

There's wireless carplay adapters out there, I have one for my wired aftermarket unit and it works very well. Soon as my car starts my iPhone is doing wireless carplay in a few seconds automatically. So much easier leaving my phone in my pocket and having my maps and music streaming wirelesley without messing about with plugging in cables.

If Apple does go portless they can create a wireless carplay adapter themselves if they really want to, Apple does love their extra dongles to sell so that would be easy money for them.

If Apple insists on keeping lighting at USB 2.0 speed then it's time to ditch the port. Lighting should have gone to at least 3.0 speeds years ago.

To fill up a 1tb iPhone at 2.0 speeds it's about 5hrs, 30 mins at 3.0 speeds or 15 mins if they go 3.2. USB 2.0 is extrmley embarrassing in 2022.

If Apple is hell bent on pushing for a portless phone, that is what they will need to do.
I cannot find myself trusting a 3rd party wireless CarPlay adapter when considering the data going through that.

 

[Rychiar]

I didn't know those weren't licensed to do carplay. Interesting, but that does explain all the bad reviews. It's always harder to do it via hacking than licensed. (with full documentation!)

They work excellent at least with current firmware. Mine was rough a couple years ago when I got it and now it’s flawless

 

[Rychiar]

Yes, but there are a lot of cars out there, even now, begging sold with only wired CarPlay. All the reviews of the third party wireless adaptors make it sounds like they have problems. If they do go portless, I hope that Apple at least makes their own wireless CarPlay adaptor because the third parties aren’t cutting it.

They work great. Try one

 

[bobcomer]

They work excellent at least with current firmware. Mine was rough a couple years ago when I got it and now it’s flawless

That's good to hear, thanks.

Unfortunately none of them say they are compatible with a 2022 car yet, but I'll probably buy one when that happens.

 

[PsykX]

CarPlay wasn’t mentioned, but that’s probably one of the most important features people would lose.

I just purchased a new vehicle that doesn’t have wireless CarPlay so the chance of me buying a portless phone is pretty well zero.

This is my main question. New cars in 2022 don't necessarily support wireless CarPlay. Will Apple sell a solution such as CarPlay2Air or something ?

Current products like these are a hack AFAIK, that Apple could decide to fix at any given moment. And the real reviews seem to show they don't work too well. If not for these two concerns, I'd buy one right away.

 

[44267547]

Future is wireless. Apple hate wires. Portless iPhone is a sure thing, it's just a question when; not if.

I don’t think anything indicates Apple ‘hates wires’. I mean, if they have such a distain for wires, quite a few products rely on the primary source of charging with wires, like the iPod touch, AirPods, Apple Watch etc. They’re not completely to a point where they’re relying primarily without a wired source. I do think Apple is looking in a future where we can reduce/eliminate wires, but that is not a era we have crossed into completely. What what we are seeing, is the alternative to wirelessly charge and a wired charge if necessary.

 

[PsykX]

If Apple want to screw over people who work with music related stuff, yeah sure go portless.

They might fix it right away by releasing lossless AirPods Pro 2 ? They used that dubious strategy when they ditched the headphone jack, and while it got heavily criticized, it actually paid them extremely well... so well the AirPods division alone would be a Fortune 500 company.