If the company goes ahead with the change, it won’t happen until 2023 at the earliest. Apple’s new products this year plan to keep the Lightning charging port.
By switching to a USB-C port, Apple can streamline the chargers used by its various devices. Most of the companyiPadAnd Mac products are already using USB-C instead of Lightning. This means that Apple usersiPhone, iPad and Mac products require different chargers — a rather odd design given Apple’s penchant for simplicity.
Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple declined to comment on the adjustment.
One of the key reasons why Apple made this change was the EU’s decision to forcecell phoneand other device makers adopting USB-C. Legislation on this requirement was approved by a majority vote in April.
It’s unclear whether Apple will eventually give up on the move to USB-C if European laws fail to materialize.
The move to USB-C will be the second time in iPhone history that the port has changed. From the earliest iPhone in 2007 to the iPhone 4s in 2011, Apple used 30 pinsiPodinterface. With the introduction of the iPhone 5, Apple switched to a smaller Lightning port.
