The Apple boss is giving up his special approach to charging plugs.
(Photo: dpa)
san francisco Apple boss Tim Cook has had the company’s most important product overhauled. The new iPhone 15 has a brighter display, a harder titanium body and a faster processor. The most important innovation for users is probably one detail: Apple is saying goodbye to its Lightning port and switching to the global USB-C standard.
“These are the best iPhones we’ve ever produced,” Cook said. When the devices were presented at the company’s headquarters in Cupertino, California, a pre-recorded video was shown. Apple made around half of its sales of around $400 billion in the last financial year with the iPhone. This makes the smartphone by far the tech company’s most important product.
More than a decade ago, Apple introduced the Lightning connector with the iPhone 5. There was already a lot of criticism when it was presented in 2012. Many other smartphone manufacturers have already switched to the USB port. But Apple stuck to its own system. This forced many Apple users to purchase special accessories for their Apple devices in order to be compatible with the Apple connector.
Meanwhile, USB-C had become the global standard. This applied not only to smartphones, but also to laptops, digital cameras and game consoles. iPhones were the big exception. In Europe, time for the Lightning connection was running out anyway. The European Commission has made USB-C the new standard and set a deadline of 2024. Now Apple is bending to the rules – not just in the EU, but worldwide.
Apple did not mention the EU in the presentation. The responsible manager, Kaiann Drance, however, presented the switch to USB-C as a sensible strategic decision. “USB-C is a global standard, so we are also bringing it to the iPhone 15,” said Drance.
USB-C not only offers higher data throughput, but also higher energy throughput. Data can therefore be transferred more quickly and the battery can be charged more quickly. The new USB port is said to offer a throughput of up to 10 gigabits per second. This is up to 20 times faster than the previous Lightning connection.
iPhone 15: This is what Apple’s new smartphone costs
The iPhone 15 Pro is coming onto the market in Germany at a starting price of 1199 euros. The even larger iPhone 15 Pro Max is available from 1,449 euros. The iPhone 15 is available from 949 euros.
Apple Watch: This is what the latest generation promises
Tim Cook also used the product presentation to revise the company’s watch range. The latest generation Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 get the new S9 chip. This should offer better performance. The display is slightly brighter than the previous generation with a luminance of 3000 nits. A new ultra-wideband chip should also offer new options for navigating in confusing situations or locating a lost iPhone.
Apple is also introducing a new gesture. By double-tapping the thumb and index finger, actions can be carried out on the Apple Watch, such as answering or hanging up phone calls. Apple calls the gesture “doubletap”.
Apple equips its watches with more powerful processors.
The starting price of the Apple Watch Series 9 is 449 euros. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is available from 899 euros.
Investors disappointed with product presentation
The presentation of Apple’s new products was not particularly well received on the stock market. Apple shares have temporarily lost more than two percent of their value. There is a risk of a decline in sales because, among other things, there is a shop with accessories attached to the lighting connection. If Apple now switches to USB-C, customers can more easily use additional devices from other manufacturers.
Concerns about Apple’s most important sales country, China, also weighed on the share price. In the People’s Republic, civil servants could be banned from buying and using iPhones for official purposes in the future. Photos of instructions from authorities circulated on social networks. There was initially no official confirmation. However, according to initial reports about developments in China at the end of last week, Apple shares had already lost around six percent of their value.
More: Apple loses 200 billion in market value – What is behind the possible iPhone ban in China?