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iPhone 5 Scorns Standards Promise To European Commission
WebMink writes "Back in 2009, Apple signed an agreement aimed at reducing electronic waste resulting from mobile phone accessories. But this week's launch of the iPhone 5 shows them reneging on that commitment. Instead of including a micro-USB connector on the iPhone, as they agreed to do along with the rest of the phone industry, they created yet another proprietary connector. At a stroke, they have junked earlier iPhone accessories, forced a new industry in Apple-only accessories to arise and broken their promise to the EC. It's a huge missed opportunity both for their customers and for the environment."
I was under the impression that Apple's dock connectors were designed such that they could be plugged into various accessories (speaker docks, etc.) without the need for a lot of processing power to play music and such.
Wouldn't using USB make this a major challenge for the companies building the accessories? After all, USB requires some heavy lifting on the host side.
There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
From TFA:
"Which is the agreed common interface?
On the basis of the Micro-USB interface, the companies have agreed to develop a common specification in order to allow for full compatibility of chargers and mobile phones. These specifications have been translated in European standards.
N.B.: The agreement allows for the use of an adaptor."
Apple supplies adaptors, therefore they're not "scorning" the agreement.
No, they shouldn't, but people should just stop buying anything made by Apple.
I still don't really understand the rationale behind the new connector. It seems the whole motivation for it was to make the iPhone thinner... which, I don't see as a real selling point at this point, especially given all the frustration with having to replace accessories or buy a new set of $30 adapters, and the fact that the iPhone 4s is really thin enough. As for simplicity, it really goes against the Apple aesthetic. One picture from the event made that evident.
Meanwhile, the rest of the industry seems to be moving away from wires and toward wireless. Wireless payments, wireless charging, wireless audio, etc. with NFC and other related technologies. Apple is for some strange reason the last to adopt these innovations, and it will be a whole year before they come up with an answer. In the mean time, they're piling on connectors and dongles galore. It's very strange.
The proprietary connector, whether it's the old one or the new one, is the reason I don't buy Apple gadgets (although I do buy and love Apple's laptops). The recent development that all devices use microusb for charging is the best thing ever. I can charge my Kindle, cellphone, cordless mouse, and bluetooth hands-free, all with the same, omnipresent standard cable.
A couple of years ago, I worked in a small desert town in Iran. I had forgotten to bring the Apple cord for my iPod Touch. I had any number of "normal" usb cords available, including micro and mini, but there was no place where I could get hold of an Apple cord. My iPod was useless. I can't believe they still haven't wised up to the idea of a standard connector.
Certainly a pet peeve of mine. If it wasn't for the stupid connector, my awesome Macbook Pro would be connected to an iPhone right now, instead of to a Galaxy S3.
How happy will he be when the EU bans import?
The law wasn't a suggestion.
Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
Why?
I have iPhone and android and the proprietary connector means I can hook my phone into my car's USB port and stream music apps and play my playlists. Not just music off the storage in no order
If you invest in accessories for the new connector, you'll be less inclined to buy a non-Apple phone.
Perhaps their connector has additional pins for HDMI, but they could have placed a real HDMI connector beside the USB connector for easy docking. Alternately, they could sell a dongle to pipe HDMI video out from USB2 as other manufacturers already do.
But then they couldn't lock their customers in and charge exorbitant licensing fees for their connector.
Geez, nice hyperbolic story.
First, Apple is keeping to the requirement by offering a micro-USB cable.
Second, the reason they didn't use micro-USB is because it doesn't have the requisite number of pins. As we saw with Thunderbolt, the USB folks will *not* allow you to add non-standard pins to their connector.
This connector must support at least 2 amps of charging for the iPad (in the future presumably). That puts micro-USB right out of the picture.
It must also support digitally sending all the data necessary to support the 30-pin compatibility, including the upcoming HDMI and VGA adapters. Building any sort of intelligence into the cable or other end would require an actual USB interface chip and would require extending the USB specification in non-standard ways... not that you could push enough data on the 2 data pins to run a 720p HD display anyway, unless you piggy-backed some custom protocol on top of USB, then had some sort of hand-shake mode to figure that out... assuming the USB people didn't sue you for abusing their standard to begin with.
The connector itself is far better designed than any USB connector ever; it is reversible and it has self-cleaning contacts, yet it is stronger than micro-usb.
It's OK though; I expect a barrage of anti-Apple FUD every time they release a new device. I'm used to it by now. If you want a legit complaint, the price of the 30-pin adapters is ridiculous.
Natural != (nontoxic || beneficial)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdIWKytq_q4
Enjoy watching Apple fans "fall in love" with the "new" iPhone 5 !
(Spoiler: they're all playing with an iPhone 4s, thinking it's the new iPhone 5)
Apple has been complying since that ruling was made, they give European buyers a little adapter.
The new Lightning connector (not a fan of that name, btw) has some benefits over micro-usb. Reports say that it plugs into the phone pretty securely. When I use micro-USB on my Kindle, I can tell you it doesn't feel like the most secure thing. More importantly from an ease of use perspective, the new connector doesn't have to be plugged in a specific way, there is no "up".
I'm curious to see what the pinout ends up being. Apple might have some surprises in store for us.
Comment forecast: Bits of genius surrounded by a sea of mediocrity.
I have Android and can do the same thing without the proprietary connector.
Wait, I don't need a connector at all. Bluetooth.
Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
This is just another misleading story - Apple actually has complied by providing an adaptor for charging. They specification that they are adhering to is the Common External Power Supply and allows the use of adaptors. They already have on for older type of dock connector. I suspect Apple has valid reasons as they want data transfer to be as fast as possible with their proprietary adaptors, but still allow micro-usb charging if people want it.
Yes, new items will increase waste (old items), increase production of new items (emissions), and cause problems for the consumer (multiple cables).
So... unless you have some magical idea that will remove all of this, it will harm the environment.
And really...? Having a new adapter is going to somehow harm the enviornment?!?!
[rolls eyes]...Really......?
Really.
The idea is not to have a drawerful of one-off adapters and connectors, which is where we were before the mini- and micro-usb connectors became common currency. You save the environment by not having to manufacture and supply new cables with each new device, you save it again by only needing as many adapters and cables as you actively use, and finally, you save it by being able to retain and re-use these cables and adapters long after the original device has been retired/broken.
Small steps, agreed, but every little bit helps. And even if they didn't, I'd be for it just because I've got enough cables and adapters stuffed in my equipment drawers as it is.
I'm hoping this is sarcasm. But just in case it isn't. Yes a new adapter is going to harm the environment. People toss devices that use the old connector instead of reusing them. If they had used a standard (USB) connector in the first place you could reuse chargers etc. from other phones. Not only that but you could you switch from iPhone to Android to Windows Phone without having to buy new devices. Also, realize that that is the only reason for all Apple proprietary connectors. So you can't easily switch to a competitors device.
So yeah, Fuck Apple.
If the EU had standardized on a free (no royalties) Lightning connector, everyone would be crying foul over government mandates and how it stifles innovation.
The goal was to get rid of large power bricks attached to proprietary connectors. Apple has for MANY years supplied a power plug with a standard USB connector and used the same cable/connector for 10 years. THAT has reduced waste. What other phone manufacturer has stuck with their plugs that long? How many phones will charge from a 10 year old cable?
What about all those phones that include a micro-USB port for charging, but then have ANOTHER port or a ANOTHER special proprietary cable to get audio/video out?
They don't ship them in the EU, they just make them available to buy.
Technically, Apple IS compliant.
From the agreement at http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise
Undertaking 4.2.1 states that “if a manufacturer makes available an Adaptor from the Micro-USB connector of a Common EPS to a specific non-Micro-USB socket in the Mobile Phone, it shall constitute compliance”. Annex II futher states that “An EPS provided with a detachable cable shall be equipped with a USB Standard-A receptacle. Above requirement also applies to detachable cables used as adaptor i.e. where the Micro-B is replaced by a proprietary plug”
Switching to just a micro-USB would have been stupid as you can't get analog audio or HD video through USB 2.0. Still I feel for all the people who've invested in accessories that use the standar Apple 30-pin. Expensive accessories like docks, iHome clocks, etc.
Wireless payments, wireless charging, wireless audio, etc. with NFC and other related technologies.
Apple has adopted Bluetooth LE (as have other companies) which allow all those things to occur. NFC is not required for any of those things.
Furthermore Apple instead of providing NFC, has a much more practical means (for the U.S.) of electronic payment in Passbook. There's almost no NFC support in the U.S..
Apple of course also heavily promotes AirPlay, which is quite wireless...
In the mean time, they're piling on connectors and dongles galore. It's very strange.
They are not "piling on" anything. They fully support Bluetooth LE as noted, they are simply changing out a connector standard for something more modern. Who would not prefer to have charging and video output options that all come out of a single port? It also allows for faster charging than you could have if you simply support USB, important for tablets.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
What? Are you seriously confused? I can only hope this I've misunderstood your sarcasm. There are so many problems with your comment I'm not sure where to start. If the car has a USB port, it's not proprietary. Being able to stream music and control playlists has zero to do with the connector. Just imagine if iPhone had used USB from the start, then everyone would be able to use any phone in "device enabled" car. Thanks for fucking over everyone that doesn't buy your products Apple. The proprietary connector is only there to lock you into Apple products. Apple's new proprietary connector is only there to continue to lock you into new products and to force 3rd party device creators to have to licence the new connector and create a whole new wave of for-iPhone-only devices. Every time you see any proprietary connector, think of it as someone poking you in the eye with a dick. That's really what it is. They are fucking you. In the eye. With a dick.
So yeah, fuck Apple.
I have to make a correction here. Apple doesn't SUPPLY the adapter, but it does make one available for you to BUY
In the EU they DO ship with a Lightning->MicroUSB port.
You are probably thinking about the U.S., where it does NOT ship with a Lightning->iPod 30-pin adaptor. But it does ship with a Lightning->USB cable to connect to any standard USB port... if you can connect to a standard USB port already does it matter so much if there's an adaptor? It's mostly for accessories.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
The law also doesn't say what the summary claims it says.
It specifically allows for adapters to be used, and Apple has had a micro-USB adapter available for quite awhile now that complies with the standards that have been set.
If you do, it's not micro-USB anymore. And if you wanted to call it "USB" then you have to get the standard committee to approve it. At that point you'd just have a non-proprietary Apple connector, but it still wouldn't be compatible with any other phones or cables without an adapter. Plus we already have USB A, B, micro-A, micro-B, micro-AB, 5 pin mini-B, 4 pin mini-B, USB 3 A, USB 3 B, and USB 3 micro-B.
They all have problems. USB A would be good, expect it's a perfect rectangle that can't be inserted in either direction. There is no way to tell if you have it right-side-up or not. Some of the later ones, like micro-B, are obviously keyed so they can't be inserted the wrong way, but they still have to be positioned correctly. Plus most of the micro ones are so short they don't feel like they're gripped very well by the device (at least in my limited experience).
FireWire 400 had a great connector. It only went in one way, but it was very easy to figure out which way it went either visually or by feel. The FireWire 800 connector is quite a bit worse. It has a small notch on top so can feel which end is up on the cable, but it's not visually distinct enough.
I think Apple actually came up with a very nice design. I haven't touched one yet (so it could turn out to feel terrible), but it seems well designed.
Comment forecast: Bits of genius surrounded by a sea of mediocrity.
Dock's weren't the only accessory that used that connector. Example: I have a dongle for connecting to Ant+ sensors (Heart-Rate, Cadence, Stride, etc..). That's not going to charge it while consuming the extra power.
Someone posted some interesting points in the linked article, I've pasted it here. ( Don't shoot the messenger who is an android fan.) Discuss... *** “Apple has reneged on that commitment to the European Commission to change to micro-USB”. This is simply false. Undertaking 4.2.1 states that “if a manufacturer makes available an Adaptor from the Micro-USB connector of a Common EPS to a specific non-Micro-USB socket in the Mobile Phone, it shall constitute compliance”. —http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise... Annex II futher states that “An EPS provided with a detachable cable shall be equipped with a USB Standard-A receptacle. Above requirement also applies to detachable cables used as adaptor i.e. where the Micro-B is replaced by a proprietary plug” —http:// ec.europa.eu/enterprise... Apple’s decision not to use a Micro-USB connector is in keeping with the agreement, as they also offer a Micro-USB to Lightning adaptor. Their charger also appears to be a common EPS, so that any USB-A to Micro-USB cable can be used with it to charge any other compliant phone; and the iPhone 5 can be charge from any other common EPS with a detachable cable (i.e. with a USB-A port, as per the standard."
The question is if all of the older accessories will work with the adapter. If they do, the main thrust of this complaint is misguided. If they don't, then it's spot on.
"The law wasn't a suggestion."
The law isn't even a law (or regulation, for that matter). It's a voluntary agreement ("Memorandum of Understanding").
Secondly, the agreement only covers phones which "Supports USB user data handling as defined in 'Universal Serial Bus Specification'". Although there are no details available on Apple's new connector, it's possible that it doesn't handle USB directly, but relies on a conversion chip in an external adapter. That would place Apple in compliance with the MoU.
The MoU also allows adaptors [sic] to be used - "An 'Adaptor' is defined as a device with a Micro-USB receptacle/plug connecting to a specific non Micro-USB connector. For clarification: an Adaptor can also be a cable."
"National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
No you can't. The connector doesn't "Stream" anything... it's an analog "line in" that's no better than if you used the headphone jack. The cable also transmits controls back and forth so the buttons on your radio can control the iPhone... what a fantastic idea... unfortunately you could do this in 1980 with corded remotes for VCRs. Well, it's 30 years later and the Android/Windows Mobile/Blackbery and just about every other device made todays communities would like to introduce you to Bluetooth. It's already 18 years old, but it makes your Apple adapter cable look rather silly.
Apple has also used a proprietary method of signalling that devices can draw more than 500mA from the USB port.
Nokia has stuck with its connectors for quite a while (two sizes, older adapters can use a simple adapter to charge), even supporting them after adopting microUSB (Symbian^3 phones charge via microUSB and their charging connector). Apple's Dock Connector actually dropped firewire charging (which was very popular with docks) 4 years ago, so it hasn't been kept fully compatible, either.
Please, name one phone with a proprietary solution to output A/V, besides the iPhone. Even then, you can keep your phone working without proprietary crap.
You could look into getting a better stereo. The $100 Sony one I got for my 2003 car has no problems sorting mp3s off a stick using folders, and loads my iPod's playlists and genres with no problem. Little to do with a data cable.
Micro USB doesn't meet all of Apple's requirements. They've been pretty mum about what and how they're using the new connector, but micro USB is certainly not orientation independent, and the traditional connector you find on smartphones is limited to low speed (USB 3.0 uses a different and much larger micro connector). It's hard to figure out if Apple's decision to go their own way for a dock adapter is justified, but I'd point out that the last time they came up with a new and proprietary connector... the entire industry adopted it. I'm referring to mini displayport, which Apple developed as a proprietary variant on DisplayPort, but made it royalty free and got it into the DisplayPort standard itself.
Connectors are not automatically evil just because they're developed by Apple, and designed-by-committee standards are not always the best solution to a company's individual problems. If DisplayPort had been the end-all be-all connector, then we wouldn't have seen miniDP largely supplant it.
Please show me how to airplay a power point to the projector from wifi, and do the same with an android tablet and an android phone all to the same hardware. Apple owns the board room for wireless and easy presentation control. I have installed more apple TV units in board rooms and had IT departments whine at me in the past 3 months than I have installed android based anything in the past 5 years.
you guys that are on a hell bent apple hate rage have no clue. the rich guys all use apple, they all like apple and that is who apple cares most about. And you will see more and more of it showing up in corporate use because it "just works"(tm) and works very well.
you should be pissed at microsoft and google for not even offering anything to compete.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
The great part about standards, there are thousands to choose from.
Samsung can get HDMI video out that usb port, yet LG doesnt, they put that craptastic second connector on there. Then Motorola does something completely different. Show me ANYONE that follows a standard.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Really? So how does my car offer a folder-based tree of my music then if it's just forwarding button presses?
TODO: Something witty here...
If they wanted to advance the state of the art they could have proposed their connector as a standard to the EU. Instead this shows Apple wants to bilk customers for buying their expensive adapters and accessories.
Can you plug a USB connector in in any orientation? That's a pretty big aspect of the user experience (the less technically oriented you are, the more annoying that's going to be), and the easiest solution to that is to just design a connector and standard that supports being plugged in either way. Micro USB doesn't do that, for whatever reason. Another aspect is performance. The standard micro connector only works for USB 2.0, after that you need a bizarrely massive connector for micro USB 3.0.
My sons school uses android tablets with this, https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fonjector.android.screencapservicefree2&hl=en
Apple's Lightning to USB connector only provides USB 2.0 speeds. Being orientation independent does not seem that big of a deal to me. Oh and the lightning connector is larger than a micro-USB connector.
You seem to be uneducated.
iPhone 5 us usb 3.0 usb 3.0 DOES NOT HAVE A STANDARD MINI CONNECTOR.
Or would you rather they made it a slow turd like all the phones with usb 2.0 I certianly dont want a super slow usb 2.0 to copy my 64 gig of video and audio files over. or to extract the video recorded at 1080p.
The next google Nexus phone will not have a mini usb connector on it, will you go all frothing at the mouth at google?
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
I can over DLNA.
NO wires needed. Get with the program grandpa. Wires are so OVER.
Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
To be fair we're not really sure what speeds it provides; all we know is the only cable they're shipping now is a lightning to USB 2.0 cable. It looks like there's enough pins for USB 3.0 if the equivalent of the shield is conductive (it's not clear to me that GND and GND_DRAIN really have to be connected to separate pins anyhow), and it's entirely possible they plan to use active cables to get higher speed outputs in the future anyhow (who knows what the native signaling format is).
Yes they are. The pins are programmable on both ends. You can write low level interfaces which are smart on both sides. The old adapter couldn't do that.
The fact is, though that Apple AGREED to include a micro-usb connector on the iPhone, at least for charging and now they have reneged on that agreement.
If they ACTUALLY needed more, they could have placed the additional connection next to the micro USB and kept their word.
The proprietary connector is only there to lock you into Apple products.
You only have to look at the pinout documentation of the (just retired) 30 pin connector to know that isn't true. The original 30 pin connector had communications lines for both USB and Firewire, permitting an iPod to connect to either port type using a single connector on the device side. Some of the pins were later used for composite video out (pin 8), and S-video chroma/luma (pins 9 and 10). Pins 11, 12, and 13 are used for standard RS-232 serial communications. Pins 2 - 6 were used for analogue audio in and out. So unless you can point me to a USB connector that provides analogue audio in and out, composite and S-video out, standard RS-232 out (and not RS-232 encapsulated within USB Bulk packets), and somehow also finds a way to jam Firewire into the cable, you have to admit that Apple had some very good reasons to use their own connector.
As for the new Lightning connector, I can't say. I haven't seen a pinout on it yet to know what signals are being put through it. If it's Thunderbolt compatible and/or has HDMI output onboard, then it probably wouldn't be sufficient to use a standard USB connector. If not -- then yes, it seems like a somewhat idiotic change to me, considering how many millions of devices and cables out there won't work with it.
Yaz
The Micro USB connector sucks. Every phone I've ever seen using it starts having problems with loose connections causing intermittent charging after 9-12 months. Meanwhile the iPhones I have had have all charged fine for as long as I've owned them. I have a now ancient 3G iPhone, still charges fine after having been used by three members of my family over 4 years. Even disregarding the variety of features available on the Lightning connector, I'll pass on the Micro USB "standard", thanks.
Perscriptio in manibus tabellariorum est.
True. But you need a $99 adapter to do that.
They agreed to no such thing (The EU's voluntary agreement gives other options, which Apple took). They've done enough unscrupulous things that you don't need to make stuff up.
No, but microUSB being a terrible and dead-end obsolete connector is a better excuse. Locking yourself down to USB 2.0 speeds for years to come would be idiotic.
5 million Android phones that are physically larger than iPhones will create tonnes of unnecessary plastic and precious metal waste. But I don't see you complaining about that.
Do you honestly think Apple's little dongle you must pay for is according to the spirit of that directive?
Given that it explicitly allows companies to satisfy the directive with an adapter, yes. Did you honestly believe anyone would believe you'd read the directive?
Are you REALLY stupid enough to BELIEVE that seriously?
Can you plug a USB connector in in any orientation?
Yes. Some of the orientations aren't recommended though.
Audio and Video are well supported by USB class protocols. Audio since 1998 and Video since 2004. Requiring drivers has nothing to do with lack of standards, but a lag in native support by certain popular OS.
Lightning to Lightning may well be faster. Which may prove useful in the future as Lightning peripherals come along.
Oh, god, not another Android circle-jerk.
Yes a new adapter is going to harm the environment. People toss devices that use the old connector instead of reusing them.
Maybe people around you are greedy and lazy, but if I went to my apartment complex's mail room and left all my iPhone cables and whatnot there with a note saying "please take", they'd be gone in a few hours. People toss stuff?! Have you never seen a yard sale before?
If they had used a standard (USB) connector in the first place you could reuse chargers etc. from other phones. Not only that but you could you switch from iPhone to Android to Windows Phone without having to buy new devices. Also, realize that that is the only reason for all Apple proprietary connectors. So you can't easily switch to a competitors device.
What, is Apple preventing the competitor from selling you a cable? I have 2 iOS devices. I have four cables for them, and four chargers. I have docks for both. I have several bluetooth devices. I'd be out four cables and two docks if I decided to switch to Android.
So I keep the chargers, give away the docks and cables, and spend a few bucks to buy new cables, yet somehow Apple is "forcing" me to keep my devices.
No they don't - they hide the shit out the documentation and only provide it to companies that sign the "Made for iPod" agreement, who promise to treat is as the Holiest of Holies in a locked cabinet in a disused lavatory in the basement with a sign saying "Beware of the Leopard". Oh, and it's only available to companies - individuals with a cool idea can fuck off. Oh, and the company has to be large enough to afford legal counsel, since Apple requires the lawyers for the company sign it.
For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
Laughed myself sick when I saw this story right next to Monkeys made smarter with prosthetic device.
You won't find a mDP port on a Samsung laptop. Apple has a termination clause in the license for mDP: "if you at any time during the term of this Implementation License commence an action for patent infringement against Apple."
https://developer.apple.com/softwarelicensing/agreements/pdf/MiniDisplayPortImpLicense.pdf
Current conjecture is that Apple will be able to migrate Lightning to USB without needing any physical changes so the future USB 3 iphone will not have to change connectors. USB 3 will not work over micro USB and there is a different, incompatible connector for this. Sooo...so when USB 3 phones from people other than Apple come out they will either need to leave micro-USB on for charger compatibility (highly unlikely), or they will need to use an adapter just like Apple does. I eagerly await the hyperventilated denunciations of these NON COMPLIANT phones...
Democracy is a sheep and two wolves deciding what to have for lunch. Freedom is a well armed sheep contesting the issue
I think you are thinking of their manufacturing license. Their hardware development license is no bid deal. http://mfi.apple.com/faqs.html They require individuals to manufacturer via. a big company but no such requirement for development.
As for lawyers executing an NDA that can required by states. For example in NJ there are fairly strong protections regarding agreements signed by an individual without council. I agree with you that means they want an enforceable NDA.
Actually I think that Apple go one better than the EU standard. A lot of iDevices (such as the nano, touch?) ship without a charger. All you get is a cable to connect your iDevice to a standard USB port on a computer or USB charger wall-wart (which you can purchase separately in the unlikely event that you don't already have one).
Result - no power supply to throw away at the end of life.
As to the change from the old 30-pin connector to lightning - I think that was going to happen anyway at some point. How many Samsung/Nokia/LG/Motorola phones have kept the same connector for the last 10 years? Devices have come down in size to the point where making them any smaller (or thinner) would have been impossible withoug getting rid of the old connector.
What most people care about is that their new iDevice comes with a cable that they can use to connect it to a computer/wall wart for charging purposes.
So long as Apple keep the same connector format for the next 10 or so years, accessoies will catch up quite quickly. I don't see most people having a problem with that.