The European Union has mandated the use of USB-C for all wired charging systems in electronic devices. The legislation was mainly aimed at Apple and their proprietary Lightning port and will force them to switch over to the universal standard. Or, will it though?
European Union lawmakers have come to a consensus and passed a law that all electronic devices sold after Autumn 2024, will have to be equipped with the universal USB-C port for wired charging. While this may not be an issue for most tech companies, several experts believe that this may be a blow to Apple, since most of the legislation was actually aimed at Apple and its insistence on using its proprietary Lightning port.
![USB-C made mandatory for phones sold in EU from 2024 but Apple has a clever trick up its sleeve]()
Apple has had a separate revenue stream all thanks to its Lightning port for a really long time, hence the reluctance to switch to USB-C for some of its most popular devices, like the iPhones and AirPods. Apple does provide USB-C charging on a number of its devices - certain MacBooks, and iPads do come with USB-C charging. However, these are not the products that Apple sells in high numbers. It is the iPhones, AirPods and Apple watches that Apple sells the most, all devices that do not use the universal standard. By controlling the manner in which some of its most selling products are charged, Apple has been able to create a healthy revenue stream from the most unlikely of places - chargers and charging cables. Even if a user buys a third party Lightning cable from a different manufacturer, the manufacturer has to pay Apple a licensing fee to be able to use the Lightning port. No matter how one looks at it, you end up paying Apple in some way or the other when you buy a new charger for your iPhone, AirPods, or Apple Watch. EU hopes that thanks to its new legislation, they have made a common charger a reality for Europe, and therefore the world. That, unfortunately, is simply not true. Not only are there different standards within USB-C itself, but several smartphone manufacturers are also moving away from wired charging altogether. And guess which tech company is at the forefront of that. Apple has made no qualms about the fact that they want to get rid of all ports from the personal devices that they offer. Apple has been trying to get rid of its Lightning port and replace it with a wireless charger for a very long time. Even though it was late to the bandwagon that wireless charging has become, the tech company has adopted the technology in a much more efficient manner than most of its Android based counterparts. There also have been several rumours that the iPhone 15 in all likelihood will get rid of the Lightning port and will only rely on wireless charging. The only thing that EU’s 2024 deadline has managed to do, is give Apple a deadline for getting rid of the Lightning cable altogether. Having said that, there is a possibility albeit a very tiny one, that Apple switches over to the USB-C standard. They did so for some of the iPads as well as some Macs.
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