No USB-C Connector on iPhone 8: Analyst

Consumer Electronics

Published: March 2, 2017 12:56 pm

Last Updated: January 12, 2020 2:19 pm

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A rumor reported first in The Wall Street Journal on Monday that new iPhones from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) would use a USB-C connector for both charging and headset connections has been scotched in a research note from Ming-Chi Kuo, a technology analyst at KGI Securities.

According to a report at AppleInsider, which obtained a copy of Kuo’s report, Apple is expected to use what is called “Type-C” power delivery technology rather than switch the iPhone port to accept the USB-C-style connector that Apple introduced with its latest MacBooks.

The current Lightning connector that was introduced with the iPhone 5 will use power management technology from Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN) and power delivery chips from Cypress Semiconductor Corp. (NASDAQ: CY) according to Kuo, who focuses his attention on Apple.

In addition to making customers who purchase new iPhones mad, a switch to a USB-C cable and connector offers an advantage primarily for faster transfer of high-definition video. But that, notes Kuo, is a niche application for the iPhone, which eliminates the need for the company to persuade buyers that it’s worth spending a lot more money for new cables and accessories for a technology most don’t need and will never fully use.

One feature of the new iPhones — fast charging — must play nicely with data transmission while the device is charging. Combined with making sure the whole system will operate safely is quite enough to keep hardware engineers busy going into the next iPhone release. Adding a new connector and cable type just complicates things.

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