Apple might end up attempting to control and limit USB-C compatibility in the iPhone 15.
If you haven’t been paying attention, Apple is tipped to finally ditch its proprietary Lightning port standard with the iPhone 15 and finally adopt the universal USB-C standard.
Don’t think that Apple is necessarily ready to go against its controlling nature and open its arms to the potential of universal compatibility, however. According to tipster ShrimpApplePro, “USB-C with MFi is happening”.
MFi, which stands for ‘Made For iPhone‘, is Apple’s licensing program that sees the manufacturer granting official approval to peripherals, ensuring their compatibility with its devices.
On the one hand, this can be reassuring for iPhone owners, as they know the new charger they’re just bought isn’t going to fry their expensive phone. On the other, it means that Apple will have the ability to restrict the functionality of USB-C chargers for its devices.
We might even get to the point where any non-MFi USB-C chargers – namely, every third party USB-C charger you currently have – shows up an error message when you try to use it on the iPhone 15 (and later).
If that sounds fanciful, keep in mind that this tallies with previous leaks on the matter. According to one claim, the USB-C port on the iPhone 15 family will come with a chip that checks for compatibility, just as the Lightning port currently does on the iPhone 14 and earlier.
Why continue to fit such a chip if Apple isn’t going to continue regulating the kind of peripheral you can use with its products?
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
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