iPhone 8 Will Use Lightning, With USB-C Fast Charging

According to Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone 8 will have a Lightning port. However, it will support USB-C fast charging. I believe this means that using a Lightning to USB-C cable will speed up the charging process. This makes sense as USB-C cables are made with this power-delivery capability in mind. What's interesting is that Lightning to USB-C cables likely already had this in mind. The cables may very well be in circulation already. This is just my speculation, but it is possible.

Potential iPhone 7 EarPods Leaked

MobileFunTV has showed off what appears to be the EarPods for the iPhone 7. They have the same design, but with a Lightning cable instead of the standard 3.5 mm headphone jack. In the video, the headphones appear to be fully functioning. However, from my perspective, the Lightning cable looks a bit fake. That doesn't rule out that the iPhone 7 will only use Lightning and Bluetooth headphones. The video is embedded below.

iPhone 7 Will Be Even Thinner!

Rumors from Mac Otakara have shown that the iPhone 7 will have a thinner design. How is this possible? Well, similar to the iPhone 5S and models before, the iPhone 7 will feature a flush camera. In addition, there will be a thinner Lightning port. Don't freak out, this won't require a new cable. The port is simply smaller without any compatibility changes. Anyways, let's hope these rumors stay true.

Image Credit: MacRumors

iPhone 7 Won't Have A Headphone Jack

Mac Otakara, a reliable rumor source (unfortunately), says that the iPhone 7, the next iPhone, will not have a headphone jack. Instead, it will use the Lightning connector as a port for wired audio. This probably means that we will see Lightning EarPods and Beats when the iPhone 7 comes out next year. While this is a let down to many, there is a slight upside. The iPhone 7 could potentially be 1mm thinner, about 6.1mm instead of 7.1mm (iPhone 6s).

How Apple Watch Demos Units Work

Thanks to Blog do iPhone, we now know how the Apple Watches in retail stores work. Basically, underneath where the band disappears into the case of the demo unit, there is a Lightning cable that connects to the much speculated diagnostic port of the Apple Watch. This establishes a connection from the Apple Watch to the case and the iPad mini in the case. This allows it to be charged throughout the day. In addition, it's how the iPad mini is able to show information about the app the Apple Watch is in. Apple managed to do a great job at keeping this hidden as many people tried to figure out what the diagnostic port was for.

Image Credit: MacRumors

Image Credit: MacRumors

Reversible USB Lightning Cable Might Not Come with The iPhone 6

Unfortunately, the rumors of the reversible USB Lightning cable won't be available by the release of the iPhone 6, according to Moca.co (an Apple third-party vendor). However, the new USB adapter design may be available by the release of the iPhone 6.

"We are informed by the Official Appointed Manufacturer of Apple that the new Reversible USB Cable will not be released together with upcoming iPhone 6 and Apple has not placed any order with them yet. Apple fans will not be able to get the MFi version of this revolutionary cable from Apple this year but that is not the end of the story."

- Moca.co

While the new, official cables won't be available for several months, you can still buy Moca.co's (not available yet) and Truffol's version of the cable.

Leaked Image of New Apple USB Power Adapter

This image shows a new power adapter supposedly made by Apple. This particular adapter has a new design. It's more of a rectangle instead of a square. This image is convincing because it has the "Designed by Apple in California" text with logos. This new design looks very similar to the USB power adapter sold in Australia, just with American prongs. The only reason the redesign makes much practical sense (at least to me), is for a comfortable grip on it. 

Buy The Reversible Lightning Cable Today!

Third party vendors have already started to manufacture reversible Lightning cables with USB Type-C ports. To learn more about this, check out my post about the subject. Basically Truffol has created one, priced at $9.99. It's a meter long. I haven't tried this, and I doubt it's certified by Apple (buy at your own risk). But try it out if you want. If you want one, check out Truffol's cable here.

Newer iOS Devices To Have Lightning Connector With Reversible Connector

According to these pictures (Credit to Dianxinshouji.com), Apple may shipping a new Lightning cable with a reversible side for the USB connector. It's known as USB 3.1 Type-C, which are faster and reversible compared to your standard USB 2.0 Type-A cable. This means you'll have to buy a brand new compu-- just kidding. The great part about these cables is that they still work with standard USB ports in your computer. These could potentially be packaged with the iPhone 6, next iPad mini, and iPad Air 2 this year.

30-Pin to Lightning Adapters

If you were ever to need to use a dock that only works with 30-pin iOS devices with an iPhone 5 (new iPod, iPad 4, or iPad Mini works too), what are you to do? Try an adapter! Starting at $29.99, these adapters can convert 30-pin adapters to Lightning cables. They come in two forms. There's a stub ($29.99) that is about the size of my thumb (keep in mind that as a teen, that I have relatively small thumbs) and is pocket sized. The other is a cord ($39.99). It looks like a charger cable. They have the same name as each other, so make sure you double check what you are buying. Either could work and there's really no disadvantage to either one other than price. I hope this will help you.

Apple sells Lighting to Micro-USB adapter

If you've ever owned a phone not made by Apple, this may be useful for you. Apple now sells an adapter for Micro-USB to Lightning. It's very small and had many uses. It just connects an iOS device with Lightning to any Micro-USB cable. It's main purpose is to charge or sync a device.

To learn more about the Lightning to Micro-USB cable, go to http://store.apple.com/us/product/MD820ZM/A/lightning-to-micro-usb-adapter?fnode=3a .

Lightning is USB 2.0

Has anyone noticed that the Lightning connector isn't USB 3.0. The connector is only 2.0. Which is much slower than USB 3.0. Especially considering that USB 3.0 is compatible with USB 2.0 ports. And that most of the Macs have been upgraded with many Thunderbolt ports and USB 3.0 ports. Please comment if you feel the same way or if you feel that there's a reason.

Something's Missing

When the iPhone 5 was announced, there was one thing that was missing. And no, it's not an iPhone Loop or Near Field Communication feature, or NFC. Although I think that would cool, that's not what's missing. There is no dock. And it's official, because Apple's own Phil Schiller (Senior Vice President of Marketing) sent an email about it.

Schiller wrote:
We do not plan on making a dock for the iPhone 5. Most people who use docks use them with speaker or clock systems.

He signed the email with, "Sent from my iPhone 5".