Calm down, Apple fans. We're probably not going to lose the Lightning connector — not with the iPhone 8, at least.
The Wall Street Journal dropped a bombshell on the tech world earlier this week with a report claiming Apple's upcoming iPhone 8 will ditch the company's standard Lightning connector in favor of a USB-C port. This would be a huge move for Apple – on par with the iPhone 7 killing the headphone jack – as a shift in charging ports would leave loyal iPhone adherents with piles of Lightning-dependent accessories in the lurch.
However, new information claims all three of this year's iPhone models will keep the the Lightning connector, but they'll adopt USB-C Power Delivery technology for super-fast charging speeds. Reliable Apple insider Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities shared the news in his latest research note, which first surfaced on MacRumors.
Kuo's note says Apple will adapt the tech to its Lightning design in the new iPhones using Texas Instrument's power management and Cypress's Power Delivery chip solutions. The OLED display iPhone 8 might charge even faster than the other two models, thanks to its purported 2-cell L shaped battery pack design.
Kuo cited Apple's MiFi licensing program, which allows third-party partners to sell accessories for Apple's products, as a large factor in the decision to stick with the Lightning port. The company isn't ready for that revenue stream to dry up just yet, since a complete switch to USB-C would open accessories for the iPhone to a more general third-party market.
Apple's MacBook's switched to USB-C ports back in 2015, so this isn't the first time the company has embraced the tech. Some experts, including Mashable's own Lance Ulanoff, think a complete adoption of USB-C might be the best way to go — but as long as the money is there, it looks like Apple will keep Lightning around.
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