Apple could be forced to abandon its famous lightning charger under proposed new legislation from the European Commission.
According to Reuters, the European Commission — which is comprised of 27 nations in the EU — is set to present legislation to establish one universal charger for mobile phones and other similar devices. And considering most other brands already opt for either a USB-C or micro-USB charger, Apple is set to be the hardest hit by the proposed legislation.
As per a 2019 study by the European Commission, approximately half of chargers sold with mobile phones in the EU in 2018 were micro-USB, while an additional 29% used a USB-C charger. While these devices are from a variety of different brands, 21% of devices sold contained Apple’s unique lightning chargers.
Whether micro-USB or USB-C is chosen as the charger of choice, Apple will have to adapt if the legislation passes.
The legislation is yet to be presented and is still being drafted, but according to Reuters lawmakers at EU Parliament last year voted “overwhelmingly in favour of a common charger” for both convenience and environmental benefits.
However, Apple has argued that the move to a common charger would see an “unprecedented amount of electronic waste” and disrupt “hundreds of millions of active devices and accessories used by our European customers”.
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There’s no word yet on whether the legislation will be passed, or how long it will take before we potentially see iPhones with USB-C or micro-USB chargers. However, if the legislation is passed, it could completely change the way we charge iPhones.
Either Apple will be forced to adapt to a different charging cable, or perhaps the iPhone will just move to a wireless-only charging method, which wouldn’t be completely surprising considering most new models already have that option. But alas, we’ll just have to see what happens.