After some supply chain checks, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo now claims that the 2023 iPhone 15 will ditch the Lightning connector and use USB-C instead.
In recent years, there have been repeated rumors that Apple will switch from Lightning to USB-C on the iPhone. In addition, the EU is about to oblige all smartphone manufacturers to do so, including Apple. In a new Twitter post Ming-Chi Kuo now says he believes this will happen with the “iPhone 15”.
My latest survey suggests that the new iPhone 2H23 will abandon the Lightning connector and switch to the USB-C connector. USB-C could improve the iPhone's transfer and charging speed in hardware designs, but the final details of the specifications still depend on iOS support. It is expected that the existing USB-C suppliers of the Apple ecosystem (e.g. IC controllers, connectors) will become the focus of the market in the next 1-2 years thanks to the numerous orders for iPhones and accessories with USB-C ports.
Will the iPhone 15 herald the end of the Lightning port?
To be clear, Kuo's recent tweets are primarily his own predictions and are not based on any hard evidence from the supply chain. He says this new information comes from his "latest survey," presumably of those suppliers. If the prediction is correct, a 2023 launch would mark the end of the Lightning connector as Apple's main charging cable after 13 years. USB-C was introduced shortly after Lightning in 2012. But it wasn't until the 12-inch MacBook in 2015 that Apple incorporated it. (Photo by Eremin / Bigstockphoto)
