Apple, if you believe the unofficial information, is preparing to release the iPhone 17 Air this fall — the thinnest smartphone in its history. The company considered making it the first model without a charging port at all, but abandoned the idea, fearing that it would lead to a conflict with the EU authorities. As it turned out, there will be no obstacles from their side to such a project.
Image source: apple.com
A few years ago, to comply with European legislation, Apple had to abandon its proprietary Lightning port in favor of USB Type-C, which had become the standard in the region. European officials were concerned about the problem of electronic waste caused by smartphones and other consumer electronics using different charging ports, which meant that consumers needed different chargers. So the decision was made to switch to a single charging port. When the initiative was first proposed, the most common connector was microUSB, but by the time the law was adopted, USB Type-C had become the de facto standard, which was spelled out in the document. By that time, Apple had already switched Mac and iPad to USB Type-C, and the last port to receive this port was the iPhone. The deadline was the end of December 2024, and Apple withdrew the iPhone SE and iPhone 14 with the outdated Lightning from European sales.
The company is currently working on a radically thin iPhone 17 Air, and according to Bloomberg analyst Mark Gurman, there was some talk about removing the wired charging port altogether. However, Apple decided to abandon the idea, in part because it feared it would violate European regulations. Now, the EU has confirmed that the device without a charging port does not violate any regulations. The idea is that if a device has a charging port, it must be USB Type-C, but that does not mean USB Type-C is mandatory.
«Since such radio equipment cannot be charged using a wired charger, it may not include a harmonized charging solution. The Commission will promote the standardization of wireless charging in order to avoid future fragmentation of the internal market and possible negative consequences for consumers and the environment. The Commission will monitor the development of all types of wireless charging technologies (not only inductive), in particular the market dynamics, the level of penetration of technologies, their compatibility, energy efficiency and charging speed. As stated in point 13 of the Single Charger Directive, “the Commission should take measures to promote and standardize such solutions in order to avoid future fragmentation of the internal market,” 9to5Mac quotes Commission spokesperson Federica Miccoli as saying.
In January 2023, Apple transferred its MagSafe technology developments to the Wireless Power Consortium, which formed the basis of the Qi2 standard. Thus, a smartphone without a wired charging port, but with MagSafe, will not cause claims from European authorities. It is unlikely that Apple will decide to take such a step with the iPhone 17 Air, but the release of an iPhone without ports now seems only a matter of time.
«Since such radio equipment cannot be charged using a wired charger, it may not include a harmonized charging solution. The Commission will promote the harmonization of wireless charging in order to avoid future fragmentation of the internal market and any negative consequences for consumers and the environment. The Commission will monitor the development of all types of wireless charging technologies (not only inductive), in particular market development, market penetration, market fragmentation, technological performance, compatibility, energy efficiency and charging performance. As stated in point 13 of the Single Charger Directive, “the Commission should take measures to promote and harmonize such solutions in order to avoid future fragmentation of the internal market,” 9to5Mac quotes Commission spokesperson Federica Miccoli as saying.
In January 2023, Apple transferred its MagSafe technology developments to the Wireless Power Consortium, which formed the basis of the Qi2 standard. Thus, a MagSafe phone without a wired charging port will not cause any claims from European authorities. The company will probably not take such a step with the iPhone 17 Air, but the release of an iPhone without ports now seems like a matter of time.