Since last year, there were whispers online that Apple will soon release a portless iPhone. While the Cupertino company has not yet made any statement related to the rumor, some members of the European Parliament seemingly want the tech giant to lose its Lightning port to minimize waste. However, Apple responded to the potential European Commission ban of its lightning port, according to BBC.
Apple Offers Response
According to the Cupertino giant, scrapping the Lightning port would produce more waste. Apple argues that the proposal would cause an 'unprecedented volume of electronic waste.' It would also cause inconvenience to many users, says the tech giant.
Apple claims that banning the Lightning port would harm not only the consumers but also the entire economy. The company claims that consumers would be wasting the accessories that they already purchased. To further drive to its point, Apple cites a report from Copenhagen Economics.
The report suggests that a single-device end connector could cause consumer value losses of at least €1.5 billion. Moreover, the Cupertino company underlines that, at present, more than half of the EU households are using one type of device connectors on all their mobile devices. Apple says that for 'those households, there is no scope to lessen the number of chargers they use by obliging a single device-end connector.'
The official statement of the Cupertino tech giant underlines that legislation would have a direct negative effect. It could disrupt countless active accessories and devices that are currently used by European customers as well as Apple customers worldwide. Apple adds that it could create an 'unprecedented volume of electronic waste and would greatly inconvenience users.'
EU Wants A Universal Port For All Smartphones
It seems that the European Parliament would like Apple to ditch its Lightning port. This particular port is a USB connection exclusively used by the Cupertino company's own devices. It includes the iPhone, iPad, and Beats headphones.
When a company locks its consumers with exclusive ports, it has environmental repercussions, according to the European lawmakers. With a universal port, there is no need to buy another cable that Apple device users usually do for their other devices. The lawmakers believe that cable duplication results in additional waste. Based on the EU's data, there are over 51,000 metric tons of these cables.
Portless iPhone
Talks about a potential portless iPhone surfaced last year based on the report of TF Securities Analyst and Apple tipster Ming-Chi Kuo. In case it happens, iPhones would fully dependent on wireless charging and over the air transfers. When that time comes, it would be interesting to see how Apple would rationalize that its Lightning port suddenly becomes obsolete.
