If there is one thing that I hope 2024 brings, I hope that it is the final push to end the Lightning port on Apple devices, once and for all.
While it was fine for most that Apple delayed its USB-C future for a while, we’ve passed that point and are now in a future where almost every new technology product, including Apple’s products, is using the new charging standard. There’s no more room for Lightning in the world, so it’s time for Apple to finish its rollout of USB-C and lay Lightning to rest.
We’re almost a decade into this transition
We’ve been on this road for a while now. The first Apple product to feature a USB-C port was the now-discontinued 12-inch MacBook that the company released back in 2015, so we’re almost a decade into this USB-C journey. I owned that 12-inch MacBook and can say that the also-now deceased Butterfly keyboard was fine — I know I am in the minority when I say that.
So, where do we stand eight years later? Well, we finally have USB-C on the iPhone with the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. The iPad lineup has mostly made the switch to USB-C with the new 10th-generation iPad, the iPad Air, and the iPad Pro. Of course, the Mac has also made the switch to USB-C (not that it had Lightning before) with Apple’s new M-Series models. Even the Siri Remote for the Apple TV has switched to USB-C.
Okay, that seems like everything, right? If the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV have all made the switch to USB-C, aren’t we good here? Wrong, people. The devil is in the accessories with this one.
What’s left in the Lightning lineup?
So, what Apple products are left that haven’t made the jump to USB-C? The most obvious one is the iPhone SE. Apple’s most affordable phone is still rocking that Lightning port in 2023, despite getting an update earlier this year. Of course, that’s not too surprising, considering that the company was sure to bring the new connector to its flagship phones before its “cheap” one. Hopefully, USB-C will come to the iPhone SE when we get our next update to the device — something that is expected to happen in 2024.
Another big one to note is the iPad. While Apple has a new base model iPad with its 10th generation, it has still kept the 9th generation iPad in the lineup with that pesky Lightning port. The company has also kept — well, really had to keep — that weird Apple Pencil with a Lightning port that plugs into the side of the iPad and looks like a spear coming out of the thing. Hopefully, both of those devices will be put out to pasture soon.
The last main Apple product that is still rocking Lightning are the AirPods Max, Apple’s most premium and expensive headphones. It does feel a little insane that the rest of the AirPods lineup like AirPods and AirPods Pro got the update to USB-C before the AirPods Max did, but this one falls into the same scenario as the iPhone SE — Apple just hasn’t released a new generation of its premium over-the-ear headphones yet. USB-C is sure to come to the 2nd-generation AirPods Max when they release — something that is expected to happen next year.
The rest of the Lightning leftovers are strewn across the company’s other accessories like keyboards, mice, and chargers. You still can’t buy a USB-C version of the Magic Mouse, Magic Keyboard, MagSafe Battery Pack, and MagSafe Duo Charger. The company even stopped selling the MagSafe Battery Pack and MagSafe Duo Charger without releasing a USB-C replacement.
Here’s hoping 2024 is the end of Lightning
Hopefully, Apple uses 2024 to finally finish its transition to USB-C. Heck, the company completed the transition from Intel to its own M-Series processors faster than it has been able to transition from Lightning to USB-C!
Personally, I’m waiting on the USB-C version of the AirPods Max. That’s the one product that is keeping me from leaving behind Lightning for good. Hopefully, any of us who are waiting to step into that USB-C future can do so next year. Come on, Apple! We’re so close.