iMore claims that Apple may be transitioning away from the standard 30-pin dock connector to something more compact in the very near future.
An updated “micro dock” could make room for bigger batteries, 4G radios, and other components far more important to the iPhone and iPad in a PC free world.
As the site points out, Apple has worked hard to miniaturize other components in their iOS devices. Apple was one of the first to adopt the micro-SIM and has even proposed an even smaller SIM card design so they could make even thinner designs.
As iMore points out, the current dock connector isn't huge, but as devices continue to get smaller and thinner, every little bit counts.
Moving away from such a ubiquitous connector, however, would be walking away from an enormous ecosystem of existing 3rd party products. Still, Apple's constant desire to make smaller/thinner designs will naturally put pressure on the size of all their components. Apple's recent move to PC-free computing with iCloud syncing may have also diminished the importance of the dock connector.
We reached out to iMore's Editor-in-Chief Rene Ritchie who said that the report came from a "solid source". iMore also made headlines recently by predicting the date for the iPad 3 launch, which is believed to be accurate.
Friday January 17, 2025 2:42 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
iOS 19 is still around six months away from being announced, but a new leak has allegedly revealed a completely redesigned Camera app.
Based on footage it obtained, YouTube channel Front Page Tech shared a video showing what the new Camera app will apparently look like, with the key change being translucent menus for camera controls. Overall, the design of these menus looks similar to...
Thursday January 16, 2025 6:45 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today adjusted estimated trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models in the U.S., according to its website.
Some values increased, while others decreased. The changes were not too significant, with most values rising or dropping by $5 to $50.
We have outlined some examples below:
Device
New Value
Old Value
iPhone 15 Pro Max
Up to $630
U ...
Sunday January 19, 2025 6:58 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple on late Saturday removed TikTok from the App Store in the U.S., and it has now explained why it was required to take this action.
Last year, the U.S. passed a law that required Chinese company ByteDance to divest its ownership of TikTok due to potential national security risks, or else the platform would be banned. That law went into effect today, and companies like Apple and Google...
Thursday January 16, 2025 12:39 pm PST by Juli Clover
Apple provided the third beta of iOS 18.3 to developers today, and while the betas have so far been light on new features, the third beta makes some major changes to Notification Summaries and also tweaks a few other features.
Notification Summary Changes
Apple made multiple changes to Notification Summaries in response to complaints about inaccurate summaries of news headlines.
For...
Saturday January 18, 2025 10:28 am PST by Joe Rossignol
iOS 19 will not drop support for any iPhone models, according to French website iPhoneSoft.fr.
The report cited a source who said iOS 19 will be compatible with any iPhone that can run iOS 18, which would mean the following models:
iPhone 16
iPhone 16 Plus
iPhone 16 Pro
iPhone 16 Pro Max
iPhone 15
iPhone 15 Plus
iPhone 15 Pro
iPhone 15 Pro Max
iPhone 14
iPhon...
Friday January 17, 2025 3:38 pm PST by Juli Clover
For the last several months, we've been hearing rumors about a redesigned version of the iPhone 17 that Apple might call the iPhone 17 "Air," or something along those lines. It's going to replace the iPhone 17 Plus as Apple's fourth iPhone option, and it will be offered alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max.
We know the iPhone 17 Air is going to be super slim, but...
Sunday January 19, 2025 6:02 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to expand the iPhone's redesigned Mail app to the Mac starting with macOS 15.4, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
The first macOS 15.4 beta should be made available in the coming weeks, and Apple has previously suggested that the iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4 series of software updates will be released to the public in April.
The revamped Mail app debuted on all...
Sunday January 19, 2025 8:25 am PST by Joe Rossignol
In September, Apple said that it would be launching Powerbeats Pro 2 in 2025, and it appears the wireless earbuds are coming very soon.
Powerbeats Pro 2 images found in iOS 18 code
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the Powerbeats Pro 2 are "due imminently." In addition to Apple filing the Powerbeats Pro 2 in regulatory databases last month, Gurman said Apple is...
...
Moving away from such a ubiquitous connector, however, would be walking away from an enormous ecosystem of existing 3rd party products. Still, Apple's constant desire to make smaller/thinner designs will naturally put pressure on the size of all their components. Apple's recent move to PC-free computing with iCloud syncing may have also diminished the importance of the dock connector.
...
Most likely there will be an adapter cable made by someone so people can use their existing add-ons.
I thought the future is clear on this: wireless sync :confused:
The dock connector is used to charge the phone as well. You can't wirelessly sync a device that has no battery power. Additionally, wireless sync activates by default when it detects a power input.
I thought the EU was requiring all devices to use micro USB without a dongle. Did i misunderstand that?
Yes, you did misunderstand. Apple is currently getting by with shipping a dock to micro USB adapter with iPhone in Europe. Changing what the dock looks like, as long as they continue to supply a sufficient adapter, will keep them within the confines of the law.
