As if all things iOS weren’t expensive enough, Apple jacks up iPhone 5 replacement charger price by $9

A replacement charger setup for the iPhone 5, which uses the new Lightning dock connector, will cost you 24 percent more than a 30-pin charger setup.

The iPhone 5 may cost the same as the iPhone 4S did when it was first released last year, but as for a replacement charger for the hot new Apple handset, well, you’re going to have to cough up some more cash.

The USB power adapter plus a 30-pin USB cable — the full charger setup for an iPhone 4S or older, iPad, or iPod — costs $29 through Apple’s website, just as it always has. However, Apple does not sell the USB power adapter and the new Lightning dock connector cable for the iPhone 5 together — you have to buy those separately, at a cost of $19 apiece.

That means iPhone 5 customers are forced to pay $9 more — an increase of roughly 24 percent — for a replacement or spare charger setup than customers with the iPhone 4S or older.

This does not make much sense, at least on the surface. Like the standard 30-pin to USB cable, a new Lightning cable will cost you $19. So theoretically, Apple should offer iPhone 5 customers the package deal (USB adapter plus Lightning cable) at a cost of $29.

We’ve reached out to Apple to see if they have a $29 Lightning charger package in the works, but have not yet heard back. We will update this space as soon as we do.

The 24 percent price hike follows complaints about the new Lightning-to-30-pin adapter, which comes with every iPhone 5, due to its relatively high cost: A replacement for that will cost you $29 (or $39) through Apple.

All said, we would be highly surprised if this jump in price is permanent; the company didn’t officially raise the price of the full charger setup, after all. It simply failed to offer that option, meaning we have to piece it together ourselves, at a cost. Further, we doubt the $9 difference will have much impact on sales of the iPhone 5, which have already topped 5 million in just a matter of days. Still, forcing iPhone 5 customers to lay out an extra nine bucks for a replacement charger seems to us an unhelpful oversight, at best. 

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/apple-jacks-up-iphone-5-replacement-charger-price/

Read More

Analyst: iPhone 5 Lightning connector here to stay

Lightning an investment for the future

Apple has made a long-term investment into its new Lightning connector for iPhone 5, according to one analyst who has probed the escalating costs of the new components.

The 8-pin solution, which replaces the 30-pin tech for the iPhone 5 handset (available Friday), costs Apple an average of $3.50 (£2.15) per device, compared to $0.40 (£0.24) for the 30-pin connector.

That's an 775 percent increase in costs, KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said.

He also said the introduction of Lightning is the biggest increase in iPhone manufacturing costs for Apple.

The Lightning cable itself costs Apple $6.00 (£3.63) a head, Kuo revealed, which is up 233 percent from the $1.80 (£1.10) it was paying suppliers for every 30-pin cable.

10-year investment

The analyst said these escalating costs are a result of the newness of the Lightning technology, which makes it more difficult and expensive to manufacture at this early stage of its lifespan.

This early investment, the cost of which will fall dramatically in years to come, should mean that Apple is unlikely to be in any rush to replace it once again.

Kuo estimated that the Lightning connector will be around for at least five years and perhaps as long as a decade, which would match the lifespan of the 30-pin technology that was introduced in 2003.

Apple will also make money back from licensing the tech to accessory-makers, who're sure to be plotting a host of new speaker docks, adapters, and charging solutions as we speak.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/analyst-iphone-5-lightning-connector-here-to-stay-1099003

Read More

Apple’s new Lightning cable and its many expensive adaptors

Apple's new iPhone 5 uses the equally new Lightning connector, but what does that mean for your old accessories?

One of the key changes on the new iPhone 5 is the introduction of the Lightning, a new cable replacement for the old 30-pin connector, introduced nearly ten years ago, that we all know and (sometimes) love.

Despite its name going hand-in-hand with Apple’s Thunderbolt connection, it still connects to a USB port, and the changes come at the business end. It’s 80-percent smaller than the old connector, apparently less likely to break and it’s reversible too, so you can plug it into your phone or new iPod without checking its orientation first.

Apple also says its 8-pin, all-digital cable is faster too, but there’s no mention of by how much, or in what respect. We’ll find out more when we get our hands on one.

A lot of adapters

All this sounds good, but it’s not all positive, as anyone with an accessory for an older iPhone that relies on the 30-pin connector, won’t be able to instantly use it with the new iPhone 5.

Not to worry, as Apple has a plan, and it involves buying an expensive adapter. The first, and most basic, is at least 80-percent larger than the Lightning and a full 100-percent uglier too. The Lightning to 30-pin adapter costs $29/£25, and is ideally suited to use with audio docks, where the iPhone has to sit on a base. It’s overall steadiness in this situation though, remains to be seen.

If you’d prefer not to precariously balance your new phone on a series of ever-smaller connectors, the Lightning to 30-pin adapter with a cable maybe preferable. It’s as it sounds — splitting the two ends between a 20cm long piece of cable — but will cost you $39/£30 instead. Apple will also sell standard USB to Lightning cables, priced at $19/£15.

No audio and video out

Apple has warned that not every piece of equipment will function even with an adapter, so don’t be surprised if you end up having to buy a new accessory anyway, and the adapters don’t support audio or video out either.

Heading over to Europe, we find another Lightning adapter, and it’s one that Apple has to provide whether it likes it or not. In 2009, a piece of EU legislation was introduced for manufacturers to adopt a common standard for mobile phone chargers, which turned out to be the micro-USB.

Neither the 30-pin connector, nor the new Lightning comply with this, but it’s acceptable to offer an adapter instead, thus we have the Lightning to micro-USB Adapter, which costs £15, or 19 Euros.

If you’re ready to order your new iPhone 5, and want a new dock to go with it, Apple told GigaOm.com that JBL, Bose, Bowers & Wilkins and Bang & Olufsen will be among the first to offer Lightning-equipped docks, and we should look out for them as we get closer to Christmas.

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/apples-lightning-cable-and-its-many-adaptors/

Read More

Report: Apple will be sole provider of dock adapters

Apple may be the only company selling adapters for their new dock connector

Apple has confirmed a September 12 event to unveil what many believe to be the iPhone 5.

While there are still questions about just what kind of devices Apple will be displaying at next week's event, there are still a few other rumors to address.

About a month ago, reports of a smaller dock connector began making the rounds, culminating in the leaked photo of what could be the iPhone 5's new cable.

Though a new, smaller connection makes sense in conjunction with all the other specification rumors about the iPhone 5, there was still the curious question of adapters for existing devices.

According to the most recent report, there will be adapters made for the new smaller dock connector.

However, it appears that Apple will be the only company making them.

No third-party cables or adapters for Apple's new iDevices?

iLounge compared this latest report to earlier suggestions that Apple was not sharing specifications for dock connector accessories, or the cables themselves.

Sources point to the new adapters costing $10 each, or $29 for three, and replacement cables running $19 a piece.

By being the sole provider of the adapters, it's believed Apple will make nearly $100 million if early estimates of selling through 10 million adapters by the end of the year are true.

According to iLounge, several developers are concerned Apple will have a stranglehold on the cable and adapter market, the very same way they do with their MagSafe connectors.

Whatever the case may be, we won't have to wonder what Apple's plans are for much longer, as the company's plans will be unveiled in one week.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/report-apple-will-be-sole-provider-of-dock-adapters-1094999

Read More