With the recent release of the iPhone 6, Apple introduced a new, compact and reversible version of its proprietary lightning technology. This new technology replaced apples old 30-point Lightning cable. Phone models prior to the iPhone 5, iPod touch 4 and all iPad minis are incompatible with the new lightning cables.
Lightning Strikes the Tech World
Apple introduced the new lightning technology with its iPhone 5 release. The company says its compact design, versatility and speed is critical to the release of new product lines and versions. With the release of the iPhone 6, Apple revealed the smaller connector.
The iPhone 6 Lightning cable carries a digital signal and it uses its intelligence to activate. It uses a smaller 8-pin connector, which is also reversible. This addresses consumer issues with the prior version of unnecessary wear due to owners trying to plug old cords in upside down.
The lightning port is versatile also. It allows users to charge devices or allows a devise to power accessories. There are also adapters available to connect to other types of devices.
The iPhone 6 lightning cable gives Apple two distinct advantages over the competition; it improves accessibility by allowing it to be plugged in “upside down” and it offers bi-directionality which allows it to not only charge a device but also to charge other accessories.
Constant Improvements
Apple has more improvements working for the iPhone 6 lightning cable. Future versions are rumored to be reversible, allowing either end to be plugged in to the device.
The lightning also produces faster speeds but it is also very intelligent. All plugs contain a driver that that implements the adaptive features. The pins on the lightning cod are deactivated until the plug is inserted. At that point a wake up signal is sent and the chip in the plug is activated or aware it is plugged in. This prevents shorting which was an issue when the iPhone 5 was released.
The controller than tells the devise what type it is and like magic, excuses the proper function. It’s amazing technology all things considered.
Planning Ahead
Reasons for changing to the new iPhone 6 lightning included efforts to make later versions (iPhone 6 and beyond) thinner and more lightweight. The new lightning improves functionality including allowing users to directly control accessories from their phones.
It’s also 80 percent smaller than the previous 30-pin lightning version. The company claims it’s more durable. Users hope the days of stealing springs from ink pens and attaching them to lightning cords are gone, but opinions very on this.
The disadvantage, at the time of this writing, is users will need an adapter for the iPhone 6 lightning cable to work with older accessories. Adapters are widely available and they are relatively inexpensive.
Apple professes this is a technology that it here to stay. At some point there will probably be the need to replace this version. But for now, this is the face of lightning cords for years to come.
