It’s all however sure that Apple’s total iPhone 15 lineup will make the long-awaited change to USB-C this yr. Nevertheless, a sequence of current rumors has raised hopes that Apple could also be planning to transcend the naked minimal USB-C commonplace for its flagship iPhone Professional fashions, delivering sooner charging and information switch speeds.
In November, when venerable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that the 2023 iPhone lineup would make the change from Lightning to USB-C, he added that we may count on “wired high-speed switch” on the iPhone 15 Professional and iPhone 15 Professional Max — seemingly “at the least” USB 3.2 or Thunderbolt 3 speeds. This may put the utmost throughput someplace round 10Gbps, a marked enchancment over the 480mbps USB 2.0 commonplace used with the iPhone Lightning port because it debuted over ten years in the past.
Sadly, even again then, Kuo predicted that the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus would retain those self same 480mbps USB 2.0 switch speeds within the transition to USB-C, which lines up with a report we heard this week that Apple will only include USB 2.0 cables in the box.
After all, the truth that Apple will solely embrace a USB 2.0 cable doesn’t rule out the likelihood that the usual iPhone 15 fashions could also be able to information switch speeds. In any case, Apple packed in slower 5W charging bricks for years after the iPhone gained 18W+ charging speeds.
Nonetheless, there hasn’t been almost as a lot buzz about sooner USB transfers on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus. The closest we’ve heard is an analysis of leaked photos earlier this month that prompt three iPhone 15 fashions may get even sooner Thunderbolt/USB4 ports, able to switch speeds of as much as 40Gbps.
The leaked photographs that presupposed to characterize USB-C parts for the iPhone 15 lineup included three distinctive elements, two of which had been supposedly for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus. Nevertheless, it’s price noting that there’s no agency proof that these photographs are reputable.
Nonetheless, a tweet by leaker Kosutami, who beforehand shared a report on color-matched USB-C cables for this year’s iPhones, has revealed what they declare is a USB4 information switch cable that Apple will promote individually for the iPhone 15 Professional.
The existence of such a cable, if true, would seem to substantiate that at the least the iPhone 15 Professional and iPhone 15 Professional Max will achieve sooner USB4 information switch speeds. Kosutami also adds that the cable is capable of supporting up to 150W charging speeds, which might make it sooner than Apple’s 100W Thunderbolt 4 Pro cable, which sells for $129 and is available in at 1.8 meters in size. This iPhone Professional-specific cable is predicted to come back in at 0.8 meters, which can additionally assist make it extra reasonably priced.
Earlier than you get your hopes up, it’s extraordinarily unlikely that the iPhone 15 Professional and iPhone 15 Professional Max will assist 150W charging speeds. Whereas that would definitely put it up there with the fastest-charging Android smartphones on the planet, most of these are nonetheless thought-about outliers, and lots of aren’t even out there within the US.
One other report final week suggests some iPhone 15 models could reach 35W speeds, which appears way more cheap and would put it extra on par with its rivals. The iPhone Professional’s largest competitor, Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Extremely, prices at speeds of as much as 45W, whereas Google’s Pixel 7 Professional, at 23W, is slower than the 27W most of the iPhone 14 Professional Max.
It’s price preserving in thoughts that Apple’s total Mac lineup now helps Thunderbolt/USB4, with the higher-end fashions sporting full Thunderbolt 4 ports. So, simply because Apple is making a USB4 cable, this doesn’t imply it’s making it for the iPhone; it’s solely attainable the sources of those leaks are misinterpreting what they’re seeing.
There’s little doubt that sooner switch speeds are sorely wanted, particularly for Apple’s iPhone Professional fashions, which might retailer huge video recordsdata when capturing within the ProRes format, however full 40Gbps speeds is perhaps hoping for a bit an excessive amount of. To place this in perspective, a five-minute 4K/60fps ProRes video would take round quarter-hour to switch over USB 2.0. At 20 occasions sooner, USB 3.2 will already scale back that to beneath a minute.
It in the end comes all the way down to how “Professional” Apple desires to make this yr’s iPhone 15 Professional fashions. The M2-powered iPad Professional lineup features a USB4/Thunderbolt port, so it’s not exterior the realm of risk that Apple may give the iPhone 15 Professional the identical therapy for people who wish to use it for critical video work, however that’s a comparatively small fraction of the iPhone Professional’s goal market, so Apple has to stability including premium options like this in opposition to driving up the prices for almost all of iPhone Professional customers who will seemingly by no means plug their iPhone Professional right into a Thunderbolt/USB4 port even to cost it, a lot much less have to switch huge ProRes video recordsdata to a Mac.
[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]