Everybody is expecting the 5.5-inch sapphire display iPhone 6 when Apple debuts its next generation of its flagship smartphone on the rumored Apple event on Sept. 9. But the new iPhone is said to have a seemingly small feature that can potentially change the game altogether-reversible USB cables.
Serial leaker Sonny Dickson, who has a long history of obtaining Apple parts and components before the devices are actually released, showed images of what he claims to be a two-way reversible Lightning USB cable that Apple will be using for the iPhone 6. The image compares Apple's purported next-generation cable, which is now said to support USB 3.0, placed next to the older Lightning cable, which can only support up to USB 2.0.
Reversible USB port on the new Lightning cables! pic.twitter.com/bhVKjK3xKl
— Sonny Dickson (@SonnyDickson) Aug. 17, 2014
The connector on the new USB cables is seen to have been slimmed down and placed on the center of the metal housing, making it possible to be connected to a port regardless of its orientation. In comparison, older USB connectors are placed on the bottom part and can only be connected with the right side up, making life much harder for users who take too long to connect their devices because they cannot figure out which way the connector fits.
The latest leak coincides with a new Apple patent application for a "reversible Universal Serial Bus plug connector comprising: a body; a dielectric base; a shell extending from the body and having an opening at a first end that communicates with a cavity defined by four inner surfaces of the shell and the dielectric base."
The new connector, Apple says, "may reduce the potential for USB connector damage and user frustration during the incorrect insertion of a USB plug connector into a corresponding USB receptacle connector of an electronic device."
The new feature looks to be Apple's adoption of the USB Type-C, a faster, slimmer USB standard with a reversible Type-C connector announced by the USB Promoter Group. The new USB Type-C looks pretty much like Apple's patented reversible USB connectors, with two USB 3.1 SuperSpeed connectors that allow users to insert the connector into a USB plug whichever way they wish. The connector also supports USB Power Delivery, which allows the cable to deliver up to 100 watts of power to the device it is connected to.
