Will Apple Get Rid of Charger Cable in the iPhone Boxes

By Carrie Tsai,  Last Updated: December 21, 2020INDUSTRY

According to the report published by 9to5Mac, recently, Apple conducted an after-sale survey among selected iPhone 12 users asking them about whether and how often they use the bundled accessories in the retail box including the iPhone charger cable, SIM ejecting puller, and Apple stickers and how well they are experiencing Face ID.

Obviously, after marketing iPhone 12 without a charger and a free pair of EarPods, it seems that Apple is immediately girding its loins to consider making some major changes in the future iPhone boxes. Actually, the American giant always tends to launch a survey among a small selection of its users on upcoming changes of its products.

To recall, before the iPhone 12 was launched, Apple sent a similar survey to a small set of users regarding the use of the USB charger that at the time came bundled with iPhones. After a while, the iPhone 12 has been launched and shipped without the charger. Now, as a new survey considering the use of accessories included in the iPhone 12 box was done, it seems that Apple could be mulling over doing the same with the charging cable and other included accessories as well.

Here, the question is, will Apple exclude the charger cable from future iPhone boxes? Well, the answer isn't definite since the survey isn't a guarantee and cannot prove anything. However, there is still a great possibility that Apple could remove the USB-C to Lightning charging cable from the upcoming iPhone 13. Keep reading to learn the reasons.

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Apple Always Tends to Push iPhone Towards Wireless

The biggest reason why there is a big possibility that Apple may ditch the iPhone charger cable from the boxes of the future iPhones lies in the future of the iPhone or even all mobile phones. In other words, it's the future wireless iPhone that fuels all of Apple's controversial and surprising decisions to exclude some complementary accessories from the retail box.

In fact, the future of mobile phones will undoubtedly go towards wireless and Apple is always acting as a trendsetter to push the industry towards wireless by initially making some major changes regarding its iPhone. The Cupertino tech giant actually has been building blocks from wireless earphones connection to wireless charging for a near-future iPhone that is totally wireless.

Wireless Earphones Connection

In terms of earphones connection, Apple has already made some controversial changes such as killing the 3.5mm headphone jack from the iPhone X and ditching the free pair of EarPods from the iPhone 12 box which are helpful in the move to wireless earphones connection.

To recall, the removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack indeed pushed Apple to launch its most successful product in years - AirPods, a pair of TWS wireless Bluetooth earphones. And this breakthrough product indeed inspired a slew of earphone makers to produce and sell AirPods knockoffs and other wireless earphones, which moved the industry towards wireless considering earphones connection.

Get back to the recent removal of the free EarPods from the iPhone 12 box, this move further pushes more iPhone users especially new iPhone comers to choose to purchase Apple's AirPods series, which makes iPhone further go towards wireless regarding earphones connection.

Wireless Charging

Just like ditching the 3.5mm headphone jack and a free pair of wired EarPods which help iPhone move towards wireless in earphones connection, Apple's decision to not ship iPhone 12 with charger and the great possibility that it may leave the essential USB-C to Lightning charging cable out of future iPhone boxes actually pave the way for an iPhone that is totally wireless in charging.

By ditching the charger from the iPhone 12 box, Apple is actually pushing towards wireless charging further. This change will make some iPhone users to switch from wired charger to wireless charger such as Apple's MagSafe wireless charger introduced by Apple in iPhone 12 lineup for charging and connecting accessories.

In order to further push iPhone towards wireless regarding charging, it's most likely that Apple could exclude the iPhone charging cable which is essential for wired charging from future iPhones.

The Upcoming iPhone 13 May Come with No Charging Port

Besides, according to a recent report, it stated that a leaker from Apple pointed out that Apple is ready for its portless iPhone plans. This means that next year's iPhone 13 may not feature a Lightning charging port.

If the next-generation iPhone won't come with a charging port, it won't be able to work with any smartphone chargers and charging cable, meaning that a charger and a charging cable of its own will not be required any more. If this will be the case, the iPhone will become totally wireless, which will even make any wired earphones not work with the iPhones.

At this point, you may be wondering if Apple will have the capacity to make port-less iPhone work properly with wireless earphones connection and wireless charging. In fact, this American giant has been already making preparations for the move to port-less iPhone.

It has already developed and sold a variety of wireless accessories from wireless earphones to wireless charger which will work great with the upcoming iPhone that comes with no charging port. By following Apple's pace, a great number of manufacturers produce their own wireless earphones and wireless chargers, making wireless accessories have sufficient supply in the market.

In other words, when the port-less iPhone is coming, buyers will already be prepared for it as they'll already have or will be able to buy a plethora of wireless accessories from wireless earphones to wireless chargers which will be well compatible with the port-less iPhone.

Hence, the possibility that Apple could remove the iPhone charger cable from the box of the upcoming iPhone 13 is big. After all, Apple, on the one hand, is always tending to push the iPhone towards wireless from wireless earphones connection to wireless charging. On the other hand, there is a great possibility that the next-year's iPhone 13 will be port-less, meaning that the iPhone charging cable won't be required any longer.

Apple Could Save Cost If More Accessories Will Be Excluded

Another reason why Apple may remove what else can be removed from the package of the upcoming iPhone including the iPhone charger cable, the SIM ejecting puller and Apple logo stickers could rest in Apple's intention to cut some costs from excluding some accessories for the more expensive components added to the next-generation iPhone.

If you recall, you can find that part of the reason of the removal of the charger and the free EarPods from the iPhone 12 this year is to cut some cost from the increased cost from components for integrated 5G technology so as to maintain the same price point as the iPhone 11.

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Much like this, guided by the survey results, Apple could decide to exclude the essential USB-C to Lightning charging cable or any other bundled accessories from the upcoming iPhone box in order to mitigate some cost from some of the components for new technologies added to the new iPhone.

Apple Could Make Some Extra Profits from Selling Accessories Separately

If the next-year's iPhone 13 will still feature a charging port but won't ship with an iPhone charging cable, then Apple's decision lies partly in its intention to drive the demand for its MagSafe wireless charger and make some extra profits from separately selling the charging cable.

After all, an iPhone without a wired charger and an USB-C to Lightning charging cable is an invitation for iPhone users especially new iPhone comers who don't happen to have any iPhone charger or charging cable to separately buy Apple's charger, charging cable and even consider trying Apple's MagSafe wireless charger. If this will be the case, Apple could greatly drive the demand for its wireless accessories and make more extra money.

The reason why new iPhone comers could end up buying Apple's official charging cable if the future iPhone won't come with charging cable is that USB-C to Lightning cables from third-party manufacturers are much less standardized and less reliable in quality.

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Apple Could Help Reduce the Impact of Redundant Electronics on the Environment

As is known to all, Apple is one of the fighters for the environment. And to recall Apple's official justification for excluding the charger and EarPods from iPhone 12 box, it stated that its decision was to help reduce the impact of redundant electronics on the environment.

Hence, it's likely that Apple could also ditch the charger cable and even the SIM ejecting puller and logo stickers to help cut waste of electronics on the environment.

The reason why shipping iPhone with the charger, the charging cable and the EarPods can cause redundant electronics on the environment ties in well with the idea that the vast majority of smartphone users out there already have a slew of charging accessories which can work with iPhone.

And moreover, a great number of iPhone buyers especially the old iPhone users already own several chargers and charging cables which are came along with the older iPhones.

Final Words

The recent after-sales survey Apple launched among a small selection of iPhone 12 users on their use of the iPhone charger cable and other included accessories still isn't a guarantee that Apple will indeed exclude the charging cable from the packaging of the future iPhones. However, it indeed gives some suggestion and raises the possibility that this is being explored.

And due to the fact that Apple is always tending to push iPhone towards wireless, want to cut some cost, make more extra profits as well as to help fight for the environment, there is a great possibility that it may leave the charging cable out of the near future iPhone. Anyway, while this is still just a rumor, the only thing we can do is rub our eyes and wait!