Lightning - page 9

Buying a whole set of new Lightning cables to replace the 30-pin connector cables we’ve been using for years has left a lot of iPhone 5 feeling a little bit blue. No one wants to spend $100 to buy five new cables, but cheap Chinese knock-offs have seemed out of reach thanks to the authenticator chip Apple’s used in the new data cables.

Hope has risen though, as clever Chinese hackers announced today that they’ve been able to successfully clone Apple’s Lightning Authenticator Chip, paving the way for cheaper third-party Lightning cables and accessories.

Apple’s Universal Dock is anything but universal. It won’t work with any iPads, it won’t work with the iPhone 5, and it sure as hell won’t fit a Motorola Xoom. And unless you’re using it two-handed, and you’re wide awake, it doesn’t even work very well with the iPhone or iPod Touch.

The Complete Dock, on the other hand, works with almost anything. Hell, if you wanted to dock your cruise ship in it you probably could.

Even though Apple has already debuted the new Lightning connector, there still aren’t any third-party accessories that actually boast Lightning compatibility. Part of that is because Apple has still not made Lightning connectors — which are hard to counterfeit by design — available to third-parties. Even when Apple does make the connectors available, though, any accessory makers who wants to make gadgets that are “Made for Lightning” will have to do so in Apple-approved manufacturing facilities, which won’t be an option until at least November. That could make it tricky, but by no means impossible, for some accessory makers to get their products on the shelves in time for Christmas.

Apple’s new Lightning connector is freaking teeny tiny and incredibly awesome. Apple managed to shrink the connector down to just eight contact pins and give it the ability to insert it in either orientation. While some users may have wished for Apple to use micro-USB, the Lightning connector is full of amazing little pieces of tech that make it a lot better than other options.

Rainer Brockerhoff has been doing an autopsy on the Lightning connector all weekend and has discovered some really cool features. For instance, did you know that the Lightning connector has the ability to detect which types of devices it’s connected to and re-assign pin functionalities for each situation?

After months of rumors and speculation, the iPhone 5 is finally here, featuring a thinner, lighter design, a taller 4-inch display, LTE, the new Lightning connector, redesigned EarPods, and more. It’s the first major iPhone redesign in twenty-seven months, and the first iPhone ever to change the aspect ratio of the device, to have LTE, to use a new connector or to have new headphones, but despite this, many have criticized the iPhone 5 for being boring.

What’s the truth? Is the iPhone 5 dull, or is it a major leap forward for Apple’s most iconic device? We’ve spent the weekend reviewing a 64GB white-and-silver iPhone 5 on Verizon’s LTE network, and put it through its paces. Here’s what we thought.

In a research note from KGI, a financial analytics group out of China, oft-cited analyst Ming-Chi Kuo places the responsibility for the shortages in new iPhone 5 connectors squarely on the shoulders of a shift in the specific supplier of the connector from Foxconn (Hon Hai) to Foxlink (Cheng Uei), due to lower yield rates of the new unit type from Foxconn.

AppleInsider also reports sources saying that Apple has requested Foxlink pick up the slack and dedicate more workers and production lines to the Lightning cable production line.

Remember that iPad mini that surfaced on Tuesday? Rather naively, I suggested it could have been the real thing, but as it turns out, it was nothing more than a dummy unit — as you can see from the video above. Admittedly, it is a rather impressive dummy unit, and it’s likely to be almost identical to the real iPad mini.

Still kind of pissed off that you’re going to have to buy a $29 Lightning adapter so all your accessories can play nice with your iPhone 5? Apple’s not even going to include a free adapter with your iPhone 5, just so you’ll have to pay them more money for more adapters, or so you’ll just switch to AirPlay enabled accessories.

Whatever the reason, the price on Apple’s Lightning adapters is terrible, but thankfully the knock-offs have  arrived before the launch of the iPhone 5 and some of them will even save you $20 per adapter, so you can buy as many as you want for all your toys.

Complaining about Apple gypping you by changing its terrible, bulky, hard-to-use 30-pin dock connector for the sleek, double-sided Lightning connector? Then take a look at the alternative from Samsung. One of the few things it didn't copy from Apple was the giant connector, but that's not to say it got anything right.

Upset that after almost a decade, Apple is finally changing the Dock Connector with the new, smaller Lightning Standard? Redditor Ima13X puts it in perspective.

The image makes a great point: Samsung’s had a million proprietary connectors for its devices over the last decade, while Apple’s only had two. However, it’s worth noting that it’s this very consistency in proprietary connectors that allowed Apple to build up a massive third-party “Made for iPhone”, “Made for iPad” and “Made for iPod” licensing business… a business that Samsung’s never managed at all.

So changing the 30-Pin Dock Connector to Lightning is a big deal. The ramnifications on Apple’s accessory ecosystem are huge. As long as Apple doesn’t get in the habit of changing this connector frivolously, though, and has built Lightning to be as future proof (or more so) than the 30-Pin Dock Connector, this changes means fresh billions earned, not just for Apple, but its accessory partners.

Source: Reddit

With the new Lightning Dock, Apple has ruthlessly ditched a lot of the cruft of the 30-pin past, leaving a lot of existing accessories less functional than they were. Although you’ll still be able to use audio-out and charging functionality in your iPhone 5 using older iPhone accessories using the Lightning to 30-Pin Adapter, Apple’s ditched video out and iPod out this generation.

But the new Lightning Adapter, while closing some doors, also opens some new possibilities. A new report says that Lightning gives USB host abilities to the iPhone 5.

When you pre-ordered your iPhone 5 this morning, and you decided to pick up a Lightning to 30-pin adapter for all your old accessories, you may have noticed that Apple’s website promised you a free adapter with your purchase. As it turns out, Apple made a mistake, and it will not be sending you a free adapter after all.

With the announcement of a single piece of hardware, Apple has obsoleted thousands of iPhone accessories, almost overnight. Between the thinner, taller case and the new Lightning sync/power adapter, pretty much none of your old accessories (or any accessories you can currently buy) will fit the new iPhone.

Does it matter? Should you stop buying iPhone-specific accessories? Just how useful will these stop-gap adapters be? Find out with our iPhone 5 accessory guide.

Following the unveiling of the iPhone 5 and a new family of iPods on Wednesday, Apple has begun selling a new Lightning to Micro USB adapter for customers in Europe. As its name suggests, the adaptor allows users to charge and sync their new iOS device using a Micro USB cable — in compliance with the rules laid out by European Commission.

One of the glaring omissions in Apple’s iPhone 5 keynote was any mention of NFC. The rumor mill had suggested that the iPhone 5 would come with NFC (Near Field Communications) tech for mobile payments, but the rumor ended up getting squashed in the weeks leading up to today’s event.

So why no NFC in the iPhone 5? According to Apple VP of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller, Passbook in iOS 6 is enough for what Apple wants to accomplish in the virtual wallet space right now. In a brief interview today, Schiller talked about NFC, and why Apple decided on the new Lightning dock connector.

We figured that Apple was going to charge a stupid amount of money for the Lightning to 30-pin Adapter. We were thinking somewhere between $15-$20, but turns out Apple is going to charge 30 bucks just so your iPhone 5 can have fun with all your old accessories.

It feels like extortion, but maybe the production cost of the adapter is pretty high. Maybe Apple’s charging so much because they don’t want you to buy it so you’ll buy new accessories and cables instead so they’ll make even more money. Maybe we’re overreacting. Who knows?

One of the biggest upgrades to the iPhone 5, though, is the new 8-pin dock connector. It’s called Lightning, and its going to throw third party accessory makers into havok.

Wondering what Apple will call its new dock connector? No, it won’t be the “9-pin connector” — this is Apple we’re talking about, the company behind the Thunderbolt port. Instead, it’s expected to be labeled “Lightning,” and the kooky names don’t stop there. The Cupertino company is also expected to unveil a new set of earphones at its iPhone 5 event today, which will reportedly be called “Earpod,” along with a new iPod touch accessory called the “Loop.”

FileWave launched a new free app called Lightning this week. The new app makes quick and easy work of deploying Mountain Lion (and Lion) to multiple Macs, particularly recent Macs with Thunderbolt. It can be used to roll out existing master images that a business or school has already created as well as a base OS X install that can be customized with a range of files and applications.