Apple’s just-launched iPhone 15 finally gave up its Lightning and replaced it with standard Type-C. It is said that this is also the biggest highlight besides the 3nm chip A17.

There are different opinions on the reason why the iPhone 15 changed from Apple’s unique Lightning port to the universal TypeC.

One reason is that on October 4, 2022, the European Parliament passed a bill that stipulates that starting from the end of 2024, all new portable smart devices must use the USB Type-C charging Interface. Therefore, Apple last year confirmed that all mobile phones launched in 2024 will use the Type-C interface. This time, iPhone 15 will be the main sales force in 2024, so it is reasonable to change it to Type-C.

But is it just because of the EU ban?

So what exactly is Type-C?

What charm does it have that can dazzle the European Parliament? And eventually, forced Apple to abandon its Lightning and switch to TypeC?

Today let’s get to know this interface leader that dominates the world-USB Type C.

First of all, what is USB?

Type C is a form of USB. Let's first get to know USB, a very, very commonly used data interface.

With the emergence of computers, it needs to be connected to many external devices, such as mice, keyboards, printers, scanners, cameras, mobile phones, etc. As shown in the figure below, there are so many interfaces on a desktop computer, such as the PS/2 interface used by old-fashioned keyboard and mouse, VGA interface, network cable interface, headphone interface, etc. USB interface is one of them. At first, we often used it to connect U disk, because the full name of this U disk is a USB Disk. Nowadays, applications are becoming more and more widespread, and mice, keyboards, headsets, etc. can all be connected and communicated through USB interfaces.

USB is the acronym for Universal Serial Bus. The Chinese translation means Universal Serial Bus. It is both an interface form and a data transmission standard. As early as 1994, companies such as Compaq, DEC, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, NEC, and Nortel jointly developed and launched a data interface form to replace the original parallel interface and serial interface.

The USB interface standard is released by the USB Developer Forum organization USB-IF. So far, it has developed from USB1.0 released in 1996 to the current USB4.0. Its transmission rate continues to increase. The current maximum transmission rate of USB4.0 is 40Gbps, which is about 20,000 times faster than the 1.5Mbps of the earliest USB1.0 period. With the acceleration of transmission speed, USB has become more and more widely used, almost unifying the world of data transmission.

What interface forms does USB have?

As a serial data protocol, USB data transmission is inseparable from the physical structure. As of today, the USB IF standard organization has provided a variety of USB interface forms, mainly Type A, Type B, and Type C, and their miniaturized versions - USB Mini A, USB Mini B, USB Micro C, and USB Micro B Supper Speed ​​and more.

Type A

Type A is our commonly used computer data interface, also called USB A. Its interface form is shown in the figure below. The USB TYPE-A connector is a flat, rectangular connector found on the host controllers of computers and hubs. The interface uses friction to hold the connection in place, allowing users to easily connect and disconnect. Instead of round pins, TYPE-A connectors use flat contacts that can withstand continuous connection and removal well. Type A slot connectors provide "downstream" connectivity and are used only with host controllers and hubs.

One thing to note here is that USB1.0 to USB3.0 all support Type A interface form. Their appearance looks the same, but the internal pin functions are different. Pay attention to the distinction here. Normally, We can distinguish by observing the color of the plastic inside the USB. White is generally USB1.0 or USB1.1, black is USB2.0, and the blue 9-wire is USB3.0.

The picture below is the pin drawing and definition of USB 3.0.

Type B

The interface shapes of TypeB and TypeA are different. Type B is square inside and trapezoidal outside. The structure is stronger, but it also occupies a larger volume. Usually, the printers we use generally adopt this data interface form.

The pin drawing of USB Type B is as follows

USB mini and Micro

Before the emergence of TypeC, to meet the needs of miniaturization, the USB Mini version and the USB Micro version were developed. Both versions have been widely used in electronic devices, such as mobile hard drives and digital cameras. USB Mini Series.

The USB Micro interface is the most widely used on mobile phones. This interface is flatter than the Mini type and can support thinner mobile phone designs. However, the tongue inside is also more fragile. Compared with many friends, it has a smaller interface due to the direction. The experience of tongue breakage due to reverse penetration.

Lightning portLightning

When it comes to miniaturized applications, we have to talk about Apple's Lightning port. Since using the lightning interface, I can charge my phone at night with my eyes closed.

In 2012, Apple launched a unique 8-pin Lightning interface, which is usually called Lightning port or Apple port in China. This lightning interface not only has a sturdy structure but also supports insertion from both sides. The feeling of blind insertion makes friends who use USB micro envious.

There are 8 pins on both sides of the Lightning port, and the appearance looks exactly the same, making it very suitable for blind insertion. But from the pin definition point of view, there are still some differences between the AB side. So how do you make it work properly for both forward and reverse insertion?

I have to admire the design ability of the inventor of the Lightning interface. The picture below is the schematic diagram of Lightning. It can be seen from the picture that pin 1 of side A is connected to pin 4 of side B; pin 4 of side A is connected to pin 5 of side B; pin 5 of side A is connected to pin 8 of side B.

 Connected; pin 8 on side A is connected to pin 1 on side B. This internal structure determines that users can ensure that the data cable works normally no matter which side is plugged in. But everyone is very familiar with Apple's closed nature. Could it be that by letting other manufacturers also use Apple's Lightning, Apple is really making money with its eyes closed. You must know that a lightning charging cable that costs only a few yuan can be sold for hundreds of dollars on Apple's official website. Just the MFI authorization of Lightning costs three or four US dollars, which is far more than the production cost of a charging cable.

The USB Developer Forum is really worried about this, and I want to save face too.

Type C

A few months after the launch of the Lightning interface, USB IF launched the USB 3.1 standard at the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2013 and subsequently launched a new USB interface, the Type C interface, which supports the highest transmission rate of 10GB/s. In terms of appearance, Type C is very different from the original A and B. The size of the socket end is about 8.3mm It can be plugged and unplugged repeatedly; the standard cable equipped with a Type-c connector can pass 3A of current, and also supports "USB PD" that exceeds the existing USB power supply capability and can provide up to 100W of power.

From now on, you no longer have to worry about not being able to insert it.

But friends, take a closer look at this type-C and Lightning to see if there is any suspicion of "reverse research and development". Doesn't this pull a cord out of the Apple Lightning socket?

Anyway, when I first saw this C port, I had the urge to plug in the Apple charging cable.

No matter what, no one can explain technological matters clearly, especially radio frequency connectors. A definition of end face size can generate a patent and monopolize the production and sales of such connectors. For us consumers, ease of use is the last word.

Different from Lightning’s 8 pins on one side, Type C’s inner side has 12 pins, 4 more than Lightning's. These four pins also solve many problems found by the upper layer of Lightning, such as low charging power and slow data transmission. wait.

The figure below is the pin definition of TypeC. The picture above shows the cross-section of the plug, and the picture below shows the cross-section of the socket.

For more detailed pin definitions, please refer to the figure below.

Comparing the definition of Apple's Lightning interface above, it looks more and more like it. No wonder Apple insisted on not using it for so long, waiting until the EU law came into effect before starting to apply it. It turns out that I can’t swallow this breath in my heart.

Believe it or not, the end of technology is also politics. With the latest iPhone 15, even a wealthy company like Apple has bowed its arrogant head to politics. But the benefits of switching to TypeC are also great, and the transfer speed has also soared, reaching 20 times the file transfer speed. TypeC has become the most talked about highlight after the 3nm chip A17.

With various advantages and strong support from the background, USB Type C has finally completed its unified hegemony and will dominate the entire martial arts world in the future! The era when everything can be done with one thread is finally coming!

Reference reading

https://www.viewsonic.com/library/tech/usb-c-usb-b-and-usb-a-whats-the-difference/

http://vrworld.com/2014/09/22/one-cable-rule-usb-type-c-displayport-alt/

https://www.usbzh.com/

https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/447595295

https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/356863749

https://baike.baidu.com/item/USB%20Type-C/16565059

This article comes from the WeChat public account: Radio Frequency Academy (ID: RF_Center), author: RF Little Carpenter