This is a real thunderbolt for Apple and the European Union. Just a few days after the Christmas holidays, and sales which are expected to be record high again this year, Apple has made the difficult decision to withdraw its 3rd generation iPhone 14 and iPhone SE from the market. The Cupertino company didn't really have a choice, this sudden end of marketing is linked to a European law on the charging port of smartphones.
Indeed, the EU now requires manufacturers to use a single charging port for all smartphones sold in the country. If two years ago this obligation only concerned new models (hence the arrival of USB-C on the iPhone 15), this time it concerns all smartphones (even launched before the promulgation of the law) which are concerned.
The Lightning is dead and buried
With the end of the marketing of the iPhone 14 and the 3rd generation iPhone SE, a whole world is disappearing for Apple. The last mainstream brand to use a proprietary charging port, with Lighting, this technology arrived on the iPhone 5 before spreading like wildfire throughout the Apple ecosystem. Only computers have never had the right to this connection.
The European ban therefore marks the end of this era, and takes us straight to another time, that of standardization. Because using a single charging port has two objectives. The first, and most obvious, is to make life easier for users. All smartphones use the same cable, there is no need to wonder which wire to use. When it comes to ecology, it’s just as winning.
Europe has long used this argument to convey its vision of things, but a single charging cable for all its devices means, on a continent-wide scale, millions of meters of electrical wires that are not produced. A real opportunity for the planet. Because although they may not seem like much, the charging cables of our smartphones, computers, and other electrical devices are in reality time bombs for the planet.
iPhone SE: a short-term absence?
The arrival of this new legislation in Europe nevertheless has a major consequence on the Apple ecosystem. It is no longer possible (and for a few months at least) to buy a new iPhone SE. The 3rd generation model has just been withdrawn from the market, no more iPhone SE is available for sale (at Apple).
We will probably have to wait a few months before a new device arrives on the old continent. According to the latest rumors about it, the 4th generation iPhone SE could be released in 2025, in the spring if everything goes as planned.
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