Apple uses Lightning and/or MagSafe on all of their handheld devices and USB-C on everything else.

Beats have some exceptions for microUSB instead of Lightning.

The iPad is handheld and Lightning. The iPad Pro is not and is USB-C. Yes, you can handhold an iPad Pro, but it’s not designed/targeted for that use case, as the USB-C port indicates.

This battery pack is Lightning because it’s a handheld device and it’s an accessory exclusively for handheld devices. While that may be a disappointment, at least the evidence to date is clear that there’s no point holding out for otherwise: they have never released a handheld USB-C device and are unlikely to here either.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but this comes up every time Apple releases a Lightning accessory and people continue not to realize this strategy is in play. I don’t know if it’s a good strategy or not, but duly noted all the same.

(ps. Apple Watch is not a handheld device, and so of course it’s doesn’t have a Lightning port :)

Which beats are microUSB that are still being sold? I thought they moved over to Lightning and USB-C

Studio3 Wireless ($349), for example, but I didn’t look for anymore since I have that one handy in memory. I only included that comment to fend off nitpickers and having a single example is sufficient. Still. Which Beats moved over to USB-C? It doesn’t sound like Apple connector rules apply reliably to Beats, which makes sense given their Android-compatibility market target.

I would wager you'll never see it: either it'll stay with Lightning indefinitely, or they'll drop the charging port entirely (which would be unfortunate).

The keep rolling out new devices like this with Lightning. If they were going to start a transition, this or the AirPods would have been the logical place to begin.

Yeah, we'll never see an Apple device with USB-C, besides all of their laptops. Those chargers are great for Android phones!

The iPad Pros and 4th Gen have USB-C. Not sure why the iPhone doesn't at this stage.

Because Apple wants to make more money on lightning cables.

Also the iPad Pro :)

This is highly likely. They'll probably just include a magsafe charger and run data over it for dev purposes. But knowing Apple the data magsafe will cost more/ be an add-on

Why would they move quickly from a cable connector that has a massive installed base and that works well for most people (or, as you put it, "nonsense") to one that doesn't have nearly as much market penetration?

In the past, Apple was happy to make forwardlooking decisions regardless of today's market penetration (remember the floppy to CD uproar? And the removal of DVD drives?). It's kinda humorous that today my MacBook Pro's plug-in accessories (dongles, chargers, headphones, etc) work better with my Android phone than they would if I was totally bought into Apple's ecosystem

If you were to buy an iPhone today you would get a USB-C cable to Lightning. Your iPad would be USB-C. The only independent device not pluggable would be the Apple Watch which has no purpose being plugged in anyway I believe.

Cool, I didn't know that. Does the USB-lightning cable work for plugging in things like M+K and video out?

Yes I see no reason for it not to. It’s all still USB in the end.

> a cable connector that has a massive installed base and that works well for most people

You are confusing Apple users with the whole population. USB-C is ubiquitous and I have seen many new and not so new edvices implementing it, yet I have to lay my hands on a Lightning device, let alone having a Lightning - enabled personal computer.

USBC is becoming standard pretty quickly isn't it? Most major Android smartphones are already using it. I even recently bought a small electric fan which is powered by USBC.

The market would follow their move pretty damn fast.

If I can help from destroying another iPhone I will wait it out until USB C. I was pissed last year when I had to buy another iPhone with a lightening port.