14 DAY TRIAL // Apple has made connectivity ports some kind of obsession, and after making dongles an essential part of our lives, the company is now looking to boost adoption of another port, this time for accessories.
Cupertino is reportedly betting big on the so-called Ultra Accessory Connector, also referred to as UAC, whose purpose will be to be installed on genuine accessories that receive the Made for iPhone certification. In other words, future accessories developed by Apple partners will come with this UAC port and the company explains that there are several reasons it should be quickly adopted.
First and foremost, the UAC, which has been around for a while and it's not new or developed by Apple, is designed to save space by giving up on bigger ports, such as Lightning and USB-C, with Apple thus trying to give accessory makers a smaller connector that would still support the same tasks, including charging, data transfers, and audio connections.
Apple discussed the connector in a developer preview, and the demo shows that UAC employs a shape that looks just like ultra mini USB, a port that’s mostly used on cameras and other accessories where space is essential. The company says that this port is half the width of Lightning and, at the same time, it’s even thinner than USB Type-C, measuring only 2.05 mm x 4.85 mm.
Not coming on the iPhone
UAC comes with 8 pins, and the company says that headphone makers will be among those benefitting the most from this new connector, possibly because it’s more focused on delivering high-quality audio. This means that Apple’s Beats headphones are very likely to come with this port in the coming feature, most likely as Cupertino wants to pioneer its adoption.
The firm says that accessory makers can build adaptors like Lightning to UAC, USB-A to UAC, and 3.5mm audio to UAC, as it wants to make the transition to the new connector smoother.
It’s not yet clear if Apple wants to bring the same connector on products like the iPhone and the iPad, but this certainly fuels rumors that the company is pondering a switch from Lightning to USB Type-C. And yet, seeing Apple moving to USB-C is highly unlikely, especially because the company would definitely go for a proprietary port that would give it more control over transfers and connected accessories.