Get a black case! Maybe I'm just clumsy, but I wouldn't carry a phone without one.
Anyone Excited about iPhone 17
- Thread starter javacontour
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Agree. Holding any good phone without a case just seems like an invitation to a beat and abused phone.
The Lightning connector was introduced in 2012 with the iPhone 5, and last used on the iPhone 14.
It supplanted the 30-pin Dock connector, which was in use for a little over a decade. Apple projected that Lighting would have a similar lifespan, so the EU mandate came at a convenient time to switch to Type-C.
(For brevity, some blathering about USB history hidden: )
USB was originally developed as simplified connection standard for data transfers, replacing the old serial and parallel data cables that were used to connect computers to peripherals. Early adoption was lukewarm, but Apple went all-in with the OG iMac, which had USB Type-A ports only.
Over time, USB also developed in ways that the its overseers didn't envision -- as a power source to recharge the growing number of portable devices.
But as a standard, USB was poorly suited for that. It was designed with low power capacity; enough to keep the bus alive, and supply power to low consumption devices like mice and keyboards. Not quickly recharge portable devices that would become dominant.
To address that, manufacturers came up with their own kludges to squeeze out higher power capacity over USB, using the values over the D+/D- lines as an encoded signal to power sources to supply higher non-standard, and technically non-compliant, levels of power. Apple had their own, with 2.4 (12W). Samsung had their own scheme, as did the Chinese brands. Qualcomm took it a step further, and created their own QuickCharge standard, which evolved to increase not only current, but higher voltage, at variable levels.
Apple's love of proprietary connectors goes back a long way in their history. If they didn't feel like the industry standard met their needs, they rolled their own, but only started to formally monetize it as a revenue stream with the MFi program with the Dock connector, which could do things that the Mini- and Micro-USB standards could not accommodate, and had poor form factors.
Lighting was a good physical connector, robust and with a nice tactile "snap" to let the user know the connector was made. Small and thin, to allow thinner devices, and reversible, so it had no need to be plugged in with a specific orientation. But the fundamental design had constraints, with too few pins to accommodate growing needs. Despite popular myth, it was not limited to USB 2.x speeds. It carried USB 3 data over iPads Pro, so it was capable, but not really practical in application.
What was now known as the USB IF finally found religion, acknowledging the practical ways in which USB had been adopted, and popularized in use, and developed new modern standards, over a single, unified connector that would take over and serve for the foreseeable future -- USB Power Delivery, which could deliver up to 100W of power (at 20V), and later, the compact and reversible Type-C connector (finalized in 2014).
Users now finally had "one" solution that could serve not only to quickly recharge their devices, but also carry data a very high speeds, centered around a universal connector that was small and reversible. The holy grail, right?
For the most part, yes, but as they say, the devil is in the details.
Having one connector that could be plugged into any- and everything is mostly great in theory, and practice, but the part that's left out is that it's a very complex standard, carrying different protoocols, for different functions, and thus more difficult to implement. And with varying levels of implementation, depending on the product.
While there is a single connector, there more than a handful of different types of cables, from the most basic "charging" cables that carry 60W and USB 2 data speeds, to the pricey (and thick) cables that serves as interconnects carrying Thunderbolt data and the highest (240W) levels of power.
The latter are fairly obvious when in hand, but the vast majority of more common cables are often unmarked (though they should be) and give little indication of what their capabilities are. At least in the past, one could get a reasonable idea what kind of cable was in hand, based on their connectors. The connections have been simplifed, but the complexity has shifted to the cables.
So, big steps forward, but also steps back.
Anyway, though the original cell in my XS still has some life on it, and could serve another year if needed, I'm due for a replacement.
But as for any "excitement," that's hard to find in products that are now mature, and mostly evolutionary. The new model might do things better, and a few minor things the old one couldn't, but it won't fundamentally be a game changer or have a new killer app that makes it a must have.
Despite the speculation that the prices would rise, and effectively has on the Pro, since they've eliminated the previous base configuration, Apple has toed the line very closely since ushering in the $999 ($1300 in today's dollars) phone with the iPhone X in 2017. Not cheap, but if it is spread over six- to seven-years, acceptable.
Patman
Staff member
I never use cases for my phone because I don’t want it to be any more bulky in my pocket. My girlfriend thinks I’m crazy but I have never had a problem, she on the other hand has had phones break even with a case on them. I’m always very careful with my phones and even after 4-5 years of use they don’t look beaten up at all.
Your 100% right, my phones have never had a minute without a case but I’m married to the Quadlock system and they show a lot through the case with the 17PM, looks stupid IMO
I get the bulk comment. But, I find that it's less likely to fall/slide out of my pocket with a case, like when I'm on the couch, so I find the traction of the case to be a benefit.
If you're out in the sun a lot, the black cases can contribute to the phone overheating.
Patman
Staff member
I’m out in the sun all day long in the summer so that’s something I never even considered but it would be an issue for me
Owen Lucas
$100 Site Donor 2023
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In 2025 they are just now adding 8K video?
When I tried to do the whole data transfer from an old phone to a new phone, the battery in my old phone was so bad it wouldn't stay on long enough for the transfer to work. Since you a using a double ended USB-C cable to do this, no way to externally power the phone either.
The only reason for me to buy the Pro would be for the 8x optical, I think it can replace our 15 year old Panasonic camera on vacations. The Panasonic has 24x optical but I think I would give that up for one less clunky thing to carry around. Worth it?
I've been thinking about this as this has changed my plans.
I'm going to wait 3-6 months for the price to drop on the 16PM when everyone is dumping them and pick up a mint one, then I'll look at a 18PM or 19PM(or whatever they will be called) and upgrade then.
I'll probably pick up a set of Airpod pro 3's however.
I'm going to wait 3-6 months for the price to drop on the 16PM when everyone is dumping them and pick up a mint one, then I'll look at a 18PM or 19PM(or whatever they will be called) and upgrade then.
I'll probably pick up a set of Airpod pro 3's however.
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just upraded from the xr to a 16 in april im stuck for awhile. i do like the sound of the 17 air however.
With Samsung phones, you don't need to physically connect them. Just set them next to each other. The info transfer is via bluetooth.
Patman
Staff member
It’s the same with iPhones as well. That’s how they transferred the data from my old iPhone to the new one
Where would you pick up a used unlocked one?
It might just be a Canada thing but all phones are sold as unlocked here for quite some time, they put a law through stating carriers can't lock their phones.
FB Marketplace is where I've bought them in the past.
Thanks, that's a nice policy.
I suspect phone plans that supply so called free phones are much different in Canada than the USA regarding ATT, Verizon and TMobile
Though in Canada they still have contracts if you get a phone from the provider?
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Patman
Staff member
We don’t have those deals anymore. For many years I was getting free phones just by signing a new 2 year contract but they did away with that. Now they all make you buy the phone (or finance it through them, usually interest free)