Apple updates their $400 phone

[y_p_w]

The newer ones can provide 60W instead of 30W, that makes it better for charging a MacBook. It should be safe since the device contains protective circuitry. One thing you do have to be ready for is that these devices are rather large so you can't stuff them into a crowded box.

The highest power ones from Apple are the 96W ones for the 16" MacBook Pro. I think the USB-C standard sets a limit well over 100W but only with the proper cables. Not sure how they signal that, because I've bought low-power USB-C to USB-C cables before, and no way were those beefy enough to withstand 100W.

Strike that. Apple has a 140W one now.

140W USB-C Power Adapter

The 140W USB-C Power Adapter offers fast, efficient charging at home, in the office, or on the go for your 16-inch MacBook Pro (M1, 2021). Buy now.

www.apple.com

 

[kschachn]

Yeah I was referring to the Leviton in-wall outlet that has 60W. Sorry I think it got lost in the weeds.

 

[kschachn]

The highest power ones from Apple are the 96W ones for the 16" MacBook Pro. I think the USB-C standard sets a limit well over 100W but only with the proper cables. Not sure how they signal that, because I've bought low-power USB-C to USB-C cables before, and no way were those beefy enough to withstand 100W.

Strike that. Apple has a 140W one now.

Well 100W would be at 20 volts so that’s still only 5A. 140W would be at 28 volts which is also the maximum of 5A.

 

[y_p_w]

Well 100W would be at 20 volts so that’s still only 5A. 140W would be at 28 volts which is also the maximum of 5A.

Found it here. Contrast is kind of poor with the image, but I think the first thing it indicates is 28.0V at 5A.

 

[Schandyman]

Very thin wires in the charging cords 5a seems to be the max they want to pull thru the wires.

 

[kschachn]

USB-C is limited to 3A unless it has an "E-Marker" chip allowing it to go to 5A. That's one of the things Power Delivery (PD) gets you.

 

[alarmguy]

Stay tuned ... but I am getting tempted to accept 2 new iPhone 13s cost = $1600 or so if I switch to TMobile who will reimburse me and my wife over a two year period. Net cost for two iPhone 13's = $0 (and our old iPhones) If and its a big if I do Ill post a new thread, this one getting tired and LONG. I dont need a new phone but I feel like buying something, bored and need to keep busy!

 

[Schandyman]

Stay tuned ... but I am getting tempted to accept 2 new iPhone 13s cost = $1600 or so if I switch to TMobile who will reimburse me and my wife over a two year period. Net cost for two iPhone 13's = $0 (and our old iPhones)

Yes sounds tempting. If you're 55+ you can go on the senior plan $27.50 per line

 

[alarmguy]

Yes sounds tempting. If you're 55+ you can go on the senior plan $27.50 per line

Yeah, the problem with that one is it is $27.50 plus taxes and fees each line for 2 lines. Going to stop by and find out exactly what the taxes and fees are.
Then they have their magenta plans that include all taxes and fees = 2 lines $70 includes all taxes and fees plus basic Netflix subscription but we already subscribe to the standard subscription so does do us any good.

Right now we only pay $50 including all taxes and fees with Redpocket ATT and have been 100% spot on reliable for half a decade now.

 

[Schandyman]

My mother has cricket which runs att so yes I'm familiar with their coverage in the myrtle beach surrounding area and it's great. My sideline phone for my business is boost mobile T-Mobile towers also excellent coverage.

The biggest thing for you is to consider the additional network cost with taxes fees etc over the red pocket costs, essentially that is what you would be paying for the 2 new phones over 2-yrs.

 

[alarmguy]

My mother has cricket which runs att so yes I'm familiar with their coverage in the myrtle beach surrounding area and it's great. My sideline phone for my business is boost mobile T-Mobile towers also excellent coverage.

The biggest thing for you is to consider the additional network cost with taxes fees etc over the red pocket costs, essentially that is what you would be paying for the 2 new phones over 2-yrs.

I have ATT for well over a decade now, its always been great.
Over a decade ago T Mobiles reputation wasn't the best but think that is all changed now, even more so with the buyout of Sprint. TMobile is now the second largest cell network and largest 5 g cell network.

Its been about 13 years now of owning my own phones and that includes my family. Love the freedom and past companies were Straight Talk, Cricket and Ultimately RedPocket, nothing beats it for what it is. Before that we moved to SC with Sprint 16 years ago and cancelled about 13 years ago. Then started with the no contracts.

So cant beat the cost of T-Mobile, IF your one to have current phones. If we switch to TMobile Magenta Tomorrow Even if we take the $70 plan over the $50 plan we pay Redpocket now we get two iPhone 13s costing $1,458.00 on Apples website at no cost (with our iPhone 11 and XR trade ins)
SO total cost of the higher priced service over a 2 year period is $458.00
Translated 2 new iPhone 13s cost $458 for both or $229 each.

Pretty good deal Tmobiel cell phone plan with A LOT of extras that I prefer not to have if the cost was lower.
Such as 1 hour in-flight data, data and texting abroad, Mexico and Canada 5GB of data.
A min of 100 Gb of high speed LTE/5G data in the USA plus Netflix basic. We already have Netflix standard at our home and I am wondering if I can upgrade the Netflix basic to standard (through Netflix) for additional cost and cancel my home subscription which would bring down the already good cell phone plan price lower.
or go with the Tmobile Essentials for maybe $6 less a month, that is the wild card I dont have firm pricing on.

I just cant come close to these prices anyplace else.

 

[Carmudgeon]

USB-C is limited to 3A unless it has an "E-Marker" chip allowing it to go to 5A. That's one of the things Power Delivery (PD) gets you.

A pendant would point out that the cables are limited to 5A maximum.

3A if they aren't E-marked.

The latest version of the PD spec, 3.1, raises the maximum power to 240W (48V/5A).

USB-C has hardly developed into the simple panacea that it was portrayed as, due in large part to the fact that a single type of connector has been tasked with any and everything, and implementation of what is a complex soup of things isn't consistent, or always proper.

And then there are the dunderhead companies, like Qualcomm, that layer proprietary protocols on top of what was supposed to be the single, universal standard for USB power, PD, which technically violate the spec.

Buying a USB-C cable is a lot more complex than it needs to be, and worse for those not paying attention, but at least one saving grace is that every spec-compliant cable should be able to carry a minimum of 60W safely, and for most users, that's the only thing that will be asked of them.

It's a bit of a fustercluck, but USB-C has a lot more moving parts, and ways of working than the older standards did. It may be a lot to ask for those in a forum who like to stick to their Crown Vics and heavy weight oils, but just bite the bullet, make the transition, and don't rely on sketchy things like adapters. That's not taking advantage of the full potential the new standards can bring, and comes with the risk of damaging your stuff.

 

[y_p_w]

It's a bit of a fustercluck, but USB-C has a lot more moving parts, and ways of working than the older standards did. It may be a lot to ask for those in a forum who like to stick to their Crown Vics and heavy weight oils, but just bite the bullet, make the transition, and don't rely on sketchy things like adapters. That's not taking advantage of the full potential the new standards can bring, and comes with the risk of damaging your stuff.

I have this weird collection of different devices that have some sort of USB-C connection. A few computers (one that failed due to an unfortunate meeting with Cup Noodles although that meant an available power adapter), a desk lamp, a couple of USB-C power banks, and a Qi charging pad. No phones or tablets though. But it gets especially confusing because I've seen $1.50 USB-C to USB-C cables. I'll use them for the power banks and lights, but I'm not comfortable charging a computer with one.

And yeah it gets really confusing. The USB-C power banks were actually free (long story) but then I got one replaced under warranty. But that one has a USB-C port that's input/output, but the only way to input power, along with a USB-A power output. And the cable packaged with it was a USB-A plug on one end and USB-C plug on the other.

Somehow it's supposed to be OK to use any USB-C power source with any device. I guess they're supposed to start with 5V and then transition to a higher voltage after negotiation. It should be possible to detect that with an inline voltage/current meter.

 

[Carmudgeon]

I have this weird collection of different devices that have some sort of USB-C connection. A few computers (one that failed due to an unfortunate meeting with Cup Noodles although that meant an available power adapter), a desk lamp, a couple of USB-C power banks, and a Qi charging pad. No phones or tablets though. But it gets especially confusing because I've seen $1.50 USB-C to USB-C cables. I'll use them for the power banks and lights, but I'm not comfortable charging a computer with one.

And yeah it gets really confusing. The USB-C power banks were actually free (long story) but then I got one replaced under warranty. But that one has a USB-C port that's input/output, but the only way to input power, along with a USB-A power output. And the cable packaged with it was a USB-A plug on one end and USB-C plug on the other.

Somehow it's supposed to be OK to use any USB-C power source with any device. I guess they're supposed to start with 5V and then transition to a higher voltage after negotiation. It should be possible to detect that with an inline voltage/current meter.

There are a lot of products out there that have Type-C connectors mostly for show, like those that will only accept a charge when connected to an A-to-C cable, but not a C-to-C cable, mostly defeating their purpose to begin with.

Worse, that scenario is relatively easy to rectify, because the spec does provide for a "dumb," or passive power connection if the device connector is wired with some resistors, to inform the source that there is something connected; otherwise, it has to assume there is nothing there, because no handshake has taken place. There is no "always on" source like in the past.

A Type-A connector has nine pins (in 3.x flavor); Type-C 24-pins. Not the ultimate, but still a telling indicator of their relative complexity, and capabilities. The USB IF has made efforts to provide some backward compatibility, and mitigate the potentially risky scenarios, but it has no control over the products on the market that ignore the spec to provide some hackish solution.

 

[y_p_w]

There are a lot of products out there that have Type-C connectors mostly for show, like those that will only accept a charge when connected to an A-to-C cable, but not a C-to-C cable, mostly defeating their purpose to begin with.

Worse, that scenario is relatively easy to rectify, because the spec does provide for a "dumb," or passive power connection if the device connector is wired with some resistors, to inform the source that there is something connected; otherwise, it has to assume there is nothing there, because no handshake has taken place. There is no "always on" source like in the past.

A Type-A connector has nine pins (in 3.x flavor); Type-C 24-pins. Not the ultimate, but still a telling indicator of their relative complexity, and capabilities. The USB IF has made efforts to provide some backward compatibility, and mitigate the potentially risky scenarios, but it has no control over the products on the market that ignore the spec to provide some hackish solution.

I haven’t looked at the spec, but the easiest way would be to default to 5V and work from there. I’ve charged a laptop with my USB power bank that outputs 5V at up to 3A. Not ideal, but it worked to at least slow down the laptop’s charge loss.

 

[Schandyman]

I use the little cube that came with my iPhone se 1st edition and a 6ft lightning cord works just fine.

 

[bunnspecial]

WRT to charging the newer phones over USB-A-

I still am using the brick that came with my first iPhone, a 3Gs, in 2010. It's seen me through a 4s, 6, Xr, and now 12 with no sign of stopping, although admittedly now it charges my watch.

I mostly wirelessly charge my 12(and did the same with my Xr). I got a freebie charging pad a while back, hooked it up, and realized how convenient it was. I just drop my phone on it before I go to bed and it's charged in the morning. If, for example, I need to take the dog out in the middle of the night(I use it for a flashlight), I just grab it and don't have to mess with plugging/unplugging a cable. It also saves a ton of wear and tear on the lightning port.

With that said, my wife isn't wild about wireless charging for the most part, although she'll use it to top up her 11 sometimes. She uses her phone a lot more than I do, and that includes often using it while it's plugged in.

The USB-C chargers really are great for these new phones, though. I don't have a stand-alone 21W brick, but if I need a quick charge I'll plug into my computer and it's unreal how fast it brings the battery up.

Also, it's worth mentioning that if you have a 30W+ brick that you use to charge your computer, it works just fine as a phone charger. You're just only using a fraction of its capacity.

One last thing-the 140W brick linked above won't actually deliver 140W over a USB-C connection. It maxes at 96W(what the USB-C PD spec allows) if you run a USB-C cable directly from it to a laptop or whatever. 140W kicks in if you plug a Magsafe 3 cable into it and then connect it to one of the new MacBook Pros with Magsafe. Actually, I'm not even positive if the 14" will pull all 140W, or if only the 16" will.

 

[alarmguy]

Well, so much for the SE3 that I was interested in.
I got an offer too good to refuse, wasnt really serious about getting a new phone but found the SE3 interesting but with this new deal I am getting an iPhone 13 for less money.
Sooooo ...
Im switching my fantastic RedPocket ATT service ... I have two iPhone 13's ordered from TMobile. Ill post a thread on the experience once I get the phones and everything is set up, might take a week to get them. Online Order process went a little wonky yesterday but Im assured the order is in process by TMobile which I confirmed with two follow up phone calls. 3 calls in all.

 

[Schandyman]

Well, so much for the SE3 that I was interested in.
I got an offer too good to refuse, wasnt really serious about getting a new phone but found the SE3 interesting but with this new deal I am getting an iPhone 13 for less money.
Sooooo ...
Im switching my fantastic RedPocket ATT service ... I have two iPhone 13's ordered from TMobile. Ill post a thread on the experience once I get the phones and everything is set up, might take a week to get them. Online Order process went a little wonky yesterday but Im assured the order is in process by TMobile which I confirmed with two follow up phone calls. 3 calls in all.

Best of luck on the new tech buy. Yes keep us posted I'm sure you'll be very satisfied with the T-Mobile network and their data speeds. I can kick myself for going on wife's vz prepaid plan been an absolute nightmare I never had such hatred in a wireless carrier maybe it's vz maybe it's prepaid maybe it's both I know vz has 0 interest in their prepaid subscribers.