I’m thinking of both USB Type-A and Lightning. Lightning is outdated, but reversible; Type-A is outdated, and not reversible.
Nearly everybody I know is sick of Lightning because of poor-quality cables, many from Apple, which was very disappointing. I have had, to my recollection, zero USB-C fray or fail from any maker across the last eight years.
We’ve converging to USB-C. It’s all inevitable. The sooner we migrate, the less incompatible plugs and jacks we have.
That’s the difference: Lightning is proprietary. Nobody but Apple puts Lightning connectors on their devices, because they would have to pay Apple a licensing fee to use it.
USB-C is not proprietary. It’s also already the standard on non-Apple devices.
The EU ruling that led to Apple switching the iPhone 15 to USB-C stated that there needed to be a single standard for charging connectors (unfortunately, they failed to mandate that the cables should also fit a single standard, hence the issues). Since the only way everyone else is going to switch to Lightning is if Apple makes it free to use, they’re all sticking with USB-C. Apple is the odd one out, so they’re the ones that have to switch.
That’s literally all that this is about: a forced standard in a single large economic market. It’s not economical for Apple to make the same models of iPhone with different connectors for different markets, in part because of the difference in size of the ports and associated hardware. So everyone is stuck with USB-C moving forward.
All the other issues about which port is better is technobabble that most people will never care about. Most of us just want to be able to pick up a cable, look at the connector, and know immediately whether we can use it.
The only way to un-muddy the USB-C cable market is for someone to enforce proper labeling for all cables and ports (on the cables and ports themselves, not just on the packaging), and/or fewer available standards for throughput. That’s pretty much not going to happen, at least, not at a level that’s better than what there is now.
Maybe someday, there will be a genuinely universal USB standard. Anyone holding out hope for USB-D?
The complaints about the change to USB-C are nothing new. The only difference this time is that the iPhone is actually behind the curve here so much of the support needed is already in place. Apple has gradually been eliminating the older USB portsand cables from their products; I charge my remaining Lightining port devices (Keyboards, mouse, trackpad, AirPod Max, and AirpodPro 2) with cables that have a USB-C connector on the other end. Note that Simon, in an earlier post, showed that it is east to get a tiny coverter for older USB posts in lagacy chargers. I’ve certainly been making sure that are USB-C ports in every charger I’be dealt with for the last several years. 10 years is long life for a maverick connector. Let’s rejoice in joiniing the standard world again.
I believe that a basic USB-C cable matches Lightning in both power and data carrying capacity. The messiness comes when you want to more.
Sure, but that’s an argument of the “Well, everyone’s jumping off the cliff, so just close your eyes and follow along” variety.
Glenn:
USB-C is simpler, reversible, more resilient, and universal
It doesn’t seem simpler, reversible is a marginal advantage, I don’t know about resilient, and it’ll be universal until the next one comes along – and I bet that’ll be a shorter time period than the 10 years we got with lightning.
Marquelle:
That’s literally all that this is about: a forced standard in a single large economic market
That’s what it seems like to me as well. In 3-4 years, when the EU mandates whatever succeeds USB-C, we’re going to have to dump those cable for all new ones (or tiny adaptors). And again after another 4 years (well, maybe everything will be wireless by then). Apple’s bowing to the inevitability of state action but I’m not sure the vast majority of users are getting much advantage from it.
Eh. Not much point discussing it at this moment, given the way things are going.
I admit I was very skeptical about those adapters working but took your word for it and ordered the ones with the little rubber connector to keep it attached to the end of the usb c cable. It arrived today and sure enough it works just fine.
Thanks for your guidance! C
As an aside, the body of the adapter plug is just a bit bigger than the hole in my case for the lightning cable. It connects but not tightly and probably won’t withstand the bumps of driving. Easy enough to make the hole a bit bigger. It’s something to consider tho if anyone decides which of the million of those adapters to buy.
Which one did you buy?
This one that Simon recommended above
https://www.amazon.com/meenova-Lightning-Adapter-Converter-Android/dp/B0CDCMNSL4/
I have an older car with USB A plugs for Apple CarPlay. I have read that there are issues connecting USB A to USB C for iPhone 15. I don’t see any USB A to USB C cable from Apple. Will a USB A to USB C adapter attached to a USB C to USB C cord provide CarPlay connection? And - is Thunderbolt 4 overkill for this type of use?
What issues? Please share any links you may have.
Regarding A-to-C cables/adapters in general, there are three kinds you may run across:
Charge-only. These can’t move data at all. They’re primarily intended to let you charge your device in a location where you can’t trust the port you’re plugging in to (e.g. public chargers in a restaurant or airport or hotel room)
USB 2. These only connect the data pins for USB-2 data. Which means they will deliver a maximum data throughput of 480 Mbps.
USB 3. These connect the data pins for USB-3 data (and should, I assume, also connect the USB-2 data pins). These should support SuperSpeed connections up to 10 Gbps.
As long as you know what you bought (any reputable manufacturer will print it on the packaging), there shouldn’t be any problems.
It should. But take note about which kind of adapter you’re getting. Some are USB 2 and some are USB 3. If your car or phone only supports USB 2 connectivity, you probably don’t have to care, but if both have USB 3 support, then you will want a USB 3 adapter in order to take advantage of the faster connection.
Thunderbolt is incompatible with a type-A connector. Sure, you can use a TB4 cable in conjunction with a USB A-to-C adapter, but I personally think that’s paying extra money for a feature you won’t be using.
But others here have voiced the opposite opinion - they recommend buying TB4 cables for everything just so you don’t need to think about what kind you need.
CarPlay over Lightning expects power and 480 Mbps data. Here’s an $8 cable that will do exactly that. That same cable also comes in 3’ or 10’.
https://www.amazon.com/Amazon-Basics-Charging-Transfer-Certified/dp/B085SBKM7Y/
Some people like to spend more on “brand” cables. Anker loves to cater to that crowd. Here’s the same cable for a whopping $23.
https://www.amazon.com/Anker-Powerline-Durability-Samsung-MacBook/dp/B01M3NB6FB/
Yes. And in fact, it won’t work. You need USB-A on one end.
This is the story re issues connecting iPhone 15 to Apple CarPlay - CarPlay Not Working for Some iPhone 15 Users, Possibly Because of USB-C Cables - MacRumors
I just bought a cheap Amazon Basics USB-A to USB-C cable and it is working fine with CarPlay in my car with iPhone 15.
Here’s a different issue:
Thanks for the link. After reading the article, it’s hard to say if the problem is due to the cable or something else, given the fact that some people are having no problems with the exact same cables/adapters that others are seeing failures on.
Right now, my gut feeling is leaning toward the “something else” category. Quite possibly bugs in the car’s firmware (I’ve experienced plenty of other kinds of bugs in the past when it comes to car-phone/car-ipod connectivity). Or Apple changed their implementation in a way that broke connectivity to certain cars.
As a software developer, I have seen countless examples of where there is a standard and manufacturers choose to not implement the entire standard, but cherry-pick the features they think they will need and ignore the rest. And they often don’t test their software according to the spec, but based simply on what works at the time.
Which inevitably means that at some time in the future, the device(s) they need to interoperate with will change their implementation in a way that, while still fully compliant to the spec, now breaks the connection. And they will blame everybody but themselves.
We don’t have any hard facts at this time, but I could easily see this being yet another example of sloppy software development on the part of automakers, who already have a reputation of not caring much about the quality of the infotainment system (except maybe for subscription features, since they’d actually lose money if people stop subscribing).
Personally, I have been purchasing Anker brand cables on Amazon for a number of years now. Not only can you get longer cables, but they are much thicker than Apple’s flimsy cables as well, which means more durability. The only problem is when my two cats discover that I am charging my phone while I am in bed. Thus, I buy my cables three or four at a time so that I am prepared for unexpected feline surprises. 
I strongly agree about Anker cables, In addition to being well constructed, durable, long lasting and beautifully braided, they coil very easily. And comparatively, they are reasonably priced. I think their chargers are the best in their class as well. Apple and Amazon’s cables and chargers just didn’t last as long as Anker’s have done for us, and Anker stuff is usually costs at least a little less than the others.
I just realized a simple fact about obtaining USB-C 3.2 cables (driven by purchasing some SSDs at Amazon Prime Days). For the most part, devices sold with USB-C 3.2 capability usually come with cables that can support them. If those cables are of sufficient length for you, there is no need to worry about the differences in speed. So, just be sure to use devices capable of high data rates with cables that come with such devices.
That’s often the rub. An included 8" cable rarely will cut the mustard.
Although I will admit, the included 8" cable that came with a cheap 3.2 hub I once purchased was ideal for that specific application. I’d say that, in my case, that was the exception to prove the rule. 
Samsung included 18" cables cable ties) with the T7 Shield. They actually included 2 full cables (USB-C and USB-A to USB-C) rather than just a USB-A cap in addition to a USB-C cable.
Take a look at these CT Scans of various cables. Most enlightening (pun intended)
https://url.emailprotection.link/?bxBTmjtqE2Pz91e5IVovIGHWCyzuNy_VOAr8mBwaABIV8IYNPeX0EX36_txto6y4nvjsO7eJXpllrwN-GCtxmT66NbregNKk5-nRaZKNrJUHApCX29YZo8qZAcWkmpHa3jODmAoqv0Ifn5oejefPkppOX7LQPHEvYH55OtrITuCE~