Only nine days until Apple unveils the iPhone 15.
Will there be an iPhone Ultra? Is this the year Apple bids goodbye to lightning cable? (For the iPhone, at least? AirPods and Apple TV remotes still use that cable to power themselves.)
Rumors say so, but all those burning questions will be answered by what can only be another set of beautifully crafted presentations at this year’s iPhone event called “Wonderlust.” (Not a typo.)
The internet will no doubt be flooded by the stream of iPhone updates. Whether you like it or not, if you read the news or have subscribed to any tech-focused content creator on any social media channel, you won’t miss the stream of iPhone news and reactions to them.
But no one other than those content creators is looking forward to the iPhone event more than those waiting to upgrade from an older iPhone (Or buy their first). I even saw people looking to switch to an iPhone only if it finally comes with a USB-C charging port.
That makes sense. If you have multiple devices, chances are, most of them can be charged using USB-C.
Even my 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Pro can be charged via USB-C, although it has a dedicated MagSafe charging port. Having to carry around one extra cable just for the iPhone gets a bit frustrating at times.
However, is it worth upgrading from your current iPhone just for the convenience of the USB-C charging port?
Should you upgrade to iPhone 15 just for USB-C?
Like with everything in the tech world, it depends.
I tend to upgrade my iPhone every two years. iPhones are famously long-lasting devices. Besides gradually degrading battery life, you won’t complain much if you hold on to your iPhone for five years or even longer. They also hold their value in the used market, last a long time, and have legendary stability compared to Android.
So, I upgrade my iPhone every two years not because the iPhone feels old. I upgrade simply because I want to.
As a tech enthusiast, staying with the latest tech feels second nature. But with iPhones costing as much as they do, upgrading every year is a bit too much. Two years, that interval feels just right.
Even though there’s not much scope for significant breakthroughs in the smartphone industry, we still look forward to something new and exciting to justify upgrading our phones.
These days, such breakthroughs rarely come, but quality-of-life improvements, however small, are plenty. And they can be enough to justify upgrading from a perfectly functioning smartphone to the new generation.
For me and many other iPhone users, the addition of USB-C on an iPhone will be the one quality-of-life improvement we’ve been waiting for for years. I’m sure the new iPhone will also have other improvements — perhaps a better body design, faster internals, and a set of better cameras.
But my iPhone 13 Pro is still going strong. I have no complaints about its performance, cameras, or really anything. If the iPhone 15 comes with USB-C, that will be enough justification for me to upgrade. Take this, for example:
The car I’m driving nowadays has wired Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. My secondary phone is an Android (The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5), and I like to alternate between that and the iPhone.
I have to pull the lightning cable and insert the USB-C into the car to switch between Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. If the next iPhone comes with USB-C, I can keep one cable connected to the car and use it with both iPhone and Android.
It sounds insignificant, but this minor inconvenience adds up, especially when I have a set of charging cables at home, in my car, in my backpack, and in my luggage (for when I’m traveling, like right now).
So, there you go! USB-C on the new iPhone is almost guaranteed at this point, but if that doesn’t happen for some reason, this may be the year I skip the new iPhone for the third time.
