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iPhone With USB-C: What It Means for CarPlay Users

This year's iPhone generation is expected to introduce several changes, and the most notable is likely to be the transition from Lightning to USB-C.
Proprietary iPhone Lightning port 11 photos
Photo: Bogdan Popa/autoevolution/Softpedia
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While it might all look like the hell freezes over for diehard Apple fanboys, the iPhone switching to USB-C will finally happen thanks to pressure from the European Union.

The EU recently passed new regulations that require companies selling smartphones on the continent to equip their devices with a universal USB-C port. This way, the EU says, the fight against e-waste would be more effective, while customers will be able to charge more devices with the same cable.

For Apple, the switch to USB-C isn't going to be easy, especially because of the company's commitment to Made for iPhone accessories. The Lightning connector available on the iPhone powers a whole range of iPhone accessories, and now that the device is moving to USB-C, all these products would have to make the same transition as well.

Many users seem to be concerned about the switch to USB-C from a driving perspective as well, as iPhones are in charge of powering the CarPlay experience in millions of vehicles.

How CarPlay works

Before anything else, it's important to know there are two versions of CarPlay currently available in cars out there. On the one hand, the wired version requires a cable connection between the iPhone and the media receiver in the cabin. On the other hand, some models come with wireless CarPlay, meaning that users can run the likes of Google Maps and YouTube Music on the dashboard without even pulling the phone from their pocket.

At the moment, a wired CarPlay connection uses either a USB-C to Lightning or a USB-A to Lightning cable, depending on the car model you own.

New-generation vehicles come with USB-C, whereas the majority of older models are fitted with USB-A. If you have a hard time making a difference between the two, USB-A is the traditional USB port used for everything from mice and keyboards to flash drives and printers.

As such, your car uses either a USB-A or USB-C port, while the iPhone comes with Apple’s proprietary Lightning connector.

iPhone Lightning port
Photo: Softpedia

The USB-C iPhone

When the new-generation iPhone comes out later this year, it will sport a USB-C port instead of Lightning. In other words, the only thing that’s going to be different in your car is the smartphone port.

For a wired connection, you’ll need a cable that has either USB-A or USB-C (depending on your car) on one end and USB-C on the other. A Lightning cable would no longer be supported.

High-speed USB-A to USB-C cables are already available, including from the likes of Samsung, so if your car comes with a traditional USB port, you can set up CarPlay immediately.

If the vehicle is fitted with USB-C, you can use the cable bundled with the iPhone 15. Apple will almost certainly offer a USB-C to USB-C cable in the box – the current iPhone models ship with a USB-C to Lightning cable, as Apple’s wall chargers also come with USB-C.

If you want to continue using the existing Lightning cable, you’ll need an adapter to convert the proprietary connector to USB-C. However, you’d better stay away from them, as most come from generic Chinese manufacturers, and despite costing just a couple of bucks, they could produce all kinds of connectivity problems. Most are rather flimsy, so don’t be too surprised if CarPlay stops working in the middle of the drive.

If your car comes with wireless CarPlay, the transition to USB-C won’t produce any change for you.

USB\-C port on Samsung phone
Photo: Softpedia

Future iPhone connectivity options

People familiar with the matter previously said Apple considered a portless iPhone that used wireless connections for everything from charging to CarPlay. This device is allegedly still on the table, especially as Apple plans to build an unhackable smartphone – the existing exploits rely on cable connections to the iPhone, and by switching to wireless, Apple would make its devices harder to break into.

Once a portless iPhone launches, wireless CarPlay becomes the only option. Sure enough, not all cars come with support for the wired mode, but third-party adapters can help migrate to a wireless connection. In other words, even if Apple eventually embraces this crazy idea and switches to a portless iPhone (with the rest of the industry then expected to follow in its footsteps as well), you can still use CarPlay regardless of the vehicle model.

Apple has so far remained tight-lipped regarding the debut of a portless iPhone.

At the end of the day, no matter the changes that Apple eventually sticks with, you can continue running CarPlay without any hacks on your side. Everything will take place on the iPhone, so in the worst-case scenario, you’ll need an adapter to migrate from wired to wireless. For a USB-C iPhone, you only need a new cable.
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About the author: Bogdan Popa
Bogdan Popa profile photo

Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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