The new Lightning interface from Apple. Lightning connector - what does it mean for each of us

Apple decided to replace the nine-year-old 30-pin connector in favor of a new, smaller alternative. Why such changes?

The iPhone 5 offers many improvements over its predecessor, including a larger screen, faster performance, LTE support, and an improved camera.

However, for those migrating from an older iPhone, there is one more change that may seem like the most significant, at least when it comes to compatibility - a new connector. Apple decided to replace the nine-year-old 30-pin connector in favor of a new, smaller alternative. Why such changes? And what do they mean for each of us and current accessories? Let's get acquainted closer with the new connector, called Lightning.

30 contacts, 9 years

Apple's 30-pin connector has been a staple on iPods, iPhones, and iPads since the introduction of the third generation of iPods back in 2003. While most media players offer a simple USB connection to transfer data and charge the device, Apple's single port covers many more functions - charging, audio output, playback control and fast data sync were among the first.

Over the years, the 30-pin port has gained some new features (HD video output, photo import, USB input), while ditching others (such as FireWire charging and data transfer), but it has continued to serve us. , and Apple: along with the design of the universal dock, the 30-pin port gave us hope - by purchasing an accessory with a dock connector (be it speakers or car chargers), we could be sure that the product would work with any i-device .

True, it was not without flaws. First, the connector was somewhat fragile, and as a result, your accessory or, even worse, your iPhone or iPod could fail. The thin profile of the connector and the one-sided design made the connector more difficult to use than, say, a standard USB port - depending on the device and accessories, aligning the connector and port could be quite problematic. Finally, the 30-pin connector took up too much space, especially as Apple's phones, tablets, and media players continued to shrink in size.

First Thunderbolt, then Lightning

Once upon a time Apple stories the day came when the company introduced the iPhone 5 and new iPods to the public. It also became swivel for the connector - new models have a new connector called Lightning.

The new connector uses an 8-pin design that works in both orientations, so there's no reason to worry about connecting correctly. According to Apple, the Lightning connector is not only easy to use, but also more durable than its predecessor. Moreover, the company is positioning the new connector as fully digital.

Undoubtedly, another big advantage of the new connector is its size. It's 80% smaller than a 30-pin connector, which means it takes up less space on your device, not to mention less internal circuitry needed to keep the connector functioning. The new smaller connector is one reason the new iPhone is 20% thinner than the iPhone 4S (the other reason is that the iPhone's screen sensors are now integrated into the display, making the display thinner).

Adapt or buy?

Easier to use, stronger, smaller - do you really like it? And it would seem that everything is fine, only the Lightning connector breaks all hopes about the compatibility of new Apple devices with millions of accessories with a 30-pin connector. The new iPhones and iPods come with a USB-to-Lightning cable, not an adapter for using new devices with old accessories.

If you have already invested a lot of money in the purchase of accessories, you will agree, but you are unlikely to want to change anything. This is where the $29 Lightning to 30-pin adapter comes in handy, or the $39 (20 cm cable) adapter, each of which allows you to connect 30-pin accessories to a new iPhone or iPod.

The adapters support analog and USB audio, as well as allow for data synchronization and charging. However, according to Apple, the adapters do not support video output. Moreover, some 30-pin accessories are not supported.

One way or another, but even with the addition of an adapter, the emergence of new technology means nothing more than the obsolescence of some accessories.

In general, the variety of manufacturers (Digitus, Just Mobile, JVC, Belkin...) that can offer alternative adapters for the iPhone 5 may well satisfy consumer demand. And it is likely that in the near future they will be on sale.

More wireless, but still wired

Perhaps the most interesting thing about the transition to the new Lightning connector is that it increasingly reflects the way we use iPhones and iPods. Many things that we used to do with wires can now be done wirelessly. Bluetooth for speakers and headphones; Wi-Fi for audio and synchronization; iCloud for wireless content download and backup. In other words, Apple believes that we no longer need physical connections.

However, the latter remain essential, for example for charging, faster sync, and better sound quality (don't be fooled, "wireless" charging also needs a cable and a physical connection). Until wireless charging, like the one found in the new Lumia 920, becomes ubiquitous, and can be built into the iPhone without making it thicker, we're stuck in a world of cables. According to Apple, the new connector promises to serve its users for many more years.

And once again, in the end, we remind our readers that, unfortunately, there are still no official deliveries of the iPhone in Ukraine. Perhaps they will appear with us after the advent of 3G and 4G. But this is just our guess.

Like most iPhone 5 features, the new, smaller Lightning connector was revealed before the device was launched. True, it was hard to tell from blurry shots that the new connector is not just a compact version of the 30-pin old Apple connector. The cable is now reversible, and it looks like Apple has added functionality to the new cable, and users will pay for it.

The Lightning connector is an 8-pin standard, but each cable has 16 pins. Thus, no matter how you try to connect it to the iPhone 5, you will succeed the first time. Peter Bradstock of Double Helix Cables elaborated on why this is so, and it turns out that it is much more complicated than it seems at first glance.

On each side of the Lightning connector are pins numbered 1 to 8. Through testing, Bradstock determined that the first connector from the top is for USB power, and that the connectors are symmetrical, meaning that the 8th connector performs the same function. Thus, if you reverse this connector, the power contact will still be in place.

The data contacts, however, are completely different. These pins are asymmetrical, meaning that if you rotate the connector, the pins will be in the wrong places. For example, if you look at the data connector second from the bottom, it is electrically connected to the second connector from the top. So when you turn the cable, the pins on the cable connect to the wrong pins on the phone.

Bradstock was able to explain this strange circumstance only in this way: iPhone 5 dynamically assigns functions to contacts using a special chip inside the phone. Apple noted that the Lightning connector only uses the pins needed for specific applications and accessories. The iPhone 5 obviously checks the type of data being sent over a contact and changes settings on the fly based on the orientation of the connector.

As a result of all this, you can connect Lightning however you want, and this connector has room for growth in the future. But the complexity of the Lightning device can be explained by the newly discovered authentication chip inside the cable. The chip is located in the path of the V + wire, so, apparently, the cable will not work without it. In other words, the market for third-party Lightning cables died before it was even born.

If you think you can easily get the cable from Apple that you need, then you are wrong. The company lacks Lightning cables, and most likely due to the fact that there are not many of them yet. Not only because of the complexity of manufacturing, but also because of the cost, which is much higher than that of the old 30-pin connector. Analysts put the Lightning at $3.50, 775 percent more than the old 30-pin. But don't think you can buy it for $3.50.

The situation, in general, is not surprising. Apple does not develop connector standards that are convenient not for users, but for itself. In this case, Thunderbolt cables are still expensive due to the use of new expensive transceivers. Thunderbolt provides few benefits to users, but allows Apple to put on some flashy demos. New Lightning cable- this is a miracle of technology, but it costs more, and not everyone likes to overpay for a cable. Just ask Best Buy.

The original apple lightning usb cable has a Lightning connector - this is Apple Ink's own design. The connector was released in September 2012 and this was done to replace its previous 30-pin connector. The original goal of releasing a new connector is to reduce the amount of space it takes up on new devices. The Apple Lightning connector is much smaller than the previous connector and can be inserted in either direction. Its dimensions are 6.7 mm by 1.5 mm The new connector had only 8 pins and was designed to connect mobile devices such as iPhone 5, iPod touch 5g or iPad mini to a computer. Unfortunately, the new connector is not backward compatible.

Apple lightning cable pinout

• 1 pin GND Ground
• 2 pin L0p Line 0+
• 3 L0n Line 0-
• 4 ID0 identifier /control 0
• 5 PWR charging
• 6 L1n Line 1-
• 7 L1p Line 1+
• 8 ID1 identifier /control 1

Apple's lightning cable pinout is adaptive. The built-in microcircuit determines which side the cable is connected to and switches accordingly to the desired contact.

What is the uniqueness of the lightning 8 pin connector

apple cable lightning usb has become a pioneer among cables that can be inserted from both sides. After that, many cables began to have reversible connectors, for example, USB Type-C.
Apple also included an authentication chip in all its lightning 8 pin cables, which the Chinese eventually successfully learned how to make. All cables manufactured by Apple and manufacturers that have received a certificate from the apple company are registered and entered into the database. Every iPhone has access to this database. In the beginning, this was a big problem for Chinese manufacturers of Apple accessories. Almost all Chinese cables were of dubious quality and after a couple of connections they gave an error about incompatibility or lack of support for the accessory. But Chinese manufacturers did not stand still and improved production. That is why modern cables no longer produce such errors, although they do not have an MFI certificate.

A new connector standard called Lightning (from English - lightning) appeared with the release of new devices Apple iPhone 5, iPod Touch 5G, iPod nano7G, iPad 4 and iPad mini. This cable came out of the bowels of the company Double Helix Cables and it has a built-in authentication chip. There are no specifications for this cable, and one can only guess about the principle of operation. It is known that from the 30-pin old Lightning connector it has lost weight to 8, but some sources claim that 9, taking into account the metal base of the contacts. It is completely digital and the chip in the cable itself determines what is connected at the moment, be it a media dock, Charger or some other device. The connector has eight pins on each side and does not have a mechanical key, which means that it can be inserted in any position and it is not impossible to break it by trying to insert it with the wrong side forcibly. Apple called this advantage of the cable - reversibility.

For this, it would seem that the task is solved simply: electrically connect the contacts on the two sides of the plug crosswise, but not everything is so simple. The specialists, having “ringed” the connector, found out that the contacts on the upper and lower parts of the plug do not have paired contacts, which means the plug cannot be turned over without changing the wiring diagram. This paradox can only be explained in one way: the interface dynamically assigns pins depending on which orientation the connector is shorted in. It becomes clear that this is not the usual "camouflaged USB". It is the dynamic pin assignment and cable communication with the device that gives us what Apple calls adaptive interface. In principle, as soon as the gadget and the switching chip have agreed on the appointment of contacts, anything can be transmitted over them. At the moment, the Lightning cable uses USB 2.0, but in the future nothing will stop it from using USB 3.0, FireWire or even Thunderbolt, putting more complex logic in the cable.

The first fruits of adaptability may appear soon. Some sites have published information that adapters for Lightning to VGA and DisplayPort will be released in the coming months. VGA requires 15 pins, and DisplayPort requires 20, so for this reason alone, a transmitter of the appropriate interface must already be in the cable.

Why did Apple need new interface while there is a public USB. Lightning and Micro USB 2.0 connectors are about the same size, but Lightning looks stronger and more reliable. Often the MicroUSB socket is broken due to the wrong location of the connector.

And one more important point. It is logical to assume that when connected to a simple charger, several Lightning contacts can be used for power at once, let's say data contacts, which potentially allows you to use more powerful blocks for fast battery charging, tk. the higher the charging current, the faster the process. For the USB 2.0 interface, the maximum current per port is 500 mA, for USB 3.0 - 900 mA. And, for example, the proprietary charger of the third iPad has a power of 10 W, which already gives a theoretical current of 2 A at a standard USB voltage of 5 V, and a 12-watt “charger” is supplied with the fourth iPad. So USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 cannot provide the power required to quickly charge tablets with such a large battery. As for MicroUSB 3.0, it is "fast", but bulky and no longer reliable connector than MicroUSB2.0. Lightning is ready to provide support for USB 3.0 and any other data transfer interface as soon as such a need arises.

Lightning also outperforms a number of solutions that provide video stream output using specialized HDMI and DisplayPort transmitters. Apple's approach allows you to offload the gadget from transmitter chips by embedding them in cables. As a result, we again get save space on the board and power consumption. As well as reducing the price of the device for those who do not need a video output. In addition, Lightning eliminates the additional headache of which connector to output the video stream through. The Mini HDMI option is not only at odds with the minimalistic design of Apple gadgets, but also - again and again - requires additional space, despite the fact that it is useful to an absolute minority.

This is actually a very sensible and far-sighted decision that may eventually become a trend: to separate the mechanical form factor of the connector and the switching of pins from a particular bus. An adaptive interface and smart cables are the best way to reduce the volume of components and power consumption of a mobile device, providing rich functionality and potential for development for years to come.

Apple has released a special adapter from the Lighting connector in the iPhone 5 to the familiar micro-USB format. The fact is that last year the European Union passed a law according to which every phone must support this standard.

As well as an adapter for your old 30-pin connector.

What is the new connector Lightning?

Released at a press conference dedicated to the iPhone 5 and a representative of the 2012 model range, a proprietary connector Lightning replaces the 30-pin connector found on iPhone, iPad and iPod since 2003. Like the 30-pin connector, the connector Lightning used to charge the device, as well as synchronize content and data, audio and video products. New devices come with a USB 2.0 to Lightning.

How is it different from a 30-pin connector?

It's 80 percent smaller, stronger, and reversible, so you don't have to worry about which side is up or down when plugging in. Apple also claims that it is a fully digital, eight-signal design that adapts to whatever device is connected through it.

What products will it be used with?

Lightning connector used for iPhone 5, iPod Touch fifth generation, iPod Nano seventh generation. Since it is part of a connection strategy along with Thunderbolt, this will be a connector for products i OS for the foreseeable future, so it is expected to see it on iPad fourth generation and other future devices.

Does this mean I can't use any of my old accessories to connect to my new iPhone and players?

You won't be able to directly connect to anything that has a 30-pin connector. However, there are adapters that convert a 30-pin connector to a connector Lightning . Through this adapter, you will get support for analog audio output, USB audio, as well as sync and charge. (According to Macworld, there is also a digital-to-analog converter for the adapter.)

The adapter does not support video outputs, and not all 30-pin devices, so you will still have to buy new accessories to use with iPhone 5 and 2012 players. Another feature iPod Out, provided by certain devices, such as car stereos that navigate your music collection, which are also not supported. The adapter is quite large, so accessories plugged into the device probably won't work.

Apple will also sell HDMI and VGA adapters for Lightning . Micro-USB adapter for Lightning will be available in Europe. And you can of course count on a full range of third party adapters.

Are there any accessories I can buy so I can always count on them?

There will always be accessories that require the use of a connector, and no one can ever guarantee anything 100 percent in the future. However, as Senior Vice President Apple Phil Schiller, presenting Lightning , much of what we now use is wireless. Whenever we connect something, we can also use Apple's Bluetooth or AirPlay. Keep in mind that the 30-pin connector has been in use for almost a decade, so there's a good chance you'll have peace of mind for the next few years using Lightning.