The iPhone 15 series is required to use USB-C according to the EU directive. However, it seems that users cannot just plug a USB-C cable into the iPhone 15 series.
According to rumors circulating on Weibo, Apple is developing a special USB-C variant for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. The rumor comes from a Weibo user who claims to be an integrated circuit (IC) expert with 25 years of experience developing Intel Pentium processors.
This rumor says the USB-C port and charging cable for the iPhone 15 series will have an authenticator chip which might limit its functionality with non-Apple accessories.
IC is a semiconductor chip that is used to share information between devices. All Apple-authorized accessories and Made for iPhone (MFi) certified third-party accessories carry an IC that confirms the authenticity of the components used.
Third-party cables that are not MFi-certified do not have this chip, and when plugged into an Apple device it displays a 'This accessory is not supported' warning. This chip allows Apple to encourage users to buy Apple-authorized accessories and receive a commission from MFi accessories.
Well, this latest rumor claims that Apple is developing a similar IC for the USB-C port in the iPhone 15 series, and possibly the charging cable. Apart from the iPhone 15 series, this new IC will also be used in MFi accessories, as quoted from MacRumors, Monday (13/2/2023).
These rumors suggest that Apple will limit how the USB-C port on the iPhone 15 interacts with the cable it's plugged in to. It is not yet known what kind of restrictions will be applied, perhaps Apple will make features such as fast charging and high-speed data transfer only available if you use an official cable or have an MFi certificate.
It's worth noting that some Apple devices that support USB-C such as the iPad, Apple TV remote, and Thunderbolt ports on Mac don't have IC chips and are compatible with non-Apple accessories.
Previously, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo revealed that the USB-C ports on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro series will be different. The iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus will continue to use the same USB 2.0 standard as Lightning, and the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max will have faster transfer capabilities.
This form of 'discrimination' makes sense because Apple has implemented a similar strategy on the entry-level iPad and iPad Pro. While both use USB-C ports, only the iPad Pro supports Thunderbolt with transfer speeds of up to 40 Gbps.