Apple refuses to swap the Lightning connector from iPhones for a USB-C port so a robotics engineering student has created his own USB-C iPhone to prove its feasibility.
Robotics engineer proves it’s possible to replace Lightning with USB-C on iPhone
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Twelve South’s pocketable StayGo Mini hub brings four extra ports to iPad Pro, Mac and more
Twelve South has debuted StayGo Mini, a smaller, pocketable version of its USB-C hub that brings back your old ports and helps tidy up messy workspaces whilst keeping you connected when you're working from home.
How to create a macOS 12 Monterey installer on an external drive
Update: The guide has been updated to reflect name changes in the Monterey beta application. Please note, there is a bug in the beta 7 installer application which prevents it from making an installer correctly. Use beta 8 or later instead.
This tutorial goes through the process of creating an install drive from the newly-released macOS Monterey beta application. Having an external drive allows you to install the OS to multiple computers without re-downloading it, perform clean installs instead of initiating them from within an existing OS, and boot to the installer's built-in recovery for troubleshooting tools.
A MacBook Air redesign with MagSafe and next-gen M1 chip is in the works
Apple recently outfitted some of the Mac notebooks with its own M1 laptop chip, with more substantial changes to the lineup expected later in 2021 and beyond. In a new report filed with Bloomberg this morning, reporter Mark Gurman casts a spotlight on the next MacBook Air.
Plugable’s new Thunderbolt dock sports 100W of power delivery, two USB-C ports & more
Accessory vendor Plugable today released the latest addition to its Thunderbolt 3 docking station lineup. The cryptically named TBT3-UDC3 maximizes performance and keeps workflow running smoothly with a compelling 100W of power delivery while also incorporating a pair of USB-C ports for easy data transfer, two video outs, a bunch of legacy ports and more.
Apple’s older 29W USB-C power adapter is incompatible with the MagSafe Duo charger
Apple has now confirmed that its discontinued 29W USB-C power adapter is not compatible with the new MagSafe Duo charger.
Plugable’s 14-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 dock features a bunch of ports and 96W of power delivery
If you need a powerful Thunderbolt 3 dock for your Apple computers, look no further than Plugable's new baby. Today, the company released its new TBT3-UDZ Thunderbolt 3 docking station that has a whopping 14 ports and provides 96W of power delivery. On top of that, the dock sports backward and forward compatibility from USB-C to USB4 and Thunderbolt 4.
Here’s why 20W with USB PD 3.0 is the minimum to charge with MagSafe at full speed
The fact that Apple's new $39 MagSafe wireless charger currently works full speed on the new iPhone 12 if used with the company's new 20W power adapter, sold separately, had doubters crying foul, saying it's an artificial limitation to force users to buy new chargers from Apple.
Fast-charging your iPhone 12 requires Apple’s new $19 20W USB-C charger, sold separately
Want to fast-charge your iPhone 12 with Apple's discontinued 18W power adapter that you previously used for fast-changing your older iPhone? Not so fast — that 18W charger that came in the box with your iPhone 11/iPad Pro won't fast-charge the latest iPhone 12 lineup. For that, you'll need Apple's new 20W charger which must be purchased separately for $19 a pop.
Apple’s new MagSafe technology found charging at half the speed of the wired solution
Apple's new MagSafe charger for the iPhone 12 family doubles the wireless charging speed but is still slower compared to the wired solution. Concretely, the Wall Street Journal's Joana Stern found out in her video review of the new iPhones that the magnetic charger charges an iPhone 12 more than 2x slower than a 20-Watt USB-C charger with fast-charge support.
The best USB chargers for iPhone
There are a lot of reasons to look at buying a new USB charger. Maybe you just got a new smartphone or gadget that didn't come with one. Maybe you need one for travel or one that supports multiple devices. Whatever the reason, iDB has you covered. We've put together this roundup of the best USB chargers for iPhones (and other devices).
The iPad Air 4 ships with a 20W USB-C charger vs. the iPad Pro’s 18W charger
The new fourth-generation iPad Air 4 (aka the iPad Pro killer) that was unveiled during today's prerecorded Apple event will ship with a 20-watt USB-C charger in the box.