In Europe, Apple will soon be offering a Micro USB to Dock connector adapter for the iPhone and iPad. The heavy emergence of the Micro USB standard, specifying a small form factor USB connector, was officialized when the connector was approved by the Open Mobile Terminal Platform (OMTP) and three global industry bodies as the industry charging standard for mobile handsets, on the heels of its approval in Europe as the industry standard universal connector for all mobile handsets. These moves came in an effort to consolidate handset charging connectivity with an eye toward reducing the volume of electronics product in landfills globally, as each subsequent generation of handsets' "proprietary" dongles go into them as trash.
Apple's issuing the new adapter, however, has Macgasm's tech blogger Joshua Schnell scratching his head:
"Thankfully it’s cheap enough that it may encourage people to pick up the connector instead of purchasing numerous cables. However, I’m not exactly sure how the EU thinks creating connectors will help the problem, despite allowing companies to create adapters instead of changing their devices to meet the new standard. In addition to shipping all iOS devices with a dock connector cable, Apple will also begin shipping a Dock to USB conversion connector. Doesn’t that just double the stuff going into landfills? Apple met their requirements in the EU, but something tells me the EU folks calling these shots didn’t exactly realize that they could be making the problem worse. Instead of looking for a new cable, customers will begin looking for a new dock connector conversion adapter. What’s the difference?"
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