How Apple’s Embrace of the New USB Points to World Without Wires
Eventually camera manufacturers might figure this out as well…
Ready or not, Apple’s new MacBook is cutting the computing industry’s cables.
The slim laptop has just a single USB port, the new tiny Type-C variety that’s slowly popping up in devices this year. It’s a multipurpose port that connects to external devices like hard drives, runs video to TVs and external monitors, and supplies the laptop with power when it’s charging time.
The new USB port is remarkably flexible, but it’s still just one port. For those who need to attach printers, Ethernet cables, external hard drives, cameras, monitors, keyboards, mice, TVs, game controllers and tablets, that might seem confining.
You’d better get used to it, because the new MacBook hints at the direction the industry is headed as it relies increasingly on wireless technology. The awkward transition highlights the privilege and pain that comes with being an Apple customer. It also underscores the unique position Apple enjoys, one where it can make drastic changes to transform the computing industry because, well, it can get away with it.
“They’re as usual ahead of the curve,” Endpoint Technologies analyst Roger Kay said of the pared-down ports and pumped-up wireless abilities on Apple’s latest laptop.
More: How Apple’s Embrace of the New USB Points to World Without Wires - CNET