For decades now, the battle between Android and Apple seems to have been raging on. Arguments about processing speed, quality of life, user-friendliness and price have gone back and forth countless times.
Underneath the animosity and the well-reasoned debates alike is one fact that affects both parties, namely Apple technology existing in a bubble.
By that I mean that Apple devices have been built to work with Apple chargers, pair with Apple Bluetooth products and interact with Apple apps. The core (hah, Apple core) of the issue is that this creates a sunk-cost for using Apple. You can't be partly Apple, you're either a whole orchard or you're nothing.
This divisive strategy of creating their own ecosystem of technology has come sunder fire on the legal stage a few times now, and here are the 3 biggest ways that Apple are being forced to come out of their shell and create fair, equal integration with other technologies:
1. Apple iPhones Must Support Bluetooth Hearing Aids
Apple devices built around Bluetooth audio, such as a Homepod, can play wireless audio like you'd expect. But, if the device isn't an Apple-related source then the Bluetooth connection will not be allowed.
We have seen similar from Sony as PlayStation 5 was never allowed to connect Bluetooth audio until the official headset, the Pulse.
What this can all mean is that connectivity isn't as clear as "Does it have Bluetooth?", as companies start locking their Bluetooth access behind accounts and apps and branded connections.
As you can imagine, that sort of behaviour isn't acceptable for devices that are used out of necessity rather than personal choice.
One such case are hearing aids. Hearing aids are vital to the daily lives of millions of people with hearing loss, and the idea that they should have to study every phone they want to buy to work out if it supports their specific hearing aid is ridiculous.
The FCC (Federal Communication Commission) in the USA agrees, and states now that
"universal connectivity between mobile handsets and hearing aids"
is a requirement of all manufacturers.
This is a great step for Apple to recognise and interact with other technology.
"But don't Apple just make their own hearing aids?" You're right, dear reader, they of course have MFi Certified devices such as hearing aid. But, that only fulfils the part about the phone being compatible with a hearing aid. What the FCC have said is there needs to be "universal connectivity" which is a whole different ball game.
This will mean your non-MFi, non-Apple hearing aids will have to work with Apple products in future!
It's a win for accessibility on multiple levels.
2. Apple Devices Start Support of USB-C
For the longest time, Apple has maintained a proprietary charging cable is required for all their devices. This has meant that Apple "lightning" cables (and their MFi certified versions) were the only way to charge iPhones and iPads.
The change enforced by the EU, in the interest of fairness and anti-monopoly, is that all Apple devices should use USB-C.
This statement from the EU was years back, but it was a plan for years in the future at the time.
In fact, a while back iPads started being compatible with USB-C instead of lightning, but the original target set by the EU was all devices after Autumn 2024 (hey, that's now!).
Meanwhile, a slightly later target of 2025 has been set by India for Apple to standardise their chargers.
Between 2018 and now, all Apple devices have now converted to USB-C, with iPhone 15 last year being the first iPhone to do so.
3. "Oh God he can't hear me, he's got his AirPods in"
Finally, alongside the breakthrough of hearing aids, there's also progress on some earphones and headphones.
While the process looks like something you'd need to study arcane rituals (and praise the Omnissiah) to achieve, it is actually possible to pair the latest AirPods to non-Apple devices.
The instructions involve everything from holding buttons, double-tapping and leaving them in the charging case before finally selecting them in your non-Apple device list.
It might be a little janky, but the integration is there and is certainly a positive step for people who want to dip their toes into Apple's world without spending £500+ on pre-requisites.
Standardisation vs Innovation
You often see this debacle with Apple get described as standardisation vs innovation. I don't see it like that.
I think that standardisation can be innovative. I believe that all of our branded technology working together is more innovative than it working on its own.
Have you been liking seeing these new developments of Apple branching out? or would you rather Apple stay a bubble of self-sustained tech separate from the rest?
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