Apple to shrink connector for iPhone 5

Apple Inc`s new iPhone will drop the wide dock connector used in the company`s gadgets for the best part of a decade in favour of a smaller one, a change likely to annoy the Apple faithful but which could be a boon for accessory makers.

The iPhone 5, Apple`s next generation iPhone expected to go on sale around October, will come with a 19-pin connector port at the bottom instead of the proprietary 30-pin port `to make room for the earphone moving to the bottom`, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

That would mean the new phone would not connect with the myriad of accessories such as speakers and power chargers that form part of the ecosystem around iPods, iPads and iPhones, without an adaptor.

That means new business, analysts say. `It represents an opportunity for accessory vendors,` said Mr Pete Cunningham, London-based analyst at technology research firm Canalys. `The iPhone connector has been a standard for a long time now and I would expect the same to be true for a new connector, should Apple change it as expected.`

BdST 1659 HRS, JUL 24, 2012

Edited by:
Sabbin Hasan, ICT Editor