Apple changed its connector in the iPhone, iPod touch and iPod nano and got a mixed reaction. However iLounge reports that’s it’s definitely a more complicated situation for third party accessory builders. Apple has apparently really tightened up its MFi Policies (Made for iPad/iPod/iPhone), so only Apple approved accessory manufacturers can incorporate the Lighting connector.
iLounge:
One source notes that Apple is planning an MFi “seminar,” where it will discuss changes to the program and the rules for Lightning accessory development going forward. The seminar will be held in November in China, notes the source, after the point at which third-party Lightning accessories could be manufactured in time for holiday sale.
Furthermore, Apple has yet to authorise any factories to make them, which suggests that we won’t be seeing official third party accessories any time soon.
Unauthorized copies are also reportedly hard to make, as illustrated by the iTronz adapter, which emerged on Amazon but was shortly removed due to a “very critical functional issue.”
If you ask me, this is a bad move. No tech company to my knowledge has ever restricted the manufacture of cables to authorised companies only, but Apple clearly hopes that this will force customers to exclusively buy its own cables. I’m not convinced that many will put up for this for too long however, and I’m sure that someone somewhere will come up with an alternative.
