I've got beef with Apple's frustrating hardware transition

Summary

The iPhone 16 Pro lacks basic accessories.
It’s an initial inconvenience for loyal Apple customers.
The transition to USB-C port can be frustrating

I remember the infamous day in 2012 when Apple decided to throw a wrench at the charging world and convert all Apple loyalists to its “pick-me”

Lightning
cable. Even though “Lightning” sounds cool, it most definitely was not a cool move by the tech giant. It was supposedly in the name of efficiency, but my gut was pretty confident it was a financial play (sigh).

I was still rocking my LG Cosmos Touch, so I wasn’t affected by such a dramatic shift. I got the iPhone 5s in 2013, and upgraded along the line of Lightning-supported iPhones since. But a few weeks ago, I finally bought the

iPhone 16 Pro
after five years of using my trusty iPhone 12 Pro, and that came with a few

uncomfortable changes
, including the EU-induced shift to a USB-C port.

I knew that would be the most painful shift, but experiencing it for myself highlighted a few things that rubbed me the wrong way. So what did I do? Wrote them all down, of course. Apple, if you’re reading this, I’ve got a few notes for you.

5 unexpected things I wish I knew before upgrading to the iPhone 16 Pro

I traded in my iPhone 12 Pro and walked into a tech identity crisis.

I shouldn’t have to go searching for new hardware

For a $1000 phone, it’s ridiculous

An iPhone 16 Pro lock screen and bird pillow.

Just because I knew it was coming didn’t make it any easier. The iPhone 16 Pro only came with the new USB-C cable — no block, no dongle, no USB-C-capable EarPods. I know that Apple cut out the charging block years ago (and EarPods far earlier than that) for waste-reduction purposes, but it would’ve been helpful to have a charging block that went with the particular USB-C cord that came with the phone. I spent at least a week charging my phone from my MacBook Pro while I waited for an Apple-branded charging block to arrive.

The same thing went for my listening habits. In my own stubborn manner, I refuse to wear Bluetooth headphones unless I’m at the gym. If I’m working, walking, or listening to music on my commute, I use wired headphones — whether that’s Apple’s EarPods (which I still think have the best microphone) or my trusty discontinued Bose headphones. Thanks to Amazon’s fast shipping, I only had to go one day without listening to my music and evening meditations, but it was still another $25 plus taxes I had to send to the Apple overlords. It’s not cool when dongles and EarPods are practically pocket change to the company.

A Kindle, laptop sleeve, and wired headphones.

5 gadgets I always travel abroad with

You’ve got your outfits planned out, so what about your tech?

Champagne problems, yes, but if I’m paying over $1000 for a phone when all is said and done, I shouldn’t have to go out and spend $30+ on a block, dongle, and new headphones. Apple wants us to upgrade so badly, but it still wants us to pay the difference in the adjustment.

Throw us a bone, Apple

At least for the next couple of generations

It would be one thing if I went out years from now and bought an iPhone 19, 18, or even 17 this fall — at that point, we’d be years into the USB-C era, and it would be more commonplace to encounter those kinds of chargers and such. I wouldn’t have nearly as much ground to complain on there. However, Apple could’ve thrown us a bone for the first couple of years and included these various bits of hardware to make the transition just a bit easier on the hardware front.

Everyone suffered when our Spotify kings and queens were stopped at the hardware gates of your car cable.

I remember how annoying the issue was for my friends who upgraded to the iPhone 15 series when it came out in 2023. It was painful watching the look on your best friend’s face when her phone was about to die at your house before a night out and all you had on hand was a Lightning charging cable. It was even worse when the friend with the best playlist went to go plug into the aux in the car and their USB-C port was met with the soon-to-be “old” cable. Everyone suffered when our Spotify kings and queens were stopped at the hardware gates of your car cable.

Is the iPhone 15 still worth buying in 2025? The answer is complicated

Possibly, but you shouldn’t get one straight from Apple.

Looking at the years ahead

The only way out is through, apparently

Knowing what the first group of USB-C converts went through, I’m keeping all my Lightning cables around for a few more years in case someone comes to my house (or car) with a pre-15 series iPhone. I wish Apple had put a little more of its new branded hardware out into the world (especially with the prevalence of corrupted third-party hardware) just to make the transition a little easier.

However, just like the original switch to Lightning — which was far more annoying, I’m sure — Apple users are just going to have to get used to it. The EU backed the tech giant into a corner for a good reason, and they had to cave or else lose the European market. I’m just hoping that we have at least a decade before Apple tries to pull another pick-me hardware move on us again.