Anul trecut compania Apple a lansat tehnologia Lightning pentru iPhone, iPad si iPod Touch, implementand-o in iPhone 5, iPad 4, iPad Mini si iPod Touch 5G. Noua tehnologie a cablurilor si iDevice-urilor celor de la Apple este proprietara companiei si poate fi utilizata doar de catre producatorii de accesorii care indeplinesc un set foarte strict de reguli. Acest lucru nu i-a impiedicat totusi pe chinezi sa o cloneze si sa produca accesorii care teoretic sunt compatibile cu aceasta tehnologie, insa Apple i-ar putea lasa cu multe produse in stoc printr-o simpla actualizare a iOS-ului.
When a hardware maker signs up with Apple’s MFi Program, for companies that make accessories for Apple products, it orders a Lightning connector component from Apple to use in designing the accessory. The connectors have serial numbers for each accessory maker, and they contain authentication chips that communicate with the phones. When the company submits its accessory to Apple for testing, Apple can recognize the serial number.
The chip inside the Lightning connector can be reverse engineered — copied by another company — but it probably would not work as well as one that came from Apple, Mr. Howe said. Apple could also theoretically issue software updates that would disable Lightning products that did not use its chips, he said.“That’s one thing Apple is good at: controlling the user experience from end to end,” Mr. Howe said. “If you’re buying something in an Apple store, it’s gone through all this rigorous testing.”
Cei de la Mophie au detaliat regulile stricte pe care Apple le impune producatorilor de accesorii, insa a mentionat si ca Apple poate bloca functionalitatea unor accesorii daca acestea nu sunt recunoscute de iOS. Cablurile originale au un cod unic pe care iDevice-urile il recunosc, iar daca Apple doreste, poate bloca functionalitatea accesoriilor care nu au cod, sau al caror cod nu este recunoscut, iar in acel moment doar un posibil jailbreak ar mai putea rezolva situatia.
Desi este putin probabil ca Apple sa blocheze functionalitatea accesoriilor Lightning contrafacute, orice este posibil daca situatia o va cere.
