5 issues you possibly can plug into your iPhone 17’s USB-C port (that are not chargers)

Looking back, it is superb how tooth-and-nail Apple was in its combat to hold on to the Lightning port. The corporate waited till 2023 to modify iPhones over to USB-C, regardless of the actual fact the expertise first debuted in 2014, and Android telephones started adopting it in 2015. The one factor that compelled Apple’s hand was a European Union regulation standardizing USB-C on units like smartphones. In any other case, there’s an actual likelihood we might’ve been caught with proprietary cables once more for the iPhone 17.

Since Apple has lastly embraced the trade commonplace, that is additionally opened up the variety of equipment iPhones will work with. The iPhone 17, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max — in addition to the iPhone Air — can do a shocking quantity of issues by way of USB-C. You may solely get probably the most out of the expertise with a Professional or Professional Max, for causes that’ll grow to be clear in a second.

SSDs and card readers

Thoughts the efficiency hole

Because of each USB-C and modifications to iOS through the years, nearly any exterior SSD or card reader might be linked to an iPhone. You’ll be able to’t set up apps to an exterior supply, or make one the default location for saved information (with one notable exception beneath) — however it may be a helpful manner of importing and exporting content material, say should you’ve been capturing photographs on a professional digicam however wish to rapidly edit and add a few of them for social media. You’ll be able to import photographs and movies straight into the Pictures app. For many different content material, you will be transferring issues out and in of Information.

There are a variety of different catches concerned. Some SSDs require their very own energy provides, that means you will want to attach them by way of a powered USB hub if they do not have a twine of their very own. And whereas storage might be formatted in APFS, HFS+, exFAT, FAT32, or FAT, playing cards and drives can solely have a single knowledge partition.

The largest problem is pace. The bottom iPhone 17 and the iPhone Air are restricted to USB 2.0 bandwidth, which peaks at 480Mbps. That is fantastic for small transfers — however you will not max out the pace of an SSD, and enormous video transfers may take some time. At 480Mbps, it could take about 14 minutes to repeat 50GB of 4K video, whereas the 10Gbps ports on the 17 Professional and Professional Max may deal with the identical course of in 40 seconds.

That is why you want a Professional to shoot 4K ProRes video on to exterior storage. And exterior storage is important at that high quality, since even a 1TB iPhone may refill quickly.

Wired keyboards

A final-ditch productiveness possibility

Credit score: Clicks / Pocket-lint

Realistically, you will not get almost as a lot out of connecting a keyboard to an iPhone as you’ll to an iPad. Most iPhone apps aren’t very advanced, and even those which are haven’t got a lot room to work with. However should you completely have to get one thing achieved and your iPhone’s onscreen keyboard is not reducing it, a USB mannequin will dramatically pace up your typing. I do know I would not even try to put in writing an article in Google Docs if I could not plug in a desktop keyboard.An organization known as Clicks sells devoted keyboard circumstances. I am not selling the product, however I do know some persons are nonetheless hellbent on recreating the BlackBerry expertise. If nothing else, the case ensures that you’re going to at all times see an app’s fullscreen interface, as an alternative of getting it obscured by a pop-up software program keyboard.

Displays and TVs

Who wants an Apple TV?

When that you must put one thing on an even bigger display screen, iPhones can mirror their content material to a monitor or TV. You’ll be able to join on to some displays by the use of a USB 3.1 or Thunderbolt 4/5 cable, and an extra subset will even cost your iPhone whilst you’re plugged in. For TVs, in addition to displays that do not help DisplayPortover USB-C, you will want some type of USB-C to HDMI adapter.The key phrase right here is mirroring. Not like a Mac or iPad, you possibly can’t prolong an iPhone’s homescreen, so it is not like you can arrange a conveyable workstation. At greatest you can exploit the “second-screen” choices in some apps, similar to video gamers. Apps that do not help second-screen tech will proceed to reflect all of iOS, so chances are you’ll wish to activate Do Not Disturb should you’re sitting down to observe Jurassic Park.Talking of films, you possibly can output 4K HDR video as much as a 60Hz refresh rate. That features help for Dolby Imaginative and prescient. Observe that any HDMI adapter you utilize might want to help HDMI 2.0 or later.

Microphones and headphones

Most constancy

A outstanding phenomenon to me is that a whole lot of reporters do not hassle utilizing separate microphones, cameras, or recording programs anymore. As a substitute, they’re going to function primarily from their telephone, connecting equipment as needed. I’ve seen some journalists shove a naked gadget in entrance of somebody to get commentary. Naturally, USB microphones can be utilized not only for journalism, however to take calls, or document music and podcasts. The standard of your mic goes to matter lots right here, nevertheless — if you wish to sound skilled, do not use the most cost effective mannequin you will discover on Amazon.USB-C headphones aren’t particularly widespread as of late, however there’s at the least one motive to make use of them: lossless. Bluetooth merely would not have the bandwidth to deal with the very best high quality of providers like Apple Music and Spotify. I discover that lossless is overrated, personally — you most likely will not discover a distinction versus high-quality compressed audio — however for purists, USB-C is the one technique to fly.

Different units that must be cost

Largely Apple equipment

I might virtually forgotten reverse USB charging was an possibility, if I am sincere. It is no surprise, although, since Apple would not point out the expertise fairly often, and it is not fairly clear what units will work. Formally, absolutely anything might be charged together with your iPhone as lengthy it helps USB Energy Supply (USB-PD) as much as 4.5W — however some units will robotically ship energy the opposite manner as an alternative, similar to a laptop computer.What you possibly can safely assume is the power to cost an Apple Watch or an AirPods case. Watch out about this — whilst you may like the thought of topping off your equipment at any time when and wherever you want, absolutely charging one thing like an Apple Watch goes to take an enormous chew out of an iPhone’s battery. It is best to make use of this as an emergency backup, say should you’re in the midst of a PEV group rideand your AirPods all of the sudden give out.