Quote:
Originally Posted by lawgone
Agreed. They take forever to get these adapters out and then have the nerve to charge $250 for them! It's a piece of plastic with a little metal connecter that they should charge no more than $50 for (and that's being generous.) $250 is just highway robbery.
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The adapter is more than just "...a piece of plastic with a little metal connecter [sic]...". I have the media cradle in my 7 series and it's actually a very nice cradle. The cradle itself has a locking / eject mechanism that makes it really easy to snap the iPhone in and pop it out. It also has a built-in motorized mini-fan that keeps the iPhone from overheating when docked. There's a little switch that's pressed down when an iPhone is snapped into the cradle. When the switch is pressed (by snapping in the phone) the fan turns on. Thought that was a nice touch. And, finally, it not only charges the iPhone and passes media (audio / video / apps / calendar, etc) through to iDrive, it also connects the phone to the car's antenna system for better reception. It was worth every penny to me to get the added media capability (especially the calendar), and to not have to fish around my center armrest looking for the end of the connector to plug into my phone. I consider it a convenience fee -- which is, understandably, subjective. Since I have the iPhone 5 now, I've simply plugged the lightning connector into the USB port in the armrest and am using it that way. I am counting the days until a new cradle is available. Definitely going to buy one for the convenience.
Quote:
Originally Posted by capriguy84
Whatever!!
Apple is to blame here, they moved away from a widely used micro-USB interface, so they can now charge a price for licensing the adapter.
If only all cellphone makers had 1 single type of interface, you never would have to swap your cradle.
Another point is when the whole world is moving to wireless why not make wireless charging more ubiquitous.
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Easy to blame Apple, but I choose not to blame anyone. It simply is what it is -- progress. Apple kept the 30-pin connector (which was not micro USB by the way) for ten years. Think about that... TEN YEARS. Technology has, since, marched steadily on. The connector outlived it's usefulness. In my opinion, Apple needed to move to a much smaller design (even smaller than micro USB) so they could continue to control their own destiny when it comes to slim, sleek device designs. If I recall correctly, when they announced the new connector, they said it was going to be standardized across their mobile product line and would take us "into the next decade". So, however painful it is, at least they gave us some sense of security knowing the connector would be around for the next ten years or so, and a hint that it'd make its way to iPad and iPod, which means those devices, in turn, can now become thinner and lighter.