To be fair, reducing the size of the packaging and thus how much resource is needed to transport the goods DOES go some way to reducing container ship emissions. If you need 2 container ships to transport goods with a charger in the box and 1 container ship without, there’s an environmental saving.
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iPad Why do some countries not receive a charging brick with the new iPad?
- Thread starter ric22
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Depends if you're measuring the benefit of reducing environmental emissions in that equation.
If one of the benefits of reducing environmental emissions now is that we don’t all die a horrible fiery death in 10 years time then that would be a big benefit to the common man, regardless of the cost.
Yes, a tiny bit of help. But, again, insignificant compared to tackling, or even half heartedly tackling, the real problem. It's not even hard or terribly expensive to reduce pollution from ships. ☹️
Lots of legislation is anti-environment and is retained to reduce costs on big businesses that invest a lot in lobbying- on both sides of the Atlantic.
The thing is the ‘hard problem’ is very often a lot of little things that in isolation, don’t amount to much. But collectively they amount to a lot. Charging bricks coming out of every phone, tablet, watch and laptop box in the world is collectively a huge change, even if there are still even bigger problems that need tackling.
The regulation was in place prior to brexit and I believe the UK government opted to keep that regulation. Someone correct me if I’m Wrong.
At least we agree about how lobbying should be outlawed. I feel like you missed my point about how regulators too often go after soft targets than anything that costs big business a penny.
I didn’t miss that, I just don’t think we should necessarily be paralysed from doing anything just because the biggest issues haven’t yet been solved.
If we insist that no action should be taken until the biggest targets are reigned in then there’s a chance we end up doing nothing, ever.
Ok, I see your point, though I wasn't saying do nothing. I'm generally in favour of anything pro environment. I just think this was 5 years too soon. 👍🏼
I have the 12.9 iPad Pro. It charges just fine with a 10w charger. Does it take a long time, sure. But it works. So the argument that "not everyone has a charger that will enable the device to work" is simply false.
If you can afford an iPad Pro, you can afford a $25 charger from Amazon.
It was reported incorrectly if that's the case. I dug out an article in another thread already today.
UK says it won't copy EU USB-C mandate, but that won't matter for iPhone
The UK says it has no plans to follow the EU's USB-C charging mandate, but a USB-C iPhone for the EU means a USB-C iPhone for everyone.
www.imore.com
For example.
I wouldn’t object to the Store Credit idea; you get what you need, without being left out of pocket to get it. If the credit had an expiry date, some would expire, some would mean customers upgrading earlier than they otherwise would have done, which are wins for Apple. It isn’t unreasonable to have to remember to use something (setting a reminder if necessary) or to lose it, and if I came up against said date, I’d grab a spare power brick to use when mine breaks, because the only USB-C wall brick I have have came with my iPad mini. It is unreasonable to not include a power brick or zero cost means of getting one and then to not offer free replacements when an old one wears out; as you say, it’s likely outlived the iPad it came with, so all other things being equal, the consumer should have acquired another in that time that they could then use, but are instead being penalised for doing exactly as the legislation intended. Stick is only supposed to be applied when you don’t do what you should, which was why I suggested returning old ones for responsible recycling and being given a replacement. The 5 years thing doesn’t work in practice, the cost of a successful claim forces you to just buy a new one and some retailers are a nightmare even when you are still in warranty.
I’m probably not your average Macrumours person in that high end chargers don’t interest me, and I don’t upgrade often to have piles of these things to use up. At least if they come from Apple you know they’re safe from day 1 and won’t end in a headline (which this approach will likely result in as some users or their parents buy cheap because they think it’s a cheek to have to pay for a charger on top of an expensive device.) I had the iPhone 4, which I sold so the charger went with it, the iPhone 5s which I still use with a backup sim (and my mum commandeered the brick when she got a SmartWatch), the iPad 3 which I gave away (though I got the USB-A wall plug back when it was no longer needed so that would be a nice back up if Apple had supplied USB-A to C cables rather than C to C) the Mini 5 (again, I sold) and the Mini 6.
The USB C connector itself was as far as this should have gone - pre-smartphones, every charger was different, so that was a good idea. Swapping to USB C on the wall end now means adapters needing to be bought (I question the safety of this long term) or USB C wall bricks at the customer’s expense, perhaps even USB-C to C cables piling up if a USB-A to C cable is cheaper than a USB-C wall brick. If you behave responsibly, there should be no further cost to you than general taxation (and the ~20% VAT can be used towards environmental initiatives if the government so wishes.)
Apple could even say that bricks are free if added to the basket at checkout, therefore people that don’t need them continue without them, satisfying the legislation and those that don’t read that they have to claim a free brick have to pay. No system of any kind is running, so it’s fair enough to criticise Apple for that greed rather than blaming it all on the EU as they would no doubt like to do.
I didn't say you could "just walk into a store and demand a replacement for a 5 year old device". But if you can show that it had a design/manufacturing default that meant it wasn't appropriately durable (see https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/regulation/consumer-rights-act-aKJYx8n5KiSl) you are entitled to free repair or replacement - and that goes way beyond what you get with a typical 90 day to 1 year manufacturer's warranty.
Realistically, if power bricks from a company like Apple were regularly failing after less than 5 years, there would be plenty of online evidence to support your case, and there'd probably a manufacturers recall/repair scheme to make it moot (esp. if they're failing PAT tests as a previous poster suggested).
I think we agree that expecting a genuinely worn out or damaged product to be replaced after several years of use without evidence of a defect is unreasonable - and, frankly, that's been a non-issue since Apple stopped using captive cables with inadequate strain relief (we'll see how long USB-C sockets turn out to last). The poster I was replying to (not you) was suggesting that Apple should be obliged to replace any failed power brick... which ain't gonna happen.
A 12 month manufacturer's limited guarantee is the same as Apple's US customer's get - and if it breaks after that they get to keep both pieces. The EU/UK statutory consumer's rights draw a big red line through most of that and impose far more stringent rules on fitness for purpose, faults, repairs etc. that do last for 5-6 years, albeit with a shift in burden of proof over time. Any extra liability is an extra cost.
The US price of the iPad Pro is $999. The UK price is £999 including 20% VAT - so £832.50 before whatever sales tax applies. The £ is currently at $1.25 so that's about $1040. So that's $40 to pay for increased warranty liability along with what are probably higher-than-US import fees, UKCA certification and UK WiFi compliance, foreign exchange fees, hedging against exchange rate changes, localisation etc. in order to sell into a much smaller market than the US. There have been times in the distant past when the rate has been closer to $2 and VAT lower (or not included in prices) and Apple have still just swapped the £ for a $ - but for the last 10 years or so the UK prices have been comparable to US.
The very basic US charger that they include doesn't cost Apple more than a couple of bucks. The basic UK charger, with the more complex, foldable UK plug, probably costs a bit more to make (and sells in lower quantities).
Well it would probably make them money - because if I had a £25 Apple Store voucher and did want a new charger I'd probably put it towards one of the better options rather than get the basic £20 model - and I'm sure that none of those cost Apple more than a fiver to make.
I'm sure somewhere out there there's a customer who doesn't already have a USB charger and doesn't have a phone, laptops or airpods or anything else that would mean a multi-port charger would be more useful.
* Ironic as in "untrue"?
The iPad Pro went USB-C in 2018 and came with an 18W USB-C adaptor (source: everymac.com) - meanwhile they stopped bundling chargers with iPhones in 2020, when the phones were still using Lightning. MacBooks have come with USB-C power adapters since 2016. ...and Apple have been using USB-A power adapters - which should work with a £5 USB A-to-C cable - since forever although a 15 year old pre-iPad 5W one might be a stretch.
The reason you might want to buy a new charger right now is that charging tech has improved recently (GaN and all that) so there are some nice, light, high-powered multi-port chargers that are smaller and lighter lighter than your 5-year-old laptop charger and can charge all your gizmos at once. Which is one reason why having a basic, single-port, low-powered charger bundled with every device you buy no longer makes sense.
US devices have not got charging blocks for years now. For most, it is a waste and would just get tossed in the drawer.
It isn’t, however the majority of people buy a new iPad once every few years, not 1 or 2 like a phone. Seems most are kept for 4 years or more. Now that means when it comes time to buy a new one people will sell their existing model or hand it down to a family member, which means you pass the charger along with it.
Your entire comment ’assumes’ the old iPad is defunct and is binned, when the reality is quite the opposite, hence iPads are NOT the same as phones.
Sure, what’s an extra £25 on top of the TWO GRAND you’ve just spent… hell it’s almost idiotic to expect a device to come with a charger these days….
The person you pass the iPad down to either uses their existing charger and you keep the one you have, or you buy a new charger at that point and keep it for the next few iPads.
In the future there’ll be even more devices that don’t come with chargers. Laptops are on the list to go charger-less before long.
Different regulations though. The WEEE laws predate brexit while the usb-c requirement came after.It was reported incorrectly if that's the case. I dug out an article in another thread already today.
UK says it won't copy EU USB-C mandate, but that won't matter for iPhone
The UK says it has no plans to follow the EU's USB-C charging mandate, but a USB-C iPhone for the EU means a USB-C iPhone for everyone.
For example.
The WEEE laws have had different updates through time, right? They don't seem to have been updated in the UK to reflect the newest amendments, unless reports have it muddled.