India May Exempt Certain Devices From Law That Would Force USB-C Port
India is considering exempting certain products from a proposed law that would force a selection of consumer electronic devices to adopt a USB-C port. Among the devices being possibly exempted, AirPods could be included.

According to a report from Mint, citing a senior Indian official, the government is considering exempting featurephones, wearables, and hearables from a proposed law that would require USB-C on devices. The official cites device makers and stakeholders as having shared concerns that mandating those products to adopt the universal port would result in costs increasing for consumers.
While the specific definition of the exempted devices has yet to be decided, the definition of hearables could include Apple's line of AirPods. The EU has already passed a law that requires devices sold in the region to have a USB-C port by 2024, including AirPods. Under the EU's regulation, Apple would be required to switch the AirPods to USB-C, even if the Indian requirement says differently.
Apple's vice president of worldwide marketing, Greg Joswiak, previously confirmed that Apple would have to switch the iPhone to USB-C. While reports suggest the iPhone 15 later this fall may make the switch away from Lightning, according to the EU's deadline for the USB-C law, Apple could wait until the iPhone 17 in 2025 before moving to the faster and more universal port.
Popular Stories
Apple previously announced that macOS Sonoma will be released this Tuesday, September 26. The free software update includes many new features and changes for the Mac, including the five that we have highlighted below. In addition to these five features, we have shared the full release notes for macOS Sonoma below for a complete overview of everything new. Desktop Widgets macOS Sonoma...
Are you skipping the iPhone 15 Pro and waiting another year to upgrade? If so, we already have some iPhone 16 Pro rumors for you. Below, we recap new features rumored for the iPhone 16 Pro models so far:Larger displays: The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will be equipped with larger 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch displays, respectively, according to Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain...
The iPhone 16 series is expected to gain an additional capacitive button, known internally as the "Capture Button." Codenamed "Project Nova," the button is likely to be one of the main selling points of the iPhone 16 lineup, assuming it gets past the initial testing phase. The Capture Button is located on the same side as the Power button, only positioned slightly lower - where the mmWave cutout...
Apple could be preparing to release a seventh-generation iPad mini before the end of the year, based on a new report by DigiTimes. In an article discussing stagnating global tablet demand in the second half of 2023, the Taiwan-based outlet forecasts an uptick in Apple's share of the market owing to orders for a "small-size" iPad in the fourth quarter. From the report (see bold): In the...
Top Rated Comments
but what's the point, if the EU mandates it, apple will just fully make the switch. they're not going to design two sets of iphones and airpods that have different ports.
That being said, I don’t think government should be telling private companies what to do/run their businesses (in most cases).