Apple Macs to ditch USB - report

Apple Macs to ditch USB - report

Planning to buy a new Mac? Better save some money for all-new peripherals.

According to rumours ahead of Apple's October 27 big reveal, the new iMac and Macbook range won't have the same USB slots found desk and laptops since the late 1990s.

Apple fan site Macotakara, citing "reliable sources", said Apple's going all-in with the new USB-C standard. It's a different shape to the old USB cables, which almost all other devices still use.

"A MacBook Pro without traditional USB ports would take some getting used to," commented Macworld writer Caitlin McGarry.

"Professionals use the high-powered Pros, and many of them have all kinds of peripheral devices that rely on the USB port. That means buyers of new Pros will have to shell out extra for an adapter or a multiport USB-C dock (like the kind Apple sells for US$80) to plug in all of their gear until accessory makers move to USB-C."

Apple Macs to ditch USB - report

Close-up of a USB-C port on a 2015 Macbook (Getty)

USB-C plugs are smaller than the old type, allowing Apple to make its devices even thinner - the same reasoning behind why the company ditched the 60-year-old 3.5mm headphone jack on its new iPhone 7 range.

It won't be the first time Apple's led the pack in ditching what it sees as obsolete technology.

In 1998, Apple's new iMac range didn't have a floppy drive, the 1.4MB of information a pittance compared to CDs and DVDs, which could hold 800MB and 4GB respectively.

In 2012 they shipped without CD drives, acknowledging the rise of cloud computing.

Newshub.