Apple customers forking out up to £1,400 for a new top-of-the-range iPhone 12 Pro will, for the first time, not get a charging block or headphones with the device.
According to the tech giant, this is part of a move to cut down its environmental impact and help save the planet, one of Apple’s purported priorities.
A Lightning-to-USB-C cable is included, but users who want a pair of EarPods or a standard power adaptor will have to buy them separately for £19 each.
As a result, iPhone boxes will be smaller and thinner, allowing Apple to squeeze 70 per cent more onto a single pallet, reducing shipping costs as well as emissions.
After announcing it would ditch the two stalwarts, Apple unveiled two replacement gadgets, the £39 MagSafe wireless charger and £50 Beats Flex Headphones.
Last seen as a way to connect laptop charging cables to computers, MagSafe is being used in the iPhone 12 range for chargers, phone cases and other accessories and allows for rapid 15W wireless charging.
Meanwhile the latest Beats Flex headphones, released to coincide with the iPhone 12 launch event, are billed as the Apple-owned company’s ‘most affordable premium wireless earphones to date’.
Apple company also sells its own-brand wireless AirPods, with a starting price of £159.
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The standard wall plug adaptor (pictured) to enable charging of an iPhone will not be included in the iPhone box
A Lightning to USB-C cable is included in the iPhone 12 box but users who want a pair of EarPods (pictured) will have to buy them separately, which Apple flogs for £19 a pop
Apple said during its keynote that it is carbon neutral for its global corporate operations, and by 2030 wants this to extend to its entire business.
‘This means that every Apple device sold, from material collection, component manufacturing, assembly, transport, customer use, charging, all the way through recycling and material recovery, will be 100 per cent carbon neutral,’ the Cupertino-based company said in a statement.
‘iPhone 12 models were designed with the environment in mind.’
After announcing it will ditch the two stalwarts, Apple unveiled two replacement gadgets, the £39 MagSafe wireless charger and £50 Beats Flex Headphones . Last seen as a way to connect laptop charging cables to computers, MagSafe (pictured) is being used in the iPhone 12 range for chargers, phone cases and other accessories
The latest Beats headphones (pictured), available in black and yellow, sees Apple expand its audio hardware and are on sale for £49.99
At the company’s swanky ‘Hi, Speed’ event yesterday, Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives, spoke about the eco-conscious decisions made regarding the iPhone 12.
She said the precious metals in the range’s magnets will all come from 100 per cent recycled sources.
She then went on to drop the bombshell announcement that headphones and a charging block will be omitted from the packaging.
Apple justified this by saying there are already 700 million Lightning headphones in circulation, and that there are two billion Apple power adaptors in the world.
One user, with the handle @Meowsticm, said: ‘Apple not including earpods to ‘cut down on costs’ when the phone is $700 has my eyes rolling into the back of my skull’
Another, called @@qusai_baqaeen, tweeted: ‘Apple’s new Environmental goals is not to include a power adapter or earpods when purchasing the new iphone 12 , but launching the new phone with the same price as the older version?’
Apple officially unveiled the new iPhone 12 event during a live event that was watched by millions from around the world. The smartphone is designed with rounded edges that look similar to the iPad Pro and boasts 5G cellular connectivity
The tech giant, which was the first company to be valued at more than $2 trillion, says the decision will cut over 2 million metric tons of carbon emissions a year.
By Apple’s estimates, this works out as the same as almost 450,000 cars being taken off the road annually.
However, prospective customers are less than impressed with the move, especially considering the USB-C to Lightning cable included in the iPhone 12 box doesn’t fit pre-existing adaptors sold with the handsets.
Ru Bhikha, a mobiles expert at Uswitch.com, says: ‘The removal of the adapter and standard earphones which consumers have got used to receiving could polarise consumers, with some left disappointed and others pleased that Apple is taking steps to be more sustainable.’
Ben Wood, Chief of Research at CCS Insight, adds: ‘It’s easy to be sceptical about Apple removing the charger and headphones from the box, and there are undoubtedly cost-savings, but the environmental benefits can’t be ignored.
‘Other phone-makers have embraced this approach, but Apple’s decision is likely to mean that in many cases the days of a charger and headphones being included with a new smartphone are over.’
The new iPhone 12 will be available to pre-order from Friday, October 16 with availability set at Friday, October 23.
The 12 is listed on Apple’s website for £799, the 12 mini for £699, the 12 Pro for £999 and the Pro Max for £1,099.
However, the prices for each model increases for the versions with larger memory. For the 12 Pro Max, the price surged to £1,399 for the 512GB model.