Apple stops selling iPhone 14/SE in many EU countries: USB-C completely replaces Lightning

 Apple has removed the iPhone 14 series and iPhone SE models from the shelves in most EU countries, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, etc.

This is mainly because the EU’s regulations on USB-C came into effect on December 28th local time, requiring that newly launched smartphones must be equipped with a USB Type-C interface.

While all iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models are equipped with a USB Type-C port, the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, and current iPhone SE still use a Lightning port.

It is reported that the European Commission formally proposed a proposal in September 2021, planning to make USB Type-C the common standard for all mobile devices within the EU.

Apple had previously strongly opposed this proposal, saying that forcing the use of the Type-C interface would stifle innovation, harm consumer interests, and generate more electronic waste because more accessories in the Ligtning ecosystem would become unusable.

But the arm cannot bend the thigh. On October 4, 2022, the European Parliament passed a bill with an overwhelming majority, requiring that the charging interfaces of portable smart electronic devices such as mobile phones must be unified as USB Type-C.

From this point of view, Apple is indeed in urgent need of launching the iPhone SE 4 to replace the iPhone 14 series in the EU market.

According to current information from multiple sources, the iPhone SE 4 is built based on the iPhone 14, and the interface has been changed to USB Type-C.

In addition, the latter’s camera has also been changed to a single camera, the core has been upgraded to A18, and it comes standard with 8GB of memory and supports Apple smartphones.