Gadgets
Apple is cutting EarPods and iPhone charger costs by $10 as it avoids bundling.
After months of speculation, Apple revealed yesterday that it would withdraw wired EarPod headphones and wall chargers from iPhone boxes. The only accessory you get in the kit is a USB-C Lightning cable. Apple is marketing this as an environmentally sustainable move that will cut carbon emissions and enable the company to ship more devices to a single pallet. But if you've come to focus on a new pair of headphones and a wall charger after you've purchased a new iPhone, they're only available as separate purchases.
Fortunately, Apple has made these accessories a bit cheaper than they used to be. A pair of EarPods with a Lightning connector only costs $19, which is a $10 discount from their former offer. And Apple has also launched a new $19 20-watt power adapter, replacing the old 18-watt charger that cost $29. If you want to purchase all of them, however, it also means you're spending an additional $38 on top of what you're currently paying for your iPhone 12.
Apple's decision to drop the headphones and wall charger is not entirely surprising, since the company has chose not to bundle the Apple Watch range into a battery adapter this year. And it's not just the iPhone 12 lineup that won't include headphones and chargers — Apple's iPhone 11, iPhone XR, and iPhone SE listings suggest those models just come with a USB-C to Lightning cable as well. So if you're going to pick up one of those older phones instead of the iPhone 12, bear in mind that you'll need to bring your own headphones or power converter, or be prepared to purchase them separately.
