Jon Prosser was wrong again, sort of. If you’re a longtime FPT fan then you’ve heard Jon Prosser say “it will never happen,” when it comes to an iPhone with a USB-C port.
Welp, it ha-happened, and it came to us in form of an iPhone X that’s been modded with a USB-C port. The device is officially up for auction on eBay, and it could be yours… for the right price of over $99,000.
Just a couple of days ago, robotics student Ken Pillonel shared a video detailing exactly how he modified an iPhone X’s lightning port and replaced it with a USB-C port, after hopelessly waiting an eternity for Apple to release the first USB-C iPhone. He went on to explain how the USB-C port works for both charging the iPhone and data transfer.
“This is it. I’ve finally built the World’s First iPhone with a USB Type-C port. It supports charging and data transfers. The first part was about getting the electronics to work. Then the next step was to reverse-engineer the Apple C94 connector and make my own PCB with a female USB C port. Then the schematics for the project were set and tested and the final was to make it fit inside the iPhone!“
– Ken Pillonel
The listing is officially titled “World’s First USB-C iPhone,” with a description: “It is a true piece of collection for any Apple fanboy out there. It would also make for some great content on Youtube.” Of course, it would, and I wouldn’t be surprised if my mans MKBHD, himself, went for it.
The auction goes on to state:
“By bidding on this auction you agree that”
- You will not restore, update, or erase this iPhone
- You will not use it as your daily phone
- You will not open it
“I guarantee that the phone will work when you receive it but if you don’t follow the aforementionned guidelines you are on your own. So basically you can do whatever you want with it but don’t expect anything from me if you break something. It is just a prototype.”
– eBay auction of the “World’s First USB-C iPhone”
Finally, the lucky winner takes home the modded iPhone, which is listed as a black iPhone X 64GB, a box (sans accessories), free signature-required shipping to anywhere in the world (damn, I would hope), and a 30-minute phone call with the maker himself, should they have any questions.
Since he’s put the first-of-its-kind modified USB-C iPhone up for auction, it’s gained several bids going from $85,000 6 hours ago, to (at the time of writing this) 172 bids at the current price of $99,000. I should note that that price jump is only a result of a few hours of the auction being live, there are still 6 days and 18 hours left. Better get your wallet bent over.
Glad he went for it because he would have been waiting a really long time. This brings me to my next point, Jon Prosser was technically still correct. Apple still has not, and still will not, give us a USB-C port iPhone anytime soon. In fact, as a great once said “Apple will go portless before they go USB-C.”
If you’re a super-nerd, check out the proof of concept and detailed write-up, complete with figures and photos, here.
