If you’re like me, you typically buy all your accessories for smartphones and tablets online. Why spend $19.99 or more for one screen protector or $29 for a plastic case, when you can hop on Ebay and grab them from China, with free shipping, for $5 for 10 screen protectors and $5 a case, respectively. But if you’ve been searching for third-party Lightning cables, you’ve no doubt noticed, they aren’t their. You’ll find Apple cables and the price remains around $19, which is basically retail. If you’re confused and want to know why, here’s the answer.
Apple has included a new proprietary chip within the cable, which is apparently hard to duplicate. The reason for this change, is Apple is taking more control over third party products. This isn’t about making more money, as much as it is about protecting customers who purchase cables overseas, only to have something go terribly wrong with their device after using them. According to iLounge, Apple is encouraging third-party OEM’s to attend a MFi conference in November, located in China, to discuss the changes to the new connector and what rules are being changed or implied.
Hopefully, these OEM’s can turn around and pump out some accessories before the holiday shopping season kicks into full swing. Just don’t expect to find many on eBay, at least for a while.