The first iPhone with a USB-C port – instead of the usual Lightning port – sold for over $ 86,000. But it was not made by Apple.
The phone was made by Ken Pillonel, a Swiss robotics student. Ken Pillonel said he has been waiting for years for Apple to make an iPhone with a USB-C port, the port used by Apple’s new iPads and MacBooks, as well as many Android phones. But he ended up getting tired of waiting and decided to make one himself.
He bought a used iPhone X and went for it. Its goal was to be able to use a USB-C cable to charge the phone as well as to transfer data between the phone and a computer.
He did a test project in May, and in October he made a working phone with the new port by opening it up and adding new parts that he designed himself. In November, he put the phone up for sale on eBay for $ 1.
Over the next 10 days, the price increased. Someone offered $ 100,000 before changing their mind. But in the end, the winning bid was $ 86,001, beating the previous highest bidder by one dollar in the closing minutes of the auction.
According to Mr Pillonel, the new owner should not use the iPhone as a daily phone, or even update it, as it could break it.
Apple may have to start making USB-C iPhones soon, at least in Europe. In September, the European Commission proposed a new law that will require all new smartphones sold in the European Union to have USB-C ports. If the law is passed in 2022, it will have to be done by 2026.
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