By Stephen Schenck | December 21, 2012 6:37 PM
Yesterday we told you the sad tale of a Kickstarter project that found itself ready to close-up shop after Apple refused to grant approval for how it wanted to use the company’s proprietary Lightning connectors. Since the project was to be a universal charging station, the team wanted to support microUSB, Apple 30-pin, and the new Lightning connectors. Apple reportedly denied the request for approval because it didn’t permit Lightning to be present on a device alongside those other connectors. Perhaps due to all the press the incident has received, Apple has had a change of heart, and is modifying its rules to allow for this sort of product.
Apple clarifies that it wasn’t the coexistence of microUSB and Lightning that it had an issue with, but Lightning alongside the legacy 30-pin. The company explains that its objection stemmed from fears of technical compatibility issues when both connectors were present. We suppose that makes sense if you’re trying to communicate with Apple products using both at once, but simple charging seems like it wouldn’t create too many problems. Maybe that’s what Apple came to realize, and it’s adjusted its rules to follow.
We haven’t heard yet what this means for the fate of the POP charger, but we hope the team takes another crack at bringing it to market.
