AppleInsider Staff
Though Apple has not released a first-party dock for the iPhone 5 and its new Lightning connector, the official iPhone 5 user guide refers to an official "iPhone Dock" accessory sold separately.
References to the dock, first highlighted on Thursday by MacDailyNews, can be found in two different places within the official guide. The iPhone 5 guide can be downloaded in PDF form direct from Apple.
The first reference to a supposed "iPhone Dock" accessory can be found on page 7 of the guide. At the bottom of the page, under the "Connecting cable" heading, the guide notes that the new Lightning to USB Cable, packaged with the iPhone 5, "can also be used with the iPhone Dock (sold separately)."
Another mention of an officially titled "Dock" can be found on page 34 of the iPhone 5 owners' manual. In a section that informs users how they can recharge the battery on their new iPhone 5, the guide notes that users can connect their handset "to your computer using the included cable and the Dock, available separately."
For previous iPhone models with the 30-pin dock connector, Apple has sold a first-party dock for $29. The first-generation iPhone, released in 2007, even shipped with a dock for charging and syncing included in the box for the device.
But this year, with the launch of the iPhone 5 and its new, smaller Lightning connector, Apple did not release a redesigned dock alongside the new hardware. The redesigned port allowed Apple to make the new iPhone thinner and lighter than ever, but has also caused frustration for some users who are upset that legacy accessories, including 30-pin docks, are no longer compatible.
There have been suggestions that Apple may not be planning an official iPhone 5 dock designed to fit the new device's thinner profile and redesigned Lightning port. But references contained in the official iPhone 5 manual suggest that the company could still release an accessory.
However, it's also possible that Apple originally planned to build its own iPhone 5 dock before scrapping those plans, and references to an official "Dock" accessory simply were not removed from the iPhone 5 user guide.
Charles Martin
Marko Zivkovic
Mike Wuerthele
Malcolm Owen
Andrew Orr
Christine McKee
William Gallagher
34 Comments
I think it's really rude of Apple to not make a dock this year and especially to say as the explanation (paraphrased) "no one wants one." What they are really telling us that three just isn't enough MONEY in it for them to bother, which is a really a-holish thing to say or imply. I also think there is a certain irony in releasing a phone that (supposedly) scratches so easily and at the same time force us all to lay the thing down on a desks/table/floor to charge the thing. This can only lead to more scratches than the device would otherwise have.
The manual cited is not exclusively an iPhone 5 manual. In the very paragraph you cite it refers to the 4S, which did (and does) have a dock available, so the dock stuff is no shocker.
Having no dock is annoying as a developer because I like to have my device standing up which makes it a lot easier to test my apps. Ugh.
Giving the recent rumors regarding limited supply of the cable (currently showing a 1-2 week backlog at Apple Store) I think Apple planned on releasing a dock, but opted to not offer the dock in light of lighting cable supply issues. I have know doubt Apple designed a dock for the iPhone 5. The fact that Apple didn't even indicate that a dock would be available in a future date makes me wonder if Apple's lighting cable supply issues are expected to last for several months, perhaps due to a limited supply of the recently identified authentication chip. It's important to remember that it's not just the iPhone using this new cable, but also the new iPod Touch and Nano and likely the rumored iPad mini and the approaching holiday season, which will see large quantities of the above devices shipping, all of which will have lighting cables. I expect we'll see an iPhone 5 dock in January with something like, "Due to customer feedback, we've decided to bring back the iPhone dock for iPhone 5".
It is a no-brainer that a dock would and will sell if apple makes one.
People like them on their work desk, and I like mine on my nightstand where my iPhone sleeps and performs one of its many duties as my alarm clock.