Apple’s making the switch from Lightning on the iPhone to USB-C. With the iPhone 15 and 15 Pro lines announced at Tuesday’s Apple event, the company announced the change to the more common standard — which it had to do thanks to the European Union. Beyond the new phones, Apple also debuted the new Apple Watch Series 9, Apple Watch Ultra 2 and a new USB-C case for the AirPods Pro 2 earbuds.

Apple also quietly took the wraps off some other new accessories, including a $29 Lightning to USB-C adapter. 

Apple’s adapter has a braided cable, with the listing saying that aspect will help with durability. But functionally at this price, unless you have accessories with built-in Lightning plugs (like a speaker dock), you should just buy new USB-C cables for your new phone.

At $29 (£29, AU$49), the new adapter costs the same as buying multiple USB-C cables from reputable brands like Amazon Basics. These cables should be more than capable of charging up your new iPhones or transferring data for use with apps like CarPlay. But if you must go with Apple’s option, at least it’s braided.

And if all you need is new charging cables, Anker has a two-pack of braided USB-C cables on sale for $13. Yes, while charging should be simpler, it’s worth remembering that not all USB-C cables are created equally. You will want to make sure you’re getting the right plug if you plan to move files to a computer or take advantage of CarPlay in your car. 

But since USB-C is a universal standard, there should be plenty of options available for either scenario that don’t require shelling out nearly $30 for a single dongle. 

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