Apple Drops Prices on First- and Third-Party USB-C Adapters ⇥ macrumors.com

Apple:

We recognize that many users, especially pros, rely on legacy connectors to get work done today and they face a transition. We want to help them move to the latest technology and peripherals, as well as accelerate the growth of this new ecosystem. Through the end of the year, we are reducing prices on all USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 peripherals we sell, as well as the prices on Apple’s USB-C adapters and cables.

The risk Apple faced with moving a professional notebook to a port configuration that exclusively features USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 is that pro users tend to have very specific workflows individually, and completely different workflows in aggregate. That means that the same computer needs to slot into the existing workflows of photographers, video editors, audio engineers, developers, graphic designers, and other professional users. The advantage is that these users all have completely different peripheral requirements, which means that four general-purpose ports with daisy-chaining capabilities ought to make connecting different devices a lot easier. But because USB-C is so new, that could mean buying a bunch of adapters for short-term adjustments.

This conundrum has led to some writers — like Vlad Savov of the Verge — devoting large chunks of their reviews of the new MacBook Pro (sans Touch Bar) to listing the number of adapters they’re looking at buying, along with the price of each. The underlying sentiment in many of these reviews seems to be an implication that Apple is moving to USB-C to get you to spend more money on adapters.

I think that’s ridiculous. I sincerely doubt that they make a tremendous amount of money off adapter sales. But, even if that’s your feeling, this announcement should help calm your worries.

And, yes, that 5K LG display is also discounted, though not yet shipping. What a tease.