New iPhone: 2019 model to keep same plug but also same slow charger, report claims

Apple's latest handset expected to be unveiled later this year

The Apple AirPower, a wireless charging system for iPhones, was unveiled during a media event in California on September 12, 2017 (AFP/Getty Images)

Apple's new iPhone is set to keep the same charger – and that's both bad and good news for users.

The company is set to keep the Lightning cable for at least one more version of the iPhone, according to a new report. That will mean that existing chargers and plugs continue to work fine with the new phone.

Numerous reports have suggested that Apple could instead switch to USB-C in the new handset. That would bring it in line with other phones and with the company's own laptops, but could mean people's existing accessories and wires would need to be thrown away or converted.

That won't happen this time around, according to the website Macotakara, which has correctly leaked information about the new phone in the past.

As well as keeping the existing plug, Apple will still bundle Lightning earphones and charging cables in the box, as it does now.

But that will also mean that Apple will keep shipping the existing charging plug, according to the same report. That could be bad news for users.

It means that Apple won't be shipping the more powerful plugs that it includes with its latest iPads, and which can be bought for extra money. Those bigger plugs charge the phones and other products more quickly, allowing people not to have to wait while they charge up.

The latest iPhones have the ability to use fast charging, but they require a plug that allows them to work. The 5W charger bundled in the box does of course charge the phone, but at a much slower rate, and iPhone users have to pay up for the more powerful plug.

The problem is becoming clearer as Apple's batteries get larger, as has happened in recent phones. Though that means that phones can hold much more charge, it also takes them much longer to fill up.