Apple’s DCM … Good Idea or Bad?

By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews

First of all, what’s DCM, right? Digital Charger Management, new term, coined not by me, so don’t give me the credit … Apple has filed a patent application that will essentially prevent anyone from using an unauthorized charger with a device. Meaning, steal a device, and once it runs out of power, it’s a brick.

The idea is use a ‘guardian’ circuit to spot when someone is trying to use a cellphone with an unauthorized charger or cable.

We Say: Good idea on the surface. I mean, it will hopefully deter theft. But think about it for a while. While Apple might license this tech to other manufacturers, it will still increase the cost of chargers. Lose your synch cable on a trip? You can’t just use any old cheap 3rd-party cable any longer … at least not to charge, and I suppose you could use this circuit to prevent synching as well.

This smacks a lot of chips embedded in printer cartridges that prevent you from using knock-offs … which work perfectly well, but since consumables are the heart of profit in the printer industry, are discouraged. To me, it just sounds like another way for manufacturers to make sure you use their expensive accessories, instead of cheaper 3rd-party ones.

Additionally, my guess is thieves will still steal devices, then find out about the problem after the fact … meaning the device’ll end up in the trash and eventually a landfill. And, any bets on how long it takes for someone to hack this?

Finally, how would this stop someone from using a stand-alone charger? One that you just put the battery in, no device required (of course, that doesn’t apply to Apple’s non-swappable batteries, but that’s a whole ‘nother argument ).