Apple’s Lightning to 30-pin Adapter has its own DAC (Digital-to-Analogue Converter ... Of course if you just want to charge your iPhone 5, or attach via USB, there’s a Lightning to Micro USB Adapter ...

Remember 30-pin? Now we have Lightning. Remember USB-A? That's gone ... If you want to connect any of Apple's laptops to an HDMI monitor, you need to spend $50 on an adapter, and dongles like ...

The current interface is USB Type C, which superseded Apple's own 30-pin and Lightning connectors ... a Type C-to-3.5mm adapter is used, which contains a digital-to-analog converter.