Apple is considering casting aside the 30-pin connector for the iPhone 5 in order to make the device smaller and save space for new features like a 4G LTE radio, according to reports.

The article from iMore.com says the company is looking beyond the connector, which has been a staple of iDevices since the very first iPod launched in 2001, and will use any means necessary to save vital millimeters within the device.

The report says Apple could replace the bespoke charging solution with a "micro dock," but unfortunately it won't be the industry-standard microUSB solution, just a smaller iteration of its current form factor.

iMore points-out that Apple has previous in this area, saying: "Apple switched from the very common mini SIM card to the then very uncommon micro SIM card for the original iPad. They took the antenna out of the core package and put it around the edge in the iPhone 4.

They had 10 hours of battery life they wanted to hit. They had a Retina display and its backlight. They had an HSPA radio. They had 802.11n Wi-Fi. They had a bigger camera sensor. They had a lot of power-hungry components, and they needed space to hold them and power them, so they switched to a smaller SIM and kicked the antenna to the outside."

Changing the classic dock connector would be the end of an era and could cause problems for owners of expensive speaker docks for iPhones, iPads and iPhones. However, with the advent of AirPlay and iCloud, the need to connect your iPhone for anything other than charging has become less necessary.

Via: iMore