At a press event today, Apple unveiled a redesigned version of its dock connector that appears on its mobile devices. The new 8-pin dock port, dubbed "Lightning," is 80% smaller than the original 30-pin connector and can be used in either direction. The new port is all-digital, allowing for faster transfer speeds.

Making iPhone 5 thinner and lighter required a pivotal change: replacing the 30-pin connector with something newer, smaller, and better. Introducing the Lightning connector. It features an all-digital, eight-signal design that’s significantly more durable than the 30-pin connector. Another brilliant feature of Lightning: It’s reversible. Which means there’s no wrong way to plug in the cable.

Apple will be providing customers with the option of using an adapter so older accessories with the 30-pin connector can still be used.