Apple uses the Dock Connector on their iPod/iPhone...the same one they've been using since they ditched the normal Firewire that was only on the very first iPods. Given the ubiquity of iPods that makes the Dock connector to USB cable one of the most common cables in the world.
Regardless, my point wasn't that Apple doesn't do this shit, but rather that when they do its worth putting up with. Sony on the other hand isn't balancing the equation very well. They have even more annoyances, and a very small percentage of the "worth it" aspect.
If you've ever owned a series of phones or Walkmans from Sony over the years you'd know that Sony changed the power supply with every MD player or CD Walkman they made. Every f*cking time. They switch the polarity or the plug size or something, every time. My girlfriend had a Discman, a really premium late-90s one, that actually had a proprietary headphone jack. They don't even put standard mini-USB on their cameras. I have a nice Sony camera, but I have to find the special cable for it, which of course costs $50 from Sony if I lose it.
A perfect example: the PSP Go. If you have a big collection of old PSP stuff there is NOTHING you can take with you to the PSPGo. The power supply is different, the USB cable is propriety, even the Memory Stick is different, and of course your UMD collection is worthless on the thing.
Then there is shit like this:
http://paleface.net/z/sngp/messages/19659.htmlAnd the rootkit fiasco, them shipping thousands of PS2 that were broken right out of the box in 2003...they just suck now. I used to love their stuff, but those days are gone. They aren't worth putting up with.