That sets off my BS detector. If it's just for occasions when the device gets "serviced", why not have the port inside, where it's only accessible when the cover is off (which, in most cases, would happen only when an Apple tech is refurbishing it). Further, it goes against Apple's general design principles to have superfluous ports and sockets. I speculate that it's for yet-to-be-announced accessories, like an IR blaster, or perhaps even a tuner?