TimR Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 Europe moving to USB-C chargers from 2024. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-63132831 Good move as far as I'm concerned, the constant changing for form factors for plugs that essentially do the same thing has bewildered me for years. Recently I've connected my camera directly to my android phone using a USB-C to USB-C lead and it saw the internal card immediately. £8 for a lead and no messing about with other adaptors or readers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 Depends on your viewpoint. I'm already standardised on one charger cable and have been for over 5 years - USB A to Lightning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimR Posted October 5, 2022 Author Share Posted October 5, 2022 My iPhone lightning connector won't charge my laptop, my camera, my powerbank or my daughter's Mac. 🤷♂️ Not very standard... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barkin Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 And USB-C won't charge my laptop, cameras, power bank or e-reader... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AxelF Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 But it will do for all new devices from 2024. That's the point. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikel Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 About time. Companies trying to tie people in by using their specific charger is just wrong. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 4 minutes ago, mikel said: About time. Companies trying to tie people in by using their specific charger is just wrong. The leads are not usually long enough to tie people in, anyway. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLowDown Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 (edited) Good move IMO. (Almost) everyone wins.....Android users, Apple users(it's vastly superior to the outdated lightning connector). The only losers from this are Apple themselves. Edited October 5, 2022 by TheLowDown 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimR Posted October 5, 2022 Author Share Posted October 5, 2022 6 minutes ago, TheLowDown said: Good move IMO. (Almost) everyone wins.....Android users, Apple users(it's vastly superior to the outdated lightning connector). The only losers from this are Apple themselves. Although Apple already use USB-C on most of their other devices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barkin Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 2 hours ago, AxelF said: But it will do for all new devices from 2024. That's the point. That's all very well, but as I fully expect to be using devices with 'legacy' connections way past that, I'll carry on using leads with 3 different connectors one one end. I can't get excited, or annoyed, by this stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barkin Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 2 hours ago, mikel said: Companies trying to tie people in by using their specific charger is just wrong. Companies plural? Is there more than one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ped Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 As long as micro usb gets in the sea I’m happy 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichaelDean Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 53 minutes ago, barkin said: Companies plural? Is there more than one? Do you remember mobile phones before they all became some sort of USB charging port? Each brand had their own proprietary charging connector where the cable itself was also usually pretty poor quality and moulded into the plug. So if the cable then broke, you're stuck paying whatever they have the gall to charge for a replacement. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamIAm Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 8 minutes ago, MichaelDean said: Do you remember mobile phones before they all became some sort of USB charging port? Each brand had their own proprietary charging connector where the cable itself was also usually pretty poor quality and moulded into the plug. So if the cable then broke, you're stuck paying whatever they have the gall to charge for a replacement. Or buy one of those chargers that had about 17 thousand different tip adapters! S'manth x 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 Just now, Smanth said: Or buy one of those chargers that had about 17 thousand different tip adapters!... ... and still none that will fit..! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 I think this would have been a great thing 10 years ago with all the nokia chargers and everything with thousands of adaptors, but at the same token a) everything now just has a USB socket on it and a lead to get to what you want b) I am not sure I am keen on legislation saying what type of connection something has, because who decides these things. I assume the new standard is USB C, so the 90% case in my house of having USB A sockets providing power everywhere will mean a lot of new adapters and having had to wait for a long time not upgrading my macbook because the new ones had USB-C power sockets, rather than the magsafe which is what i need in a laptop that i use on a daily basis. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barkin Posted October 5, 2022 Share Posted October 5, 2022 Never mind that, what about car tyres, they're all different sizes... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bolo Posted October 6, 2022 Share Posted October 6, 2022 Is it going to affect pedals? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leonard Smalls Posted October 6, 2022 Share Posted October 6, 2022 8 hours ago, Woodinblack said: I am not sure I am keen on legislation saying what type of connection something has, because who decides these things. I think the point is that manufacturers will assume that folks have already got a suitable charging lead. So when you buy a new gizmo, or at least if it's by a relatively environmentally friendly manufacturer, it won't come with yet another lead. Because all leads are the same! Imagine if you bought a new washing machine and it came with a different design of plug on it that wouldn't fit in your wall sockets? At the moment, if you buy, say, a Fairphone or a Suri toothbrush (I've got one of those, it's excellent - 30 day battery that's replaceable, every part of it including heads recycleable - they even provide a post bag to send heads back to them) it doesn't come with a lead - you have to pay extra but they try to discourage you from buying another as it'll probably end up in landfill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzyvee Posted October 6, 2022 Share Posted October 6, 2022 I don't see why it should as most pedals use the same boss style charger which has not changed for decades. Yes there are other connectors for 12, 15 or 18vdc but in the main it's pretty much standardised. But who knows what the EU will require standardisation. It's not a bad thing when thought through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted October 6, 2022 Share Posted October 6, 2022 Part of the problem is that politicians are too stupid to be able to tell the difference between the actual charger (the plug bit that plugs into the mains socket) and the cable which has a load of other uses as well as that of suppling power to the device for the purposes of charging the battery. Some personal observations. 1. All my chargers (the plug bits) are already standardised with USB A sockets. In fact it's been a very long time (more than 10 years) since I bought any consumer device which, if it did come with a charger, came with a different connector. Even the last two desk lamps I bought from Ikea are powered from a plug with a USB A socket on it. 2. As I said in my previous post I'm already standardised for my cables, they are all USB A to Lightning (apart from the laptop which requires a chunkier PSU and cable anyway). 3. The lifespan of the cable used to connect these devices to the charger as well as other devices DOES NOT EQUAL the lifespan of the device. I'm very careful with my cables, but at best they still only last a couple of years. Most people I know have to replace their cables at least every 6 months either because they get lost or damaged. 4. I need a cable (and PSU) for every device that needs charging because usually they all need charging at the the same time. 5. It will be a long time before I need to replace every chargeable device I currently own that doesn't have a USB C cable for charging (or data transfer), and I suspect that by that time USB C will already be obsolete and have replaced by something else, so I doubt I will ever see the "benefits" of this policy. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velarian Posted October 6, 2022 Share Posted October 6, 2022 (edited) My last iPhone came with a USB C to C cable which was annoying because this was the first time they’d not actually included a charging plug; previous ones all having a USB A socket. However this solved the problem (£4 for a pack of three from Amazon). Edited October 6, 2022 by Velarian Amended reference to correct USB type A Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichaelDean Posted October 6, 2022 Share Posted October 6, 2022 @BigRedX the lightning connector is a standard that can't upgrade from USB 2 though. This means that the transfer speed is capped at 480Mbps. USB C is capable of adapting to USB 4, and potential transfer speeds of 40Gbps. That's a massive increase and means it can stay a relevant connector for much longer. Also important for iPhones as the latest ones are rumoured to shoot 8K videos, which would result in massive files. Trying to transfer that via a lightning cable would be a massive pain in the derriere. Plus, USB C can also carry much more power than a lightning connector, which means you can do fast charging for your phone/tablet/laptop, so you don't need to rely on them all needing charging at the same time. Or if they do, it's half an hour and done. Rather than three hours attached to the wall. USB A connectors may well stay on the charger end too, it's the device itself that needs to have the USB C connector. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted October 6, 2022 Share Posted October 6, 2022 The last two laptops I have came with a USB-C charger, which is understandable, as they need more power. The dell one was just a hard linked power supply, but the apple one was just a power supply with a USB-C socket and a USB-C to Magsafe lead. Which is great as apple make rubbish leads that break, and I have had to buy several different power supplies as the lead was dead, now I just need the lead. However, I got a couple of devices with USB-C power sockets so I had to go and buy new leads for those. Standardisation huh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimR Posted October 6, 2022 Author Share Posted October 6, 2022 4 hours ago, BigRedX said: Part of the problem is that politicians are too stupid The politicians just take the recommendations of the industry standards groups. All that's happened is they've legislated to make standards standard. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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