Europe may require all phone manufacturers to use USB-C charging

[OneMoreThing...]

Europe may require all manufacturers to use USB-C charging for all phones and electronic devices, according to a new EU Commission ruling proposal. It aims to reduce e-waste and "consumer inconvenience" caused by different and incompatible chargers still in use. The Commission also wants manufacturers to unbundle the sale of chargers with electronic devices.

"With today's proposal... USB-C will become the standard port for all smartphones, tablets, cameras, headphones, portable speakers and handheld videogame consoles," according to the report.

The EU said its work with industry has managed to reduce the number of mobile phone chargers from 30 to 3 over the last decade. One of those three is Apple's Lightning port used by around 20 percent of devices sold in Europe. The EU hopes to change that situation, according to a statement by executive VP Margrethe Vestager:

European consumers were frustrated long enough about incompatible chargers piling up in their drawers. We gave industry plenty of time to come up with their own solutions, now time is ripe for legislative action for a common charger. This is an important win for our consumers and environment and in line with our green and digital ambitions.

When a common charger was first voted on by the EU last year, Apple issued a statement saying that the proposal would "stifle innovation," and its position has not changed. "We remain concerned that strict regulation mandating just one type of connector stifles innovation rather than encouraging it, which in turn will harm consumers in Europe and around the world," an Apple spokesperson told the BBC.

Since the launch of the iPhone 12, however, Apple has stopped including chargers in the box, something it said would save 861,000 tons of copper, zinc and tin. Apple itself now uses USB-C charging on its latest Mac laptops and certain iPad models, since that standard supports higher voltage charging required for larger devices.

Nearly all Android smartphones now use USB-C charging, and many models from Samsung and others are sold with charging/data cables but not chargers. It total, around 420 million mobile phones and other portable electronic devices sold in Europe just in the last year.

The EU throws away 12,000 tons of chargers each year, some unused, according to Bloomberg. At the same time, consumers spend around 2.4 billion euros ($2.8 billion) on standalone chargers not included with devices. The law is still in the proposal stages and needs to be passed by EU lawmakers and governments, so it could come into force around two years after that.

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[krs]

Sounds good to me.
Every cell phone in the immediate family now has a different port, USB-micro, USB-3 USB-C and lightning.
It's just a pain constantly looking for a charge cord that fits.

 

[MacInWin]

The problem with the government picking the "winner" is that how long will it take for them to change the rules, worldwide, when someone comes up with a new, better way? Wireless charging is making ports less necessary for that purpose, so what if Apple says the Lightning port is no longer for charging, just attaching peripherals and takes that charging functionality out? Or how about NO ports, just wireless for everything--charging, connections, accessories, etc.? I see lots of holes in the logic here. Government should not dictate technology.

 

[Lifeisabeach]

Sounds good to me.
Every cell phone in the immediate family now has a different port, USB-micro, USB-3 USB-C and lightning.
It's just a pain constantly looking for a charge cord that fits.

Look no further.

Anker 321 USB-A to Lightning Cable (3ft 3-in-1)

- One for All: Charge any of your devices with the interchangeable, built-in Micro USB, USB-C, and Lightning connectors. - Enhanced Durability: Extreme reinforcement keeps internal wiring protected from trauma and degradation. - Charge Fast: MFi certification from Apple, and strict quality...

us.anker.com

 

[Lifeisabeach]

The problem with the government picking the "winner" is that how long will it take for them to change the rules, worldwide, when someone comes up with a new, better way? Wireless charging is making ports less necessary for that purpose, so what if Apple says the Lightning port is no longer for charging, just attaching peripherals and takes that charging functionality out? Or how about NO ports, just wireless for everything--charging, connections, accessories, etc.? I see lots of holes in the logic here. Government should not dictate technology.

Bingo. Literally my exact thoughts on this. Well, actually just the "new and better" way down the road is what I was thinking of. But the rest are spot on.

 

[MacInWin]

Bingo. Literally my exact thoughts on this. Well, actually just the "new and better" way down the road is what I was thinking of. But the rest are spot on.

I used to be a government contractor. Governments don't respond as fast as technology progresses. And the more senior a government manager/leader is, the older the technology they came up with. I remember trying to explain to one senior official who last programmed in COBOL how Java worked and why we were using it to develop an interactive system. He kept asking about the overnight batch processing and how the JCL would be set up! Trust me, you don't want the government deciding technology standards. We'd still be on dial-up telephones.

 

[krs]

On the other hand, how would you like it if each appliance manufacturer came up with a different AC power cord requiring a different outlet configuration?
I think Apple's argument that this will hinder technical innovation is a bit of a stretch - we're talking about a connector here, basically a bunch of pins and a housing.
Seems Apple is the odd man out here - most, if not all new cellphones other than iphones seem to be using USB-C

 

[krs]

Look no further.

Anker 321 USB-A to Lightning Cable (3ft 3-in-1)

- One for All: Charge any of your devices with the interchangeable, built-in Micro USB, USB-C, and Lightning connectors. - Enhanced Durability: Extreme reinforcement keeps internal wiring protected from trauma and degradation. - Charge Fast: MFi certification from Apple, and strict quality...

us.anker.com

Interesting - thanks for pointing this out.

 

[Lifeisabeach]

On the other hand, how would you like it if each appliance manufacturer came up with a different AC power cord requiring a different outlet configuration?
I think Apple's argument that this will hinder technical innovation is a bit of a stretch - we're talking about a connector here, basically a bunch of pins and a housing.
Seems Apple is the odd man out here - most, if not all new cellphones other than iphones seem to be using USB-C

Well, they were the odd man out when micro-USB was the in-thing to use, and Lightning inarguably is superior to that. In fact, it's very likely the reversible USB-C connector wouldn't exist if Apple hadn't shined a light on how that was not only possible, but incredibly convenient. Lightning is arguably a better connector for at least some scenarios. The "male" piece, which has the potential for snapping, is on the replaceable Lightning cable. With USB-C, that piece is inside the phone and irreplaceable. Lightning overall is slimmer on the device if I'm not mistaken, though that's relatively trivial.

Truthfully, I would rather they switch to USB-C fully and call it a day. I'm not sure there is much room for improvement on the connector, considering it already handles 100 watts for charging, maybe more? But that's well in excess of what any phone needs, and that's unlikely to ever change.

 

[MadAboutMacs]

Well, they were the odd man out when micro-USB was the in-thing to use, and Lightning inarguably is superior to that. In fact, it's very likely the reversible USB-C connector wouldn't exist if Apple hadn't shined a light on how that was not only possible, but incredibly convenient. Lightning is arguably a better connector for at least some scenarios. The "male" piece, which has the potential for snapping, is on the replaceable Lightning cable. With USB-C, that piece is inside the phone and irreplaceable. Lightning overall is slimmer on the device if I'm not mistaken, though that's relatively trivial.

Truthfully, I would rather they switch to USB-C fully and call it a day. I'm not sure there is much room for improvement on the connector, considering it already handles 100 watts for charging, maybe more? But that's well in excess of what any phone needs, and that's unlikely to ever change.

I believe the new iPad mini 6 has a USB-C port so maybe the switch is already underway despite Apple's perceived protests.

 

[MacInWin]

On the other hand, how would you like it if each appliance manufacturer came up with a different AC power cord requiring a different outlet configuration?
I think Apple's argument that this will hinder technical innovation is a bit of a stretch - we're talking about a connector here, basically a bunch of pins and a housing.
Seems Apple is the odd man out here - most, if not all new cellphones other than iphones seem to be using USB-C

Kind of a bogus argument. It's not that the appliance manufacturers have different AC cords to connect to the power supply, but that they each have a separate connector to THEIR product. That is what Apple has now, a standard plug for the wall and a plug on the other end for their device. And that is the case with all kinds of devices, both electrical and electronic, many times. The so-called "figure 8" is getting growing use, but it's not standard by any means. And the connector is more than just power, it's also a data port. So, what happens when the next iteration of technology comes along? If we move from 64 bit CPUs to 128 bit, and if the technology develops to have faster, wider ports, but requires more pins than are in a USBc port, how long will it take for the various government agencies to "approve" the technology change? I can see them dithering about the ables being made useless, adapters, standards, etc. All of which stifles forward progress and increasing cost in the long run. And what if Apple comes up with a little adapter to fit into the lightning port with a USBc socket on the other end? Is that acceptable? Note that now there is even more "waste" in the solution. And what then if Apple provides that adapter but it cannot be used for anything BUT charging? Is that acceptable? Rulemakers typically don't consider these unintended consequences, mostly because they are not technical folks nor forward thinkers.