[Rakmo]

Although the initiative is good but it should be made a global rule for all countries! Until then we can rely on other after market options.( I use all 3 ports 1 each for my phone,wireless earphones and tablet)

[Joxster]

The European parliament have strongly voted in favor of the common charger. I'm possibly planning on buying the iPhone 12 Pro or whatever Apple is going to call it when it is launched, and sincerely hope that it is USB-C instead of Lightning

The European Parliament has voted to have one common charger for all mobile devices -- which could mean the end of the line for Apple's Lightning charger in the EU. The measure passed by a vote of 582 to 40, and it calls for new guidelines to be adopted by July 2020.

The next step would be for the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, to establish new rules governing common chargers.

Source

Cheers

[Sutripta]

^^^
Now what are they going to do about all the different electrical power plugs in the member countries?

Regards
Sutripta

[Joxster]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

Now what are they going to do about all the different electrical power plugs in the member countries?

I wasn't even aware that there were so many types, lol. For anyone else interested, you can see all of them here. Nice to learn something new.

To your point though, I don't see this as a major problem at all. You don't usually carry electrical appliances when travelling to another country, nor do you need to swap cables to use different electrical appliances.
I think most hotels have power adapters available for different plug types especially for laptops, and if you were to move to another country in the EU, you would most likely sell your electric appliances rather than taking them with you. Obviously none of this applies to phones, as they are battery powered just like Bluetooth speakers, power banks etc., and it would obviously cut down on the number of cables you need if all of your devices use the same port.

And now to the last part, and I'm sure many members will agree with me on this. Apple Lightning cables are crappy quality, and tend to get frayed very quickly, and cost a bombshell to replace with another original cable, which is really the only reliable cable connection-wise for the phone. I'm speaking from personal experience with multiple iPhones & iPads in the household here. I'm hoping that making a changeover to USB-C will mean better cables, and the ability to use 3rd party USB-C cables without sacrificing connectivity or data transfer in anyway.

I'm sure that Apple's crappy Lightning cables are a significant contribution to the e-waste.

Cheers

[landcruiser123]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

^^^
Now what are they going to do about all the different electrical power plugs in the member countries?

Regards
Sutripta

Originally Posted by Joxster

I wasn't even aware that there were so many types, lol. For anyone else interested, you can see all of them here. Nice to learn something new.

Interesting point and share, thanks!


I think traveling does not matter as adapters don't break. I still have US-India adapters which my dad used in his travels 15 years ago I'm probably going to lose an adapter before having to replace it, but I get a charging cable with every new phone/tablet I buy.

[civic-sense]

My Oneplus 7 charges the fastest with its bundled charger. It charges slower with my Nexus 5X charger and dead slow with my Nokia 7 plus charger. Nokia 7 plus used to charge the fastest with its own bundled charger (9V). I bought a Samsung tablet recently and it refuses to charge with the Oneplus 7 charger but charges fine (but slowly) with my Nokia charger.

The way I see it, most devices work best with the bundled chargers. If Oneplus didn't bundle a charger with the phone, I would be struggling with my old chargers. Each year sees new innovations wrt charging tech and forcing one charger/standard on everybody will only kill innovation.

USB standard allowed 5V 500mA, and it took Apple to break the 500mA limit when it introduced the 1A charger. If the morons in the EU parliament had their way 10 years ago, they would have mandated the USB standard on everybody and we would have been charging our 5000mAH batteries overnight using out 500mA chargers.

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

I think traveling does not matter as adapters don't break.

They do not break. But if you are like me, travel a lot and often forget to pack the appropriate adapter, you still end up with a lot of adapters. I can honestly say, i have far more adapters than chargers lying around.

Jeroen

[sachind]

I think the auto manufacturers are already embracing this. Rented a 2019 VW Passat in Germany last month and it comes with USB C ports only. While it does support Wireless charging via Qi and WiFi CarPlay, I was left stranded since I had a older iPhone and no way to charge it since I had the USB A to lightning cable. Ended up buying a USB C to A adapter.

[RodeoSport]

To everyone commenting on government poking their nose too deep into businesses, I ask, how much do you like being able to goto any Fuel Station to fill up

I personally think this is a brilliant Idea, my wife and I counted over 30 chargers, and even more cables in one drawer of unused electronics.

Perhaps the way forward is

- A 120-160 Watt wall adaptor with 3-4 USB C ports.

- All new mobile devices to ship without a charger and cable in the box.

This way you can have one charger charge your laptop, phone, tablet etc.

Even if it adds to costs now, I am certain it will lead to lesser e waste and less clutter, if the charger costs a bit more, so be it, it will probably be better taken care of.

The most common argument I see is for innovation and obsolescence.

I had bought a Monster HDMI cable in 2007 for a eye watering $179 at the time. It was touted to be the be all and end all of HDMI cables.

Fast Forward to 2020, I still use that cable for my 4K content.

If monster can make their cable be relevant almost 1.5 decades later, I think we will be fine with USB C for a decade, if implemented well.