You may find links to EU Commission studies on this page, downloadable as PDFs, distributed under CC-BY license.<p><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/electrical-engineering/red-directive/common-charger_nn" rel="nofollow">https://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/electrical-engineering/r...</a><p>1. Impact assessment study: common chargers of portable devices (December 2019)<p>PDF: <a href="https://op.europa.eu/o/opportal-service/download-handler?identifier=c6fadfea-4641-11ea-b81b-01aa75ed71a1&format=pdf&language=en&productionSystem=cellar&part=" rel="nofollow">https://op.europa.eu/o/opportal-service/download-handler?ide...</a><p>2. Impact assessment study: unbundling of chargers for mobile phones and similar devices (June 2021) - to identify different regulatory and non-regulatory policy options to achieve unbundling and address the technical pre-conditions and consequences of unbundling<p>PDF: <a href="https://op.europa.eu/o/opportal-service/download-handler?identifier=90e9a07d-1054-11ec-9151-01aa75ed71a1&format=pdf&language=en&productionSystem=cellar&part=" rel="nofollow">https://op.europa.eu/o/opportal-service/download-handler?ide...</a><p>3. Technical supporting study: wireless charging technologies used for mobile phones and similar devices (April 2021) - to analyse and update on the status of wireless charging technologies<p>PDF: <a href="https://op.europa.eu/o/opportal-service/download-handler?identifier=c6fadfea-4641-11ea-b81b-01aa75ed71a1&format=pdf&language=en&productionSystem=cellar&part=" rel="nofollow">https://op.europa.eu/o/opportal-service/download-handler?ide...</a>
Good, though in practice it's not the charger the problem, I use the same USB plug everywhere, it's Apple and their cable. Right now I always need with me a micro USB cable, an USB-C one, and Lightning, because Apple thinks different™.<p>What's Apple reasoning for not abandoning Lightning for USB-C on their phones?
From the announcement <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_21_4613" rel="nofollow">https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_21_...</a> (linked in article)<p>> <i>Today, the Commission is proposing:</i><p>> <i>A harmonised charging port for electronic devices: USB-C will be the common port.</i><p>> <i>Harmonised fast charging technology will help prevent that different producers unjustifiably limit the charging speed and will help to ensure that charging speed is the same when using any compatible charger for a device.</i><p>> <i>Unbundling the sale of a charger from the sale of the electronic device: consumers will be able to purchase a new electronic device without a new charger.</i><p>> <i>Improved information for consumers: producers will need to provide relevant information about charging performance, including information on the power required by the device and if it supports fast charging.</i><p>There's also a proposed 2 year implementation delay, before it comes into force. And a subsequent rule requiring charger-side USB-C ports, handled through a different regulator.
An average consumer probably gets a new phone every 1-2 years. That means 50-100g of junk plastic every year per person.<p>This seems very small compared to the amount of non-recyclable plastic I get every time I go to the supermarket (Fruit and veg in plastic wrapping).<p>Are USB cables very resource heavy to make? Is there something that makes them especially bad when compared to other waste?
While we're at it, can we enforce some labeling standards? USB-C has become this mystery port/cable that might or might not be capable of video/data/charging at ? throughput. Earlier USB standards had this issue to some extent, but C takes it to another level.
If this was done years ago we’d be stuck using micro or even mini usb. I shudder at the thought. Lightning was superior to those two. Under this regulation, Lightning and USB-C couldn’t have happened.
Does anyone feel it is a little strange to have a government entity mandating a physical interconnect? I guess it has worked out well enough for receptacles. But on a phone it acts as a data connection as well. I guess I just wonder if in 20 years will every device still have a USB-C port on it in some odd location? No one is using it anymore, but it is still mandatory on everything.
Hear me out, I’m an Android guy at heart and I genuinely believe the lightning connector is vastly superior.<p>I never have lightning connectors fail to seat, nor fall out of a socket while I’m using a device, nor have I ever broken a lightning connector on a device.<p>These are all seemingly fundamental problems with USB-C. I have had THREE USB-C sockets fail on two phones through normal use, on Pixel and OnePlus devices. I have never had a USB socket of any other type fail on any device, and I’ve had umpteen cellphones since the late 90s. I genuinely baby my electronics.<p>Almost every USB-C socket after a couple months of use loses its gripping power, whereas the lightning connector on my 2017 iPad I’m writing this on right now is still fantastically grippy. The USB-C on my current phone, a year old Pixel 3A XL is so loose that while mounted to my cars dash, the cable pops out when taking hard turns. The socket is clear of debris, and will do so with a brand new cable. It just has zero holding power left after only a year.<p>I think the vast majority of people who prefer USB-C are those who haven’t spent a significant amount of time with both. iPhone users who blindly assume the other side is greener, and Android users mocking Apples weird connector.
Can they please mandate replaceable USB-C sockets then because I see a shit load more broken ones than I do lightning connectors. And usually the infernal USB-C things are soldered into the logic board of whatever resulting in damage to that too. Also USB-C sockets are impossible to replace without very specialist tooling.<p>Really not a big fan of this unless there are some additional constraints on it.
The article focuses on forcing USB-C ports (popular), but the proposal also unbundles chargers from products like cell phones (unpopular).<p>Apple and several other vendors already unbundled chargers from their boxes with mixed reception. Will be interesting to see how this proposal is received when people realize it means they’ll be purchasing chargers separately.
They need to mandate the presence of a physical cable, otherwise Apple will drop the port and move to wireless charging. Wired cable remains important for high-quality audio and secure data transfers. Both WiFi and Bluetooth have a long and storied history of vulnerabilities.<p>While they are at it, can we please have a dedicated physical cable port for audio? It doesn't have to be TRRS 3.5mm, but it must be possible to have a wired audio/mike connection that is separate from wired power, without power-hungry dongles. e.g. an entire ecosystem of 3rd party audio devices was sidelined by the removal of headphone jacks.<p>Now that everyone who wants a Bluetooth headset has one, can we go back to the pre-Beats era of optional, high-quality wired audio? It can be restricted to Pro devices, if necessary.
Maybe unpopular opinion but I like lightning more than USB-C, it makes more sense to me to have the connective parts of the cable on the outside of it, which gets rid of that little "notch" on the inside of USB-C ports which just seems like it can get bent at any time.
I can’t wait for an iPhone with a USB C port, and I’ll buy it immediately.<p>There’s nothing technically wrong with Lightning, but it’s a monumental pain to have to carry around 2 sets of incompatible cables because of it!
Sadly, this doesn't seem like it'll ban Apple from removing the port from iPhones:<p>> - harmonise the charging interface for mobile phones and similar categories or classes of radio
equipment (tablets, digital cameras, headphones and headsets, handheld videogame consoles
and portable speakers) that are recharged via a wired charging<p>The EU needs to get in front of this, because forcing all iPhone users to use a bigger, heavier charging puck, waste 50% more electricity, and be unable to transfer files quickly to or from the iPhone, seems utterly unacceptable to me.<p><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/docsroom/documents/46755/attachments/3/translations/en/renditions/native" rel="nofollow">https://ec.europa.eu/docsroom/documents/46755/attachments/3/...</a>
I can see the good and bad in this. But as of right now USB C looks like the future with both the amount of power it can deliver as a port, as well as speed in terms of Thunderbolt 4, plus thunderbolt 4 will open up to not just intel if I understand correctly. Every single device in my house now uses USB C. From phone, laptop, tablet, to keyboard, air monitor, even my flashlights charge via USB C.
I don't get it.<p>Apple went all-in with USB-C on their computers (starting <i>5 years ago</i> with the macbook pro). And that was a pretty unpopular decision at the time.<p>Now that the mobile phone industry has standardized on USB-C, they want to stick with lightning? Are they doing it just to be contrarian?
Not sure, whether legislating a particular standard might backfire in the long-term?<p>I imagine that there was a time when it made sense to force everybody to have a VGA port..
Bad move, an unforced error. This will stifle innovation needlessly, similarly to how US' (previously) mandated single model of sealed beam headlights stifled their automobile headlights innovation for several decades.<p>Seems some bureaucrat has dusted off the bad old "Everything that can be invented has been invented." quote.<p>The only possible upside would be manufacturers standardizing on wireless charging in all devices just to avoid this limitation.<p>For reference: <i>sealed-beam headlamps were introduced in 1939, becoming standard equipment across all American-market vehicles starting in 1940 and remaining the only type allowed for almost four and a half decades, until the 1984 model year.</i> - <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parabolic_aluminized_reflector#Automotive_headlamps" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parabolic_aluminized_reflector...</a>
Would it be possible for EU to select a standard, and request each member state to tax non-standard products sold at an increasing YOY rate. This would give some time to Apple to figure it out while putting the words in action now without punishing consumers from day one. Also, making some money on the back of a GAFA.
I feel like there's bigger fish to fry. There's more and more li-ion appliances and tools, most with proprietary chargers (think all the power tools), and in many cases no user replaceable battery packs (e.g. vacuum cleaners).<p>It really sucks that I need a new charger + battery if I want to use some bosch or dewalt tool instead of a ryobi or whatever I happen to have. And I can't use these tools' batteries to power USB devices..<p>I'm sure all these electric vacuum cleaners are a big lump of e-waste when the battery inevitably dies.<p>Phones have standardized pretty well. Apple is an outlier but I don't think that's a huge deal, and the cost of forcing them (and their users) to switch may be worse than the status quo.
There are two ways how to handle this.<p>1) legislation forces a standard upon every device maker. Because technology advances all the time legislation will have to change the port every ~10 years. This might happen or not, potentially forcing device makers into building obsolete tech into their devices.<p>2) make a law which forces device makers to hold regular meetings/whatever to decide upon themselves which port they want to use. The port that gets 51% or more of the votes becomes the standard. If two consecutive rounds of voting can’t find a standard legislation will decide the standard.
This is good as it will end up an example of what a government product looks like. Soon outdated and inadequate, and the only thing available--infinite wisdom, stifling innovation.<p>Sounds like a good idea, but probably not. However, this also looks like a "problem" they feel capable of solving, so that makes the idea more attractive when their world is littered with real, difficult problems yet unaddressed.
Have they figured out how a mere mortal can tell what a USB cable can do without plugging it in? Because USB might be one of the most confusing standards there is.<p>And I don't believe for a second that making all USB-C cables capable of everything in the standard isn't massively wasteful itself. If the intent is to cut down on waste then that would miss the mark.
I went through such a transition with my iPad Pro: from Lighting port (like my iPhone) to USB-C. The result was subjectively worse: the USB-C port is harder to insert into as the margins are straight and "catch", while the Lighting port had a slight bevel, making insertion as smooth as butter.<p>The fit is not perfect and touching the inserted cable moves it slightly inside the port. The Lightning connection was rock solid in comparison.<p>The USB-C port is also a male port hidden in a female one. Because of that dirt accumulates around the little knob inside which the limited space makes it much harder to clean than the Lightning port.<p>Finally, I had to purchase separate chargers and cables instead of the ones I already had.<p>Not as bad as micro-USB though. That always takes me 3 tries (one on each side then again on the original side) after which I have to look at the damn connector and try for a 4th time.
The thing I hate the most about my iPhone is the stupid charging port. For sure it’s better than micro USB, but it’s not better than USB-C.<p>I think they’re preparing to transition over anyway, with devices gradually replacing the port. But I guess the iPhone is going to be among the last.
The big deal about is not so much the choice of USB-C, but the fact that manufacturers will be required to have at least one compatible charging/communication connector. Quoting from the OP:<p><i>> Manufacturers will also be forced to make their fast-charging standards interoperable, and to provide information to customers about what charging standards their device supports. Under the proposal, customers will be able to buy new devices without an included charger.</i><p>Vendors would continue to have the option of adding proprietary connectors, so long as consumers also have the option to use a standard connector. Consumers would have <i>more</i> choice. <i>That</i> sounds like a great idea to me.
Great news but needs serious enforcement and vigilance against various tricks that manufacturers might employ to "encourage" users to buy their own charger. Example: if a phone sets a lower charging current when it is not connected to the same-brand charger, no matter if that charger can source the necessary current, that would trick the user in believing the original charger is better by shorting the charging time, so the user would be lured into buying one, and we could end up in a even worse situation in which for most people a product and its charger would come in two packages and two shipments.
Apple has until 2024 to conform, but by that time it’s likely the iPhone will be portless.<p>Interesting is that the older iPhones they sell which at that time would be something like iPhone 13/14 will also need to have USB-C.
This might be a naive question but couldn't they just mandate something like 'the latest and or most appropriate revision of the USB standard for the use case' within reason and have that include potential future updates as well, making the law at least mostly future-proof instead of having to wait for politics to catch up with technology?
That's marginally useful, but if the aim is indeed to reduce waste then the key measure would be to stop bundling chargers with phones, as also suggested by the article.<p>What creates waste is that every time people buy a new phone they get a new charger, which they don't need in 99% of cases because they already have a box full of them.
I expect that this is a battle that Apple will lose. But I don't think they really care that much - because there is neither business or technical justification for a custom connector. Now they can focus on highlighting why their AC converters are superior - which generally they are.
> I guess I just wonder if in 20 years will every device still have a USB-C port on it in some odd location?<p>Yet another indicator that all regulation like this should come with a time limit. For another popular example, see the whole South Korea Internet Explorer fiasco.
I don’t get it. Is this about chargers or charging cables? All news sites seem to be conflating both. What phone maker today ships a charger not with a USB (A or C) female connector therefore compatible with pretty much any other phone?
Even though as a user i’d love to use same charger and all — as a thinking man I realize that law people dictating technical decisions is something deeply wrong, dangerous and anti democratical phenomena :(
So does this mean the eu will cover the licensing costs for everyone? <a href="https://www.usb.org/getting-vendor-id" rel="nofollow">https://www.usb.org/getting-vendor-id</a>
I don't know the timelines for these things, but how would this work if someone wanted to introduce a hypothetical USB-D? They'd just need to petition the EU once a new standard was adopted?
Does this include apple?<p>And I hope they will all be forced to use the same voltage/quality.<p>Same should be done for laptops, most ridiculous company in this regard is Asus (other than that, i love the products).
Why not wireless charging?<p>I don't mind the connector (lightning works well), better would be mandatory quality of the cables (the iPhone cables are regularly breaking).
Im not a fan of the quick charging standard being forced as it sounds like it will be one hell of a step back for anybody on a oneplus/oppo phone. The quick charging there is absolutely amazing. Im on an older version but even then my 1+ 7 pro charges fast and never gets hot while charging. Compared to PD or QC it is leagues better.
Considering lightning has been around for longer than any of the USB variants (mini, micro and USB-C, approx 7 years each), this makes no sense.<p>Is the EU going to restrict innovation and prevent another USB connector from being developed?
IMO, that charger should be Qi. Ever since trying wireless charging on my Nexus 4 back in late 2012/early 2013 I just can't go back to sticking a cable into my smartphone just to charge it. Makes me feel dirty.
So this will be the end of any charging port technology, what would they have selected pre iPhone I wonder? As usual the government knows best when figuring out what a consumer wants or needs.
This is silly. Apple's just going to add a $5 converter to their boxes that no one is going to use. They will also sell the converter for $75 just in case you do use it and lose it.
Sounds reasonable.<p>I wonder whether Apple would comply to a USB-based standard or move directly to only supporting wireless charging.<p>Thinner iPhones anyone?
Why is this so important to the EU? The stated purposes of this proposal are to reduce e-waste and improve consumer convenience, but it's easily argued that the actual impact of the proposal is the exact opposite.
It seems to me thr EU is very good at making plans without considering second and 3rd order consequences.<p>This seems like a good idea on the surface but look at the shit-show that the cookie/data regs have created on the web today.<p>I hope whatever law they write is encompassing enough that we don’t get the equivalent of horrible workarounds - maybe apple just stops having a cable and we all have to buy MagSafe now…..
It makes me uneasy to have governments mandate technical implementations like this. Would USB-C ever have been invented if all companies were required to use USB micro-B for everything?<p>Maybe I'm jaded by my American government, but I have zero faith in the ability of a group of politicians to stay up to date with technical standards and keep legislation like this up to date.
Hey EU!<p>I already have a common charger. In fact I have three! They are all USB-C Power Delivery devices: small lightweight charger, large powerful charger, and a battery pack.<p>I also have special cables for different devices, but it’s hardly onerous.<p>Please go back and rewrite your cookie law to be implemented in HTTP / some wire protocol so that I can use browser whitelisting.<p>Ambivalence,<p>gorgoiler
A bridge too far, dictating terms they don't understand.<p>1) Manufacturers don't use USB-C in some cases because it takes up a lot of space. The point being, you can't dictate at this level of design.<p>2) 'Connectors' are like 'sraws' - they don't take up landfill. They are negligible waste item.<p>These are things that legislators think of 'because it's in front of them' i.e. they literally see these things every day, instead of thinking more deliberately about both waste and products.<p>1) Requirement to use a 'standard connector' would be appropriate, but they all do now. Or rather, lightning is not standard, the EU could encourage the open sourcing of it.<p>2) Some efforts to recycle all electronics would be interesting as well. Cords could be sold with a $1 'recycle markup' that goes to the recycler or something like that - this, along with other bits of operational impetus, might make an appreciable dent.
This is non-news, this has already been the case since 2009 [1]. It mandates micro USB, EU iPhones come with an adapter. I'm not sure what the current status is, USB-C phones don't come with an adapter.<p>[1] <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_external_power_supply" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_external_power_supply</a>
Am I the only one who thinks this is completely insane, just based on principle? How have we reached a point where we think it is OK for the government to tell me that I can't buy a phone without a specific charger. This isn't a safety issue, and there isn't any massive infrastructure requirement, let people make their own decisions.<p>If I want to make a crazy phone that is 2mm thin and needs some special charger, I shouldn't be banned by the government from doing so. And if I have some charging port that I think is better than USB-C, I shouldn't have to lobby the government to get it implemented.<p>Right now new phones either have lightning, or USB-C. Seems pretty reasonable to me. USB-C is not faultless - imagine if we had been stuck with micro-USB instead.<p>How about the government leaves us alone and lets us make our own decisions. I think that would be nice. Just make people pay for their externalities.<p>Hopefully in practice, all this means is that Apple will include a lightning to USB-C converter in the box.
"The proposals only cover devices using wired, not wireless, chargers, EU commissioner Thierry Breton said in a press conference, adding that “there is plenty of room for innovation on wireless.”"<p>This quote typifies why Europe is miles behind on tech and innovation more generally.<p>"I can't imagine a better way of doing this, so we should mandate that everyone does this way."<p>We would've never even got wireless charging with this logic back in the USB-A days.