EU proposes mandatory USB-C on all devices, including iPhones

[elsiegee40]

While I can see why they want to do this, doesn’t it stifle innovation?

 

https://www.theverge.com/2021/9/23/22626723/eu-commission-universal-charger-usb-c-micro-lightning-connector-smartphones

 

The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, has announced plans to force smartphone and other electronics manufacturers to fit a common USB-C charging port on their devices. The proposal is likely to have the biggest impact on Apple, which continues to use its proprietary Lightning connector rather than the USB-C connector adopted by most of its competitors. The rules are intended to cut down on electronic waste by allowing people to re-use existing chargers and cables when they buy new electronics.

 

In addition to phones, the rules will apply to other devices like tablets, headphones, portable speakers, videogame consoles, and cameras. 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.

 

The proposals only covers 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.”

 

To become law, the revised Radio Equipment Directive proposal will need to pass a vote in the European Parliament. If adopted, manufacturers will eventually have 24 months to comply with the new rules. The parliament has already voted in favor of new rules on a common charger in early 2020, indicating that today’s proposal should have broad support.

 

“Chargers power all our most essential electronic devices. With more and more devices, more and more chargers are sold that are not interchangeable or not necessary. We are putting an end to that,” said commissioner Thierry Breton. “With our proposal, European consumers will be able to use a single charger for all their portable electronics – an important step to increase convenience and reduce waste.”

 

“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,” European Commission executive vice-president Margrethe Vestager said.

 

Today’s proposal is focused on the charging port on the device end, but the Commission says it eventually hopes to ensure “full interoperability” on both ends of the cable. The power supply end will be addressed in a review to be launched later this year.

 

The proposals follow a vote in the European Parliament in January 2020 when lawmakers voted for new rules on common chargers. As of 2016, the amount of electronic waste produced across the bloc amounted to around 12.3 million metric tons.

 

The biggest impact of the new rules is likely to be felt by Apple, which continues to ship phones with a Lightning connector as opposed to the increasingly universal USB-C port. As of 2018, around 29 percent of phone chargers sold in the EU used USB-C, 21 percent used Lightning, and around half used the older Micro USB standard, according to an EU assessment reported by Reuters. These proportions are likely to have shifted considerably as USB-C has replaced Micro USB across all but the least expensive Android phones.

 

Efforts to get smartphone manufacturers to use the same charging standard in the EU date back to at least 2009, when Apple, Samsung, Huawei, and Nokia signed a voluntary agreement to use a common standard. In the following years, the industry gradually adopted Micro USB and, more recently, USB-C as a common charging port. However, despite reducing the amount of charging standards from over 30 down to just three (Micro USB, USB-C, and Lightning), regulators have said this voluntary approach has fallen short of its objectives.

 

Apple was a notable outlier in that it never included a Micro USB port on its phones directly. Instead, it offered a Micro USB to 30-pin adapter. It’s also voiced its opposition to the latest round of attempts to settle on a single charging standard. In a statement released last year, Apple said new rules risk creating e-waste because people may have to throw out their existing Lightning accessories if they’re incompatible with the universal standard, and that regulation could stifle innovation by forcing companies to stick to current ports.

 

Although it’s continued to use Lightning, Apple has made its own efforts to reduce charger e-waste. Last year, it stopped shipping charging bricks or earbuds in the box with new iPhones and supplied them only with a Lightning to USB-C cable. However, the move was met with a mixed response, with some arguing that it helped Apple’s bottom line more than the environment.

 

While European lawmakers focus mainly on wired chargers, wireless charging is becoming increasingly popular across smartphones and has largely converged on a single cross-platform standard: Qi. There have even been rumors that Apple could ship an iPhone without a Lightning port and have it rely entirely on wireless charging for power.

Edited September 23, 2021 by elsiegee40

[paulkerton]

About time.

Bit rich of Apple stating "stifling innovation" considering the Macbooks and most of the iPad range are now USB-C charging!

[elsiegee40]

About time.

Bit rich of Apple stating "stifling innovation" considering the Macbooks and most of the iPad range are now USB-C charging!

 

To some extent I think it does. There will be better connectors developed and forcing everyone to use USB-C is stopping that happening.

[paulkerton]

To some extent I think it does. There will be better connectors developed and forcing everyone to use USB-C is stopping that happening.

 

Yes, but that suggests they won't revisit the standard at some point, and appointing a body like GSMA to keep a standard.

This has the smell of Apple ecosystem control around it, more so than "stifling innovation". Can't sell "offical approved Apple lightning cables" for extortionate prices and watch them split within 9 months if you can buy a USB-C cable that's more robust for half the price!

[ITGuyNW]

Does it stifle innovation or is it just a phone charger?

[jthompson]

What I wanna know is this... what have standards ever done for us, eh?!

[Norphy]

At least a lightning cable is a lightning cable. As long as you get an MFI one, you should be OK. With USB-C, there are about a million different standards and specs for the damn things and several phone companies have their own charging protocols for phones, despite cables being USB-C. And does anyone remember the tests that a Google engineer carried out on USB-C cables with his Chromebook?

 

Also bear in mind the state of the market when Apple introduced Lightning: The 30 pin dock cable was their standard charging cable and it needed replacing. The de-facto charger plugs outside of barrel chargers that phones used at the time were Micro and Mini USB which sucked then and suck now. And let's not even mention the USB 3 implementations of those. USB-C was still three years away from the market and there wasn't another reversible plug like it on the market at the time so, actually, it's not unreasonable to call Lightning "innovative". In some ways, I actually prefer it to USB 3 as it doesn't seem as finicky to me.

 

I have no problem with companies like Apple being encouraged to use more universal standards for charging cables but it shouldn't be mandated as, as @elsiegee40 says, at some point it's going to need replacing and I wouldn't want rules and regulations to stop that from happening.

 

Does it stifle innovation or is it just a phone charger?

 

Do you remember what things were like before USB chargers for phones? Each phone manufacturer had their own charger standards. Different sized barrel plugs, running at different voltages and amperages. Some manufacturers (NOKIA) had two different sized barrel plugs. Cables were captive to the chargers. Compared to how things were then, things today are a lot better; any old USB charger can charge any phone as long as it can output 5v at least 1a and you have the correct USB cable. It might not charge quickly but it'll be better than nothing.

Edited September 23, 2021 by Norphy

[HC_Netman]

We all know Apple will just remove the charging port and go wireless anyway. This will just speed up the change.

[Norphy]

We all know Apple will just remove the charging port and go wireless anyway. This will just speed up the change.

 

Which uses a standard charging standard (QI).

 

Personally I'm not entirely convinced they're going to do that. QI charging is slower and more inefficient and considering how Apple like to claim they're a green company, that would go against that. Plus you've got all of the iPhone accessories out there, headphones, charging docks, speaker docks, Carplay etc. Changing to USB wouldn't render those useless if they provided an adapter but removing the charging port would.

[Ironside]

Which uses a standard charging standard (QI).

 

Personally I'm not entirely convinced they're going to do that. QI charging is slower and more inefficient and considering how Apple like to claim they're a green company, that would go against that. Plus you've got all of the iPhone accessories out there, headphones, charging docks, speaker docks, Carplay etc. Changing to USB wouldn't render those useless if they provided an adapter but removing the charging port would.

 

Apple say they're a green company but if you try to reduce or reuse your tech waste by fixing your iphone or imac they'll break out the iCease and iDesist real quick. What apple claims is not necessarily true or realistic and they don't particularly care.

[Rob_D]

Does it stifle innovation or is it just a phone charger?

But it's not just a phone charger, it's also a data transfer cable. And eventually everyone will move to USB 4 except in the EU where they're still waiting to vote on the updated standard.

[DrCheese]

But it's not just a phone charger, it's also a data transfer cable. And eventually everyone will move to USB 4 except in the EU where they're still waiting to vote on the updated standard.

 

Yup & companies that don't want to increase costs will fight to keep the current standard. The idea behind this is noble, but in reality, it'll just squash innovation.

Imagine if a rule existed that said "You must release music on cassette tape" - Companies would have no reason to innovate and produce anything better. Why bother when to get it approved, you'd have to fight against lobbyists from companies who don't want to move on

[Norphy]

Apple say they're a green company but if you try to reduce or reuse your tech waste by fixing your iphone or imac they'll break out the iCease and iDesist real quick. What apple claims is not necessarily true or realistic and they don't particularly care.

 

Ach, tripe. I've repaired iMacs before and I've sent iPhones off to be repaired. Neither ended up with me being served a Cease and Desist.

 

There are occasions where Apple have restricted people from using third party components like touchscreens or TouchID buttons. There have usually been technical reasons behind this, such as the secure enclave attached to a TouchID button. Apple also support their mobile phones and tablets for longer than any other mobile vendor out there; my first gen iPad Air from 2013 is still getting security updates.

[elsiegee40]

My iPad Air has USB-C charging not Lightning…

[paulkerton]

But it's not just a phone charger, it's also a data transfer cable. And eventually everyone will move to USB 4 except in the EU where they're still waiting to vote on the updated standard.

 

Lettered USB is the connector standard

Numbered USB is the data standard

 

You can run USB 3.2 on a USB-A connector as much as you can on a USB-C connector.

[Ditto]

Is having the USB-C exclusively mandatory? If not presumably any manufacturer can have the USB-C and something else too - but I guess that will go against the waste reduction goal. Of course, that's a possible consequence with the directive - The Cobra Effect!

[ozydave]

Laughable, how many different plug types are there across the EU

[elsiegee40]

Laughable, how many different plug types are there across the EU

 

Probably only 2. The UK standard which Ireland follows and the European standard that everyone else uses

Edited September 23, 2021 by elsiegee40

[Rob_D]

The whole "tacking the other end of the cable next" thing did sound a bit unnecessary considering how ubiquitous USB Type A is for the "other end".

[Garacesh]

Ach, tripe. I've repaired iMacs before and I've sent iPhones off to be repaired. Neither ended up with me being served a Cease and Desist.

 

There are occasions where Apple have restricted people from using third party components like touchscreens or TouchID buttons. There have usually been technical reasons behind this, such as the secure enclave attached to a TouchID button. Apple also support their mobile phones and tablets for longer than any other mobile vendor out there; my first gen iPad Air from 2013 is still getting security updates.

 

You might be able to repair your own device, but you're an ICT professional with transferrable skills. For the rest of the populace, there's third-party repair stores, except apple go after those because they want you to go to the Genius Bar[tm] and get ripped off to high-heaven told it's not repairable/has water damage/etc. And they actively try to quash any kind of repair information about the hardware. Apple are so incredibly anti-right-to-repair it's nuts. (If I'm being reasonable, most consumer electronics organisations are now, but most of them just say "Nah, warranty's void now, mate. Soz." whereas apple take it to a whole new level)

Louis Rossmann has done a lot of videos about this, and about their refusal to fix even the simplest of problems (I remember one where it was just a pin on a ribbon cable being bent, that was a very common issue on that model and Apple said was "unfixable", 30 seconds later, repaired)

 

As for the stifling innovation, I do admit that I can see that argument. Except the latest iPads use USB-C over Lightning. So clearly it's not that terrible, eh?

The solution is obvious: If they want to innovate, they can do that, but they have to submit their innovation to the USB consortium for the greater good of all consumers (and device manufacturers).

 

That being said, whoever is in charge of USB needs to pull their finger out and get a better grip over their standardisation. The bajillion different implementations need to go. Something like yearly major revision versions that are backwards compatible and not ten million different tweaks of it being realised whenever the hell a manufacturer feels like it. It needs to be properly enforced. On the best end, the current setup just really muddies the water and allows for sub-par gear to be sold via lying by omission. At the worst-case end, there's stuff like the Nintendo Switch charger being USB-C-except-it-isn't and frying phones because it's pumping them with too much juice.

Edited September 24, 2021 by Garacesh

[jmak]

Now that it's cables that plug into a USB power supply I think this has limited impact; when it was hard wired wall-warts with a different spec for each manufacturer it was a major issue.

 

I always end up buying multiple cables for my phone: one for my regular charging point, one for each car, one to keep in my bag when I go out. Most of them don't last as long as my devices. No one in our household has any Apple devices, but I've got a lightning cable in the kitchen drawer because we have enough visitors with Apple kit that it's worth spending a few quid to have one.

[paulkerton]

Most of them don't last as long as my devices.

Well yes, quite. Apple are very guilty of selling incredibly flimsy cables and putting chips in them as a form of cable DRM though.

[paulkerton]

Laughable, how many different plug types are there across the EU

 

Switzerland (Type C and J when grounded) Italy (C, F and L) and Ireland (that uses the same one as the UK) use different types to the rest of the EU, Russia and most of North Africa who use C, E and F plugs which are cross compatible.

 

So really, most of them use one plug.

[Arthur]

Common charger: MEPs agree on proposal to reduce electronic waste

 

• Fewer redundant cables and chargers: good for environment and consumers
  
• USB Type-C port as new standard for portable device
  
• MEPs also want harmonisation for wireless charging
  

 

MEPs support a common charger for portable electronic devices, reducing e-waste and making the use of different mobile phones, tablets and digital cameras more convenient.

 

On Wednesday the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee adopted its position on the revised Radio Equipment Directive with 43 votes in favour (2 against).

 

The new rules would make sure consumers no longer need a new charger and cable every time they purchase a new device, and can use one charger for all of their small and medium-sized electronic gadgets. Mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras, headphones and headsets, handheld videogame consoles and portable speakers, rechargeable via a wired cable, would have to be equipped with a USB Type-C port, regardless of the manufacturer. Exemptions would apply only for devices that are too small to have a USB Type-C port, such as smart watches, health trackers, and some sports equipment.

 

This revision is part of a broader EU effort to address product sustainability, in particular of electronics on the EU market, and to reduce electronic waste.

[Garacesh]

The new rules would make sure consumers no longer need a new charger and cable every time they purchase a new device, and can use one charger for all of their small and medium-sized electronic gadgets.

I wonder what that will mean to proprietary fast-charging methods? I suspect PowerQi will win out over things like Qualcomm's 27W Quick Charge and OnePlus' 20W Dash/50W Warp Charge (especially when you consider that allegedly 488 manufacturers work with the standard).

Then again those technologies are practically guaranteed to end up redundant at some point, since USB-C is rated for up to 100 watts.

Edited April 26, 2022 by Garacesh