this post was submitted on 28 Dec 2024
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Suck it micro USB, mini USB, and lightning! 🪫🔋

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[–] [email protected] 107 points 5 days ago (81 children)

My only concern with this law, is that what happens when USBC is no longer the best option. Idk how to express what I’m saying but what if USB-G ends up being 1000x as fast. Does this law allow for chargers to evolve and if so, how? I admit I haven’t looked into this but I’ve been wondering about it.

I’m 99% wireless these days so I wouldn’t be surprised if chorded chargers are largely on their way out, but I’m still curious.

[–] [email protected] 51 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (34 children)

USB-C doesn't have speeds, it's just a connector type. USB 1, 2, 3-3.2, 4 etc. is the protocol responsible for speed. You can have a USB-C connector with any implementation (except maybe USB 1). It can even do DisplayPort stuff.
So for USB-C to become irrelevant we need to come up with a better connector form factor. Which is unlikely to happen soon. But also, same thing happened with USB-B Micro connector (colloquially called micro USB), it was designated as a standard (but Apple managed to get an exemption) and manufacturers had no issues moving to a better connector, which is USB-C.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 5 days ago (20 children)

What I don't understand is what was wrong with mini-USB.

Too thick? Just why do people want a portable computer to be thinner that their wallet, or their notebook, or their damned pen, or that Snickers bar in their pocket which nobody made thinner. Who the hell told them that "miniaturization being the future of tech" has anything to do with the box inside which that tech is mounted being just a bit thinner? I mean, were it thin enough to put computers into printed magazine pages, maybe (I think I've read that someone did this, with a computer kinda as powerful as ZX Spectrum). Why do they specifically need it? Not to appear "modern", but really?

The question is, because for me personally mini-USB was very convenient. It held well, was easy enough to stick the right way (and not ruin it trying to stick it the wrong way).

Now, I guess USB-C is fine if it can do the same and go both ways. I actually like it, except RPi 4 is the only device I have needing it.

It's just ... how can one try so many connector types for one group of standards?..

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 days ago (1 children)

At the risk of sounding like Blizzard, don't you have a phone? Even my previous phone, Galaxy S8 had USB-C. Or do you have an old iPhone?

Pretty much all electronics that came out in the past 4 years use USB-C. Just an example, here's a non-exhaustive list of things that I charge with C:

  • MacBook (2020)
  • iPad (2018)
  • Galaxy S10e (2019)
  • Steam Deck (2022)
  • Nintendo Switch (2017)
  • Kindle (2020)

All of these are, on average, at least 4 years old. So I'm pretty sure the average consumer has already switched to primarily USB-C

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

When I think about it, my phone is like 2 years old. Micro-USB.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 days ago (1 children)

What phone is that? Genuinely curious. Was it actually manufactured in 2022 with micro USB?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

2020, my bad. Checked. In any case it's BQ-5046L, sort of what you buy when you don't like the whole idea of Android, but need some stuff for work.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Even for a 2020 release, it must be an outlier. Actually never heard of BQ Mobile until now. Apparently, they released their last phone in 2020, and in 2021 completely ceased operations. They were probably trying to use up all the remaining micro USB port modules to cut costs or something.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

LOL. Wrong BQ. The one you've read about is dead, yes. The one I have a phone from is a Russian noname.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

I see. Looks to me that they just rebrand cheap Chinese phones and sell them in Russian-speaking countries. I doubt they offer anything extra compared to the phones they rebrand, except maybe Russian translation for the UI.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago

Likely that, yes.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago

Funny I didn't hear about it. I think they tried releasing something with Ubuntu Phone a few years before, so not a completely worthless company.

Kinda sad even, pretty normal vanilla Android.

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