No post body was provided.
EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
521–530 of 1001 posts
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#522Earlier quoted context omitted.
Standardization of metering devices used in commerce is directly in the purview of Weights and Measures regulation. For example, NIST Weights and Measures division regulates the nozzle on the dispenser used for gasoline in the US. > Each retail dispensing device from which fuel products are sold shall be equipped with a nozzle spout having a diameter that conforms with the latest version of SAE J285, “Dispenser Nozzl…
Ensuring accurate metering in the context of commerce is within the scope of "To … fix the Standard of Weights and Measures". The specific form of the nozzle clearly is not, but they might justify it on the basis of some other enumerated power—the interstate commerce clause is frequently (ab)used for this sort of thing. Nothing technically requires every regulation produced by the NIST Weights and Measures division t…
I'm not saying that the regulatory power in this case is derived solely from the weights and measures clause, I'm countering golemotron's suggestion that it's a wholly unrelated topic. It's a topic so closely relevant to weights and measures that the regulatory division that currently regulates them bears that title.
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#523Earlier quoted context omitted.
If it's going down to a pettiness war, I don't think the legislators will give up that easily. Apple reacting in a petty way not only shows that the legislators were right on the money (while adapting shows they were forced, whether for good or bad) but gives them even more reason to push the buttons further. Digital Markets Act is definitely getting more fuel and attention after Apple's petty response to ACM's compl…
you seem to think that annoying Apple creates welfare for EU citizens But it doesn't. Regulators may "win" a battle. But consumers lose big time. And I don't think bureaucrats should take precedence versus consumers.
I think GP's point is that you almost never win when you go against regulators head-on. Ultimately, they're the ones who have the guns (i.e control imports, exports, and enforcement). Now that it got to this point, Apple will yield if it wants to continue profiting off those markets.
I do agree that legislating technology this way is a big mistake on EU's part. This is basically South Korea's ActiveX law all over again, and like South Korea, the EU will eventually be left behind.
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#524Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think your analogy isn’t right. None of those standards are mandatory. Would M.2 have come out when it did if you needed to change the law to permit it to be used over SATA? USB-C is already a standard just like all your other examples. This law forbids using other standards. > New innovations can be brought forth in the same way they are with the other standards mentioned above: developed in a harmonised manner I…
This is an unrealistic view of how current standards are introduced, approved and adopted. Interesting that you mentioned Apple, when they are using their significant market share to push lightning down their customers throats. The standards mentioned, are approved mostly by consortiums of big enterprises. So in a sense, there’s already a committee that evaluates and passes them. You also find the usual suspects amon…
[deleted]
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#525Quoted post unavailable.
[deleted]
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#526Alright, so before more folks freak out even more at this, there are a number of knee-jerk reactions that could be mitigated by reading up on this a bit before tossing thunderbolts. The main reasoning for this is to cut down on waste from incompatible chargers. This will bring charging more in line with other standardized products such as AC power cords, twisted pair networking, SD cards, M.2 SSDs, and all of those w…
[deleted]
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#527Imagine they had made this dumb decision back when Micro USB was the standard. We would have never gotten anything better than Micro USB. Governments shouldn't be in the market of mandating that a specific technical standards must be used as it freezes innovation. Also purely in terms of usability, the Apple thunderbolt plug is easier to clean and less error prone on insertion as it self-centers.
It looks like they did at the time : https://www.engadget.com/2010-12-29-european-standardization... I think standardization does not harm innovation. With more actors working on the same standard, it can evolve and get better while consumers are able to reuse hardware (here, phone chargers)
> I think standardization does not harm innovation.
Standardization isn't the problem. Enforced standardization is the problem. Standardization is beneficial when done by the industry because it's a collaborative process where everyone works together to create standards that are mutually beneficial. When the government comes in and enforces an already created industry standard it becomes impossible to change or improve it. This has happened in many industries where things are now done "just because" as the law enforced a now very outdated standard.
And no, the government doesn't create standards, they all come from industry originally.
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#528Alright, so before more folks freak out even more at this, there are a number of knee-jerk reactions that could be mitigated by reading up on this a bit before tossing thunderbolts. The main reasoning for this is to cut down on waste from incompatible chargers. This will bring charging more in line with other standardized products such as AC power cords, twisted pair networking, SD cards, M.2 SSDs, and all of those w…
[deleted]
[deleted]
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#529Earlier quoted context omitted.
The headphone jack did take up a considerable amount of space and made waterproofing quite a bit harder. It't not like it was not a well-considered tradeoff. Companies don't work based on spite, but based on profit.
The existence of waterproof Samsung phones of the same thickness seems to disprove this line for me; it’s not a coincidence that AirPods were released at the same time. Removing the headphone jack and was at least in part about the upsell to wireless headphones apple also makes.
I concur. If anything, TRRS jacks should be easier to waterproof compared to other holes.
Re: EU reaches deal to make USB-C a common charger for most electronic devices
#530Earlier quoted context omitted.
I buy best-selling cable packs costing a few euros per unit on Amazon. They charge and connect anything I own that has a USB-C plug.
But they may be very suboptimal. Most likely, they are not Thunderbolt or USB4 capable. Also, there is no guarantee that they can supply higher wattages.
I don't think this matters as much as some on HN think. People look for an iPhone charger, not for a USB4.0 Gen2 40W fast-charging cable and assorted wall plug that will transfer their movie collection in 2 minutes and charge to 100% in 5.