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I'm a USB-C Maximalist

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Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#201

Post by JoshTriplett »

cogman10 wrote: post #180
JoshTriplett wrote: post #127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'd much rather keep rechargeable AA(A)s on hand for that kind of stuff. https://www.amazon.com/s?k=rechargeable+aa+batteries+usb+c But in practice, I greatly prefer devices with integrated batteries, because they're more likely to be able to give me useful feedback about the battery level (e.g. a reliable low-battery indicator), rather than just winding down, or having a low-battery indicator with only a passing c…

> But in practice, I greatly prefer devices with integrated batteries, because they're more likely to be able to give me useful feedback about the battery level (e.g. a reliable low-battery indicator), rather than just winding down, or having a low-battery indicator with only a passing correlation to reality. That has less to do with the battery being integrated and more to do with different battery chemistries havin…

I'm aware of why it happens, but the net effect is the same. No device powered by AA/AAA is in practice going to be able to detect battery charge level correctly. Combine that with the annoyance of separate chargers versus integrated USB-C, and the result is that I never want to use non-integrated rechargeable batteries. (In practice, I also prefer to avoid devices that use AA/AAA/etc at all, for some of the same reasons.)

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#202

Post by Gigachad »

breezybottom wrote: post #196
Gigachad wrote: post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's because your port or cable are filled with pocket lint. Get a sewing needle and fish it out and it will connect again.

No, it's because USB-C is physically smaller and shallower. You can visually compare them and see that

The cable will not just fall out. On my clean iphone I can hang the phone from the cable and lightly swing it around without it disconnecting. If it's just falling out it's because something is mechanically wrong or it's full of gunk.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#203

Post by wincy »

DimmieMan wrote: post #198
Telaneo wrote: post #174

It's been a joy to not need to bring 3 chargers along when I travel. I think the only thing we're missing to make the USB-C experience perfect is cable labelling. It's unreasonable to make every cable perform to the max spec, but if we could standardise on some labelling or colours for cables that are charging-only, 480 mbit (usb 2 speed), 5 Gbit (usb 3 speed), 10 GB (usb 3.1 speed), 20 GB (usb 3.2 speed), plus whate…

HDMI and display port are in a similar boat. Putting the spec on the connector would be so much help. Even purchasing them is a nightmare these days because everything says ultra super duper fast supreme and then the fine print says it's actually just 3.0 (or doesn't say at all sometimes on online storefronts). Multiple time's I've found myself in the store flipping around the box like a rubics cube trying to find th…

A huge problem for me, the only displayport 2.1a cable I’ve found that works for my RTX 5090 + 240hz uncompressed HDR 4K monitor came with the monitor. It’s amazing that it’s pushing around 80gbps through that wire and it’s an incredible visual experience.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#204

Post by kevin_thibedeau »

rogerrogerr wrote: post #41
chaosharmonic wrote: post #15

I too am a USB-C maximalist, but with a handful of differences from OP: - You lose me at "toothbrush." I don't want personal care items that have internal batteries at all , because they'll eventually die on me while the device itself (brush heads notwithstanding) is otherwise perfectly functional. I'd much rather keep rechargeable AA(A)s on hand for that kind of stuff. (I still haven't found a good electric razor fo…

Re. toothbrush, I have to take the opportunity to give Philips credit for the Sonicare electric toothbrushes they made ~15 years ago. That thing just keeps trucking, it’s incredible. I go on 2 week trips and don’t even bring the charger, and have no worries about it dying. It must have been crazy overspecced, I expected it to be a 5-year disposable piece of non-serviceable tech.

My first Sonicare eventually died of a battery failure 20 years ago. My second would not die and I was stuck buying the old style heads that were hard to clean. I finally gave in and replaced it just recently. Modern lithium cells last forever in low drain, low duty cycle applications like a toothbrush.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#205

Post by jbonatakis »

tombert wrote: post #144

I like my iPhone 13 Pro Max and I don’t want to get rid of it or anything, but I am kind of looking forward to the glorious day that it breaks. Once it breaks, any phone I get (iPhone or Android) will have USB-C, along with my laptop, with One Adapter To Rule Them All when I travel. That’s the dream, anyway. Life rarely works out quite that cleanly for me.

This is how I feel with my Airpods. Just break already!

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#206

Post by Gigachad »

qurren wrote: post #182
Gigachad wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

40gbps is an insane data rate that requires shielding, precision, and testing. There is no way you are getting that for $2. That said, outside of connecting a laptop to your monitor, you don't need a 40gbps cable.

> 40gbps is an insane data rate that requires shielding, precision, and testing. There is no way you are getting that for $2. I dunno, Cat8 is 40gbps and pretty cheap. DOCSIS 4.0 does 10Gbps on some really ancient cables. I'm sure Cat9 will do even better, at least the cat people and the doc people are trying harder than the USB people. Unifi even has a PoE-over-coax solution. Add some Anker GaN shit and I'm sure it…

99% of user use cases for USB are charging batteries and copying a word document on a flash drive. For those cases literally every port and cable works. For video, in every office and home, the thunderbolt cable just sits in the monitor at all times with just the USB end free. Meaning there is no confusion around which cable is the video one because the video one only ever sits connected to the monitor.

While I now no longer have to carry around a bag of chargers when I travel or fish through a bucket of black DC adapters for the right one.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#207

Post by embedding-shape »

DimmieMan wrote: post #198
Telaneo wrote: post #174

It's been a joy to not need to bring 3 chargers along when I travel. I think the only thing we're missing to make the USB-C experience perfect is cable labelling. It's unreasonable to make every cable perform to the max spec, but if we could standardise on some labelling or colours for cables that are charging-only, 480 mbit (usb 2 speed), 5 Gbit (usb 3 speed), 10 GB (usb 3.1 speed), 20 GB (usb 3.2 speed), plus whate…

HDMI and display port are in a similar boat. Putting the spec on the connector would be so much help. Even purchasing them is a nightmare these days because everything says ultra super duper fast supreme and then the fine print says it's actually just 3.0 (or doesn't say at all sometimes on online storefronts). Multiple time's I've found myself in the store flipping around the box like a rubics cube trying to find th…

> HDMI and display port are in a similar boat. Putting the spec on the connector would be so much help.

What if we just have different connectors for different specs? Then you'd know what supports what by what fits into the connection in the first place.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#208

Post by wongarsu »

helterskelter wrote: post #195
hereme888 wrote: post #188

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wasn't there a push at some point to enforce some sort of spec labeling for USB-C cables? Or was that a fantasy in my head?

USB3 has/had some color labeling standards, but I only remember seeing it with type A.

USB A cables and ports have the inner plastic piece color coded. White for USB 1, black for USB 2, blue for USB 3 (5 Gbit/s), teal for 3.1 (10 Gbit/s). Red or yellow for always-on

Blue is the only one that's actually endorsed by USB-IF. For the most part USB-IF would prefer if everyone just used their little icons. Luckily manufacturers have a bit more sense and all follow the same color scheme (apart from the occasional black sheep)

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#209

Post by itishappy »

qurren wrote: post #97
chaosharmonic wrote: post #15

I too am a USB-C maximalist, but with a handful of differences from OP: - You lose me at "toothbrush." I don't want personal care items that have internal batteries at all , because they'll eventually die on me while the device itself (brush heads notwithstanding) is otherwise perfectly functional. I'd much rather keep rechargeable AA(A)s on hand for that kind of stuff. (I still haven't found a good electric razor fo…

I break about 1 USB-C plug a week. They are simply not designed well for real people who do real things in the world, including physical work, exercise, hiking, woodworking, biking, and the like. They are designed by someone in a corporate office who just never gets out to see the real world. Here's how the last few broke: * Phone with typical inadequate battery + external portable battery pack plugged in, shoved in…

> I break about 1 USB-C plug a week.

Wild. How often do you break the phone itself?

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#210

Post by graypegg »

This is a rather stupid to rave about, but I was in amsterdam several months ago, and I forgot to bring my NA to EU plug adapter. I was a bit miffed having to buy a new travel charger, but it's become the best one I own. (Only because all the other chargers I own were spawned into existence around me/came with some device)

65watts isn't even that much, but its enough that I don't need:

- the mac charger that's always connected to the magsafe cable I can't use with anything else,

- the dinky iPhone brick with the cable that needs USB-C on both ends,

- and the slightly less dinky pocketbook e-reader charger with the cable that needs USB-A on the brick-end and micro USB on the business-end.

2x 65 watt USB-C ports and 1x USB-A running at whatever anemic power USB-A is capable of pitfully spitting at my ancient e-reader without drawing the ire of UL or something (5v/500ma still?), perfection.

You should go purpose-buy a charging brick, anything is better than the freebie ones you get with stuff.

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