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I'm a USB-C Maximalist

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Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#451

Post by mschuster91 »

MayeulC wrote: post #340
gumby wrote: post #219

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I scan the emarker on every USB C that comes into the house and add a p-touch label. I chuck out power-only and ultra baseline (60 W/USB 2 cables) with no marker or resistors. Power-only cables could be handy when traveling as they are essentially a condom, but they can only charge slowly and I always have a better cable with me. I wouldn’t mind a PD aware charge-only device but inquire require some MITM circuitry an…

> I wouldn’t mind a PD aware charge-only device but inquire require some MITM circuitry and I’m too lazy to make one. Just get an USB data blocker. I bought one off the shelf at an airport for 10€. This is the "condom" you are talking about, just a small dongle. Then travel with a fully featured cable! I also use it to charge my phone at my workplace on the docking stations (which would be a big no-no otherwise). I t…

> This is the "condom" you are talking about, just a small dongle.

That only works when both sides speak proper USB-C PD and not "5V or some weird-ass proprietary stuff over D+/D-".

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#452

Post by yellowapple »

anilakar wrote: post #346
yellowapple wrote: post #330

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It’s important that the charger accepts an IEC C7 cable. This is an international standard, so you’ll be able to find local mains cables at office supply stores or borrow them from nearby appliances, and it’s a two-pin design. Having a two-pin mains lead means you don’t have to worry about finding three-pin (earthed) power outlets in areas where they are not yet universal. It also means that an ultra-compact travel…

> C7 and its 2.5A max current If 250 W (in the absolute worst case, a 100 V .jp grid) is not enough for travel purposes, I have no idea what will satisfy your requirements.

I might need to power a lot of things simultaneously. I currently travel with a 6-port USB-C power adapter; while it doesn't blast max wattage over every single port (nor do I need it to quite yet), I'd be unsurprised if one that does eventually hits the market, at which point I'd be inclined to upgrade.

In any case, even for single-device power supplies, pretty much all of the 165W+ ones I have are grounded (either C5 or C13). This includes the one that came with my Framework 16 (which is my backup charger if I need to pack extra light or otherwise don't want/need that 6-port squid).

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#453

Post by imp0cat »

ValentineC wrote: post #435
imp0cat wrote: post #328

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Inductive charging, like the often-mentioned-here Sonicare toothbrushes have.

Inductive charging doesn't help with non-replaceable lithium batteries that will eventually degrade past usable in maybe 1-3 years.

Right, but it solves the other problem that you mentioned - charging ports or contacts exposed to the elements.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#454

Post by atoav »

breezybottom wrote: post #138
atoav wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not to be that guy, but the USB-C specification requires an extraction force of 8–20 N for a new connector, measured on the sixth unplugging cycle after five conditioning cycles. After 10,000 insertion/removal cycles, the permitted range is 6–20 N. Equivalent hanging mass: 8 N is 0.82 kg 20 N is 2.04 kg So the problem you have is likely one of your manufacturer not producing equipment suitable to pass the USB-C spec.…

Well it's a common manufacturer problem then, because USB-C connections are universally floppy and loose.

Are they? I can easily dangle my Phone of my USB-C cable. Maybe this is a regional problem. Within the EU I rarely ever had any mechanical problem with USB-C, where applied reasonably.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#455

Post by hadlock »

mikestew wrote: post #192
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.

I’m a cold-dead-hands 13 Mini owner, but even I’ll admit to the temptation of replacing the last device I have that doesn’t use USB-C with something that does.

When my wife finally upgraded her iphone to one that uses the usb-c, finally the last non-usb-c device in the house was gone. It has drastically simplified our lives. Each car only has a single usb-c cable now and that's enough for long road trips even. We got a set of Anker cables ~5 years ago and they still haven't worn out yet

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#456

Post by greggsy »

angry_octet wrote: post #258
greggsy wrote: post #231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I went down the rabbit hole of cable testers, and concluded that that thicker and stiffer almost always meant ‘better’ support for higher speed and charge rates. Anything braided is almost always junk. I don’t have a requirement for anything over 90w though, so I can generally get away with using whatever I have lying around.

Braided works fine? I have plenty of Ugreen and others from Amazon, what matters is what's inside.

I should qualify that the vast majority of braided stuff I have accumulated over the years is junk.

thats over ten years products freebies, packs of 3 bought on the cheap, a few ‘fancier’ ones here and there, and at least a couple of emergency airport and gas station purchases.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#457

Post by theshrike79 »

subarctic wrote: post #255
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 find Philips Sonicare toothbrushes break after about a year, long before the battery gives up. Which i guess is another reason not having integrated batteries would be nice. But then they might not make as much money whenever I buy a new one so they probably wouldn't do that

How hard do you brush if you can _mechanically_ break an electric toothbrush?

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#458

Post by sdh9 »

coffeebeqn wrote: post #408
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…

A electric toothbrush does a much better job at cleaning your teeth though. I have a basic oral B one that I can get new heads for cheaply and easily and it has a usb-c charger. It’s great honestly. I’m sure it’ll die one day but so do normal toothbrushes. I’ll crack the shell open and recycle the battery it’s not a big deal. I had a random Amazon one before that broke after a few months but the very basic “old” styl…

Unless something has changed, it's pretty difficult to replace the battery in Oral B toothbrushes. Which is a shame, because they die pretty much like clockwork after about 3 years.

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#459

Post by lstodd »

gorgoiler wrote: post #331
lstodd wrote: post #290

Earlier quoted context omitted.

C7 is great advice. But also pack a short length of cat5 twisted pair just in case. When all else fails, it allows to rig up most anything.

You should write up and publish your notes on how to fabricate connectors from cat5 wire, in the field. It would be a hit.

Cut by multiple bend, strip by teeth, curl enough to catch, insert, pull, twist.

Do you feel you need a write-up on how to piss in the woods too?

Re: I'm a USB-C Maximalist

#460

Post by starkrights »

namuol wrote: post #444
starkrights wrote: post #443

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know of something expensive that omits it too! My insulin pump controller is a junkpile android phone (a NUU Mobile N5004L for the curious) whose only purpose in life is to run a singular android app. The device charges via usb-c, but refuses to do so if the charger is any relatively modern usb-c based brick. Only usb-a!

Ugh, that’s infuriating to read, if not at all surprising. This sounds at once totally over-engineered (in the modern day, negative sense of the word) while being simultaneously under-engineered (in the traditional sense).

It’s definitely a weird scenario.

It seems everyone in the Durable Medical Equipment space for diabetes stuff just wants everything to be a smartphone app now- which is fine honestly, it’s convenient for those that want to use it, but I’ve been informed that many manufacturers (at least a good number of Continuous Glucose Monitor makers) have completely forgone native controllers these days. Omnipod just seems to have said “we’ll make one program because maintaining two could be problematic for consistency (and probably certification) reasons”, and then made the logical-enough extrapolation that their native controller can just be an android device. They just chose a cheap/shit one- which is fair! It runs AN app! But it also means I have to keep USB A to C chargers on me 24/7 :/

I’m just glad they at least do that, as smartphone-only options are problematic for a number of reasons, among them being the lack of ability to bring them into restricted areas. I hadn’t thought about it before, but it’d also be a problem for events where they use those stupid yondr bags, or even schools that use them now.

I guess you could just get your own little junkpile android for the sole purpose of being a controller, but still. sigh

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