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USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

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Re: USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

#471

Post by llamataboot »

I am literally a senior programmer and I still cannot wrap my head around USB-C.

Is this a PD cable? Is this Thunderbolt 3? Is this DisplayPort-over-USB? Is this cable too long to be fast? Oh, this cable doesn't work for power. Oh that's actually not a power-equipped USB-C slot. Does this hub work? Oh, it only works for ports, not video. Etc etc etc.

I've literally taken to color-coding cables to know which ones I can use where, and if I just stuck to macs and high-end cables, sure, fine, but I have about 10 other devices that have "things" that plug into USB-C slots, but what those things can do and what they need to do them...

It's not helpful that Amazon has become a sludge of crappy products with fake reviews. Even I've ended up lulled in a few times and picked up something that just didn't work as specified at all.

Re: USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

#473

Post by montzark »

USB-C is awesome. Quite cheap (40€) 20000 mAh Xiaomi power bank can output 20V/45W so I can use it to charge my T480s. Also bought cheap usb-c Power Delivery modules (can output 5/9/12/15/20V) which I used to provide power for my TS100 soldering iron. Combined with the power bank it's now a portable soldering iron. TS80 has usb-c even built in, no module needed.

Re: USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

#474

Post by ticviking »

derefr wrote: post #108
reader_mode wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why ? You have the same plug but it's not actually compatible - this to me is a good example of confusion - I would be the first to assume you can charge it with whatever USB-C power cable available and not bother checking the docs.

Because it could have happened just as well with any other plug. It could have been a non-conforming micro-USB charging port. Either way, it would have nothing to do with “the mess that is USB-C” (i.e. the inability to identify which of the various wire protocols that work over USB-C cables that a USB-C port follows/supports), because such a port isn’t following any of the USB-C-cable compatible standards. It’d be li…

Their public tech specs for switch claim it is USB-C. https://www.nintendo.com/switch/tech-specs/

Seems to me like that claim is false advertising at the minimum, and specifically exempting other charges on top of that is very consumer unfriendly.

Re: USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

#475

Post by paulmd »

vr46 wrote: post #361
reader_mode wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why ? You have the same plug but it's not actually compatible - this to me is a good example of confusion - I would be the first to assume you can charge it with whatever USB-C power cable available and not bother checking the docs.

Indeed, and then when you check the specs, it says USB-C! https://www.nintendo.com/switch/tech-specs/ I was not pleased with it being an outside warranty issue, but I paid up just to get the thing fixed and back.

File a small-claims court suit, they probably won't even bother showing up and will just pay it.

Re: USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

#476

Post by user5994461 »

coryfklein wrote: post #311
dcchambers wrote: post #82

USB-C is mostly a mess if you try to get away using the cheapest adapters/cables you can find, that often times won't follow the spec. Most of the issues vanish if you use high-end cables/adapters from reputable manufacturers. This is a departure from the world of Micro USB where most cheap cables worked just as good as "high end" cables. There are caveats. For example, my Nintendo Switch, a major electronics device…

And how exactly does one know they have received a "high end" cable or charger? Because it cost enough? Because a website claimed it was "Offishial Ankker CABLE"? I'm with you; as an educated techie I'm confident I can find a setup that works for my devices, but I'm far from the common denominator here. Frankly I'm a little concerned when HN thinks, "Nah this isn't a problem, USB-C is working just fine for me. None o…

>>> And how exactly does one know they have received a "high end" cable or charger?

Get the cable in a brick and mortar shop, rather than buying on Amazon.

Preferably a normal shop, not the cheapest wallmart or dollar store.

Re: USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

#477

Post by paulmd »

derefr wrote: post #108
reader_mode wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why ? You have the same plug but it's not actually compatible - this to me is a good example of confusion - I would be the first to assume you can charge it with whatever USB-C power cable available and not bother checking the docs.

Because it could have happened just as well with any other plug. It could have been a non-conforming micro-USB charging port. Either way, it would have nothing to do with “the mess that is USB-C” (i.e. the inability to identify which of the various wire protocols that work over USB-C cables that a USB-C port follows/supports), because such a port isn’t following any of the USB-C-cable compatible standards. It’d be li…

> And nor does Nintendo claim the Switch’s charging port to be a USB-C port

this is not correct. Ctrl-f "USB Type-C", it's right there.

https://www.nintendo.com/switch/tech-specs/

Re: USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

#478

Post by bmurphy1976 »

My Honda Odyssey has Android Auto support. It only works if I plug the USB-C end of the cable into my Pixel 3 in one orientation. If I rotate it 180º the systems can't connect.

I have yet to figure out why this is the case, but it's supremely frustrating when a reversible cable is not in fact reversible.

Re: USB-C was supposed to simplify our lives, but instead it’s a total mess

#479

Post by moogleii »

jeremymcanally wrote: post #97
buzzerbetrayed wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did you not read the article? Because your response doesn’t address any of the issues brought up in the article. Mainly that all the usb-c cables you sprinkle across your house might not have the same functionality. And if you plug your switch in to one it might charge it, while another will not.

I did read it, and for my use cases, I don't have issues. I understand others' use cases may not match mine, but this situation seems basically like any other connectivity standard in the history of technology. Except this time, the universality for what most people use it for has actually managed to catch on. :)

It sounds like you've experienced either just pure luck or that you've carefully selected your components (which degrades the "universality" claim), at least for the Switch, since it doesn't fully implement PD and can short out.
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