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posted by janrinok on Wednesday June 08 2022, @04:31AM   Printer-friendly
from the plugged-in-like-USB dept.

USB-C to be mandatory for phones sold in the EU by autumn 2024

The EU have agreed legislation, alternate link, forcing all future smartphones sold in the EU — including Apple's iPhone — be equipped with USB-C port for wired charging by autumn 2024. The rule will also apply to other electronic devices including tablets, digital cameras, headphones, handheld video game consoles, and e-readers. Laptops will have to comply with the rule at a later date.

The legislation still needs to be approved by the EU Parliament and Council later this year, but this appears to be a formality. In a press release, the European Parliament stated clearly that the law will be in place "by autumn 2024." By this date, all devices covered by the law and sold in the EU will have to use USB-C for wired charging.

EU Agrees Single Mobile Charging Port in Blow to Apple

EU agrees single mobile charging port in blow to Apple:

Apple (AAPL.O) will have to change the connector on iPhones sold in Europe by 2024 after EU countries and lawmakers agreed on Tuesday to a single mobile charging port for mobile phones, tablets and cameras in a world first.

The political intervention, which the European Commission said would make life easier for consumers and save them money, came after companies failed to reach a common solution.

Brussels has been pushing for a single mobile charging port for more than a decade, prompted by complaints from iPhone and Android users about having to switch to different chargers for their devices.

iPhones are charged from a Lightning cable, while Android-based devices use USB-C connectors.

Half the chargers sold with mobile phones in 2018 had a USB micro-B connector, while 29% had a USB-C connector and 21% a Lightning connector, according to a 2019 Commission study.

"By autumn 2024, USB Type-C will become the common charging port for all mobile phones, tablets and cameras in the EU," the European Parliament said in a statement.

EU industry chief Thierry Breton said the deal would save around 250 million euros ($267 million) for consumers.

"It will also allow new technologies such as wireless charging to emerge and to mature without letting innovation become a source of market fragmentation and consumer inconvenience," he said.


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  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Friday June 10 2022, @12:11PM

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Friday June 10 2022, @12:11PM (#1252150) Journal
    I guess my thinking is threefold. First, that waste and inefficiency just isn't government's job to fix. Second, that the goal is vague and unaccountable enough to allow for all kinds of shenanigans. My take is that a fair amount of the EU's efforts in standards making and efficiency improvements really are just protectionism for EU businesses. Finally, what kind of business can comply with these evergrowing regulations? A large business. There are large economies of scale to regulatory compliance encouraging the sort of oligopoly formation and centralization we see in the EU.