3 ms·

I once had a large plastic tub, full of SCSI cables, there were around 10 kinds of connectors, in both male and female configurations and about 10 different kin

by todd8 10y ago

I once had a large plastic tub, full of SCSI cables, there were around 10 kinds of connectors, in both male and female configurations and about 10 different kinds of cables. Disk drives would have one kind of connector and often computers would have a different style connector necessitating lots of A to B connection issues. And the cables were expensive, often over $100. It was an absolute mess. It seems that the USB-C connector, finally, represents a small, robust, easy to use connector that is capable of high data bandwidths. It wouldn't make anything any better to have different connectors and different cables for charging, mice, keyboards, disk drives, monitors, etc. I just hope that I'll be able to get by with a handful of different lengths of the highest end cables (e.g. the thunderbolt 3) and use them for everything.

jzl 10y ago
Read the article. That's crux of the complaint -- that there isn't just one type of cable for USB-C. Heck, the USB-C power cable that comes with the the new MBPs can only do power and USB2 data. See for yourself: http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MLL82AM/A/usb-c-charge-cable-2-m?fnode=8b http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MLL82AM/A/usb-c-charge-cab...
- todd8 10y ago
  Yes, maybe I wasn't clear. The USB-C connectors look like they will simplify the end points so that's an improvement. We should need fewer cables. I'm hoping that by buying the more capable cables (the Thunderbolt 3 versions) that I will be able to use them on all of my devices, even the ones that don't require Thunderbolt 3 like my 12" MB where I only use the USB-C connector for charging, USB3, and sometimes an external monitor (not at Thunderbolt 3 speed).
  - jay_kyburz 10y ago
    Yeah but, I think the point is you will never be able to do this. There is no "ultimate" USB C cable that can just do everything. You have to use the cable that ships with your device, or risk, not only getting the correct performance, but actually damaging your hardware.
  - compuguy 10y ago
    The only problem is that TB3 cables seem to be length limited, compared to USB PD cables.

by todd8 10y ago

jzl 10y ago

Read the article. That's crux of the complaint -- that there isn't just one type of cable for USB-C. Heck, the USB-C power cable that comes with the the new MBPs can only do power and USB2 data. See for yourself: http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MLL82AM/A/usb-c-charge-cable-2-m?fnode=8b http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MLL82AM/A/usb-c-charge-cab...

todd8 10y ago
Yes, maybe I wasn't clear. The USB-C connectors look like they will simplify the end points so that's an improvement. We should need fewer cables. I'm hoping that by buying the more capable cables (the Thunderbolt 3 versions) that I will be able to use them on all of my devices, even the ones that don't require Thunderbolt 3 like my 12" MB where I only use the USB-C connector for charging, USB3, and sometimes an external monitor (not at Thunderbolt 3 speed).
- jay_kyburz 10y ago
  Yeah but, I think the point is you will never be able to do this. There is no "ultimate" USB C cable that can just do everything. You have to use the cable that ships with your device, or risk, not only getting the correct performance, but actually damaging your hardware.
- compuguy 10y ago
  The only problem is that TB3 cables seem to be length limited, compared to USB PD cables.