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Why should the EU government impose restrictions on mobile charger types? I'm no fan of Apple,and frankly, I find it gratifying that someone is pushing them ar

Why should the EU government impose restrictions on mobile charger types? I'm no fan of Apple,and frankly, I find it gratifying that someone is pushing them around - something Apple routinely does to entities that aren't as powerful, but regulating chargers in the name of __insert_populist_reason__ is just way too authoritarian by the EU. Please go solve real problems

SideburnsOfDoom 7y ago
Is compatibility and reducing the amount of electric junk that needs to be produced, and that we need to carry around really "__insert_populist_reason__" to you?
aaronmdjones 7y ago
Electronic waste created because you can't use the charger from $vendor_x with a mobile device from $vendor_y -- and subsequently have no use for the charger -- is a Real Problem. This is a step toward solving that, and thus, they are solving real problems.
- toomuchtodo 7y ago
  What about mandating Qi wireless charging as well? Think of it as mandating Bluetooth; you don’t care about the hardware, just meeting the wireless interface spec. If I could ubiquitously charge my mobile devices anywhere with gear built into my surroundings, I’d likely never need future charging cables or hardware. You lose some electrical efficiency but gain a reduction in physical hardware churn.
  - aaronmdjones 7y ago
    Mandating wireless charging is still a bit of a stretch (it's not popular yet, so would be a short-term cost and manufacturing increase), but wireless charging is mentioned in the linked article as something they should look into ensuring is broadly-compatible (which should help prevent incompatibility waste when it does become ubiquitous). Also, presently anyway, wireless charging generally has power limits on the order of 5 watts, while the USB 3 PD spec allows for up to 100. A modern mobile phone pulls more than 5 watts from a wall charger, so mandating wireless charging would also result in a short-term charging time increase. They're also not as easy to transport and use anywhere (e.g. on a train with a power socket but without a tray table). Many people would find that unacceptable. My Nexus 5 had wireless charging, I had that phone for more than 3 years, and I never got to use it before it died and I upgraded to a 6P, which doesn't have it.
    - toomuchtodo 7y ago
      I’m on an iPhone 11 Pro Max with Qi chargers in my vehicles, on my night stand, and at my desk and use wireless charging almost exclusively. Likely where my bias originates for assuming wireless charging would see broad use. I would like to see clean solutions in coffee shops and on trains for Qi charging to enable the most common use cases of course.

SideburnsOfDoom 7y ago

Is compatibility and reducing the amount of electric junk that needs to be produced, and that we need to carry around really "__insert_populist_reason__" to you?

aaronmdjones 7y ago

Electronic waste created because you can't use the charger from $vendor_x with a mobile device from $vendor_y -- and subsequently have no use for the charger -- is a Real Problem. This is a step toward solving that, and thus, they are solving real problems.

toomuchtodo 7y ago
What about mandating Qi wireless charging as well? Think of it as mandating Bluetooth; you don’t care about the hardware, just meeting the wireless interface spec. If I could ubiquitously charge my mobile devices anywhere with gear built into my surroundings, I’d likely never need future charging cables or hardware. You lose some electrical efficiency but gain a reduction in physical hardware churn.
- aaronmdjones 7y ago
  Mandating wireless charging is still a bit of a stretch (it's not popular yet, so would be a short-term cost and manufacturing increase), but wireless charging is mentioned in the linked article as something they should look into ensuring is broadly-compatible (which should help prevent incompatibility waste when it does become ubiquitous). Also, presently anyway, wireless charging generally has power limits on the order of 5 watts, while the USB 3 PD spec allows for up to 100. A modern mobile phone pulls more than 5 watts from a wall charger, so mandating wireless charging would also result in a short-term charging time increase. They're also not as easy to transport and use anywhere (e.g. on a train with a power socket but without a tray table). Many people would find that unacceptable. My Nexus 5 had wireless charging, I had that phone for more than 3 years, and I never got to use it before it died and I upgraded to a 6P, which doesn't have it.
  - toomuchtodo 7y ago
    I’m on an iPhone 11 Pro Max with Qi chargers in my vehicles, on my night stand, and at my desk and use wireless charging almost exclusively. Likely where my bias originates for assuming wireless charging would see broad use. I would like to see clean solutions in coffee shops and on trains for Qi charging to enable the most common use cases of course.