6 ms·

Are there cheap devices that measure USB cables? So that user plugs the cable into it (both ends) and it will list what protocols/bandwidth does it support. And

by rini17 5y ago

Are there cheap devices that measure USB cables? So that user plugs the cable into it (both ends) and it will list what protocols/bandwidth does it support. And electrical resistance of course.

jerf 5y ago
How much information about the cable is exposed to a computer's interface, even if nothing is plugged in on the other side? Could this just be a computer program, albeit one that may only work with certain controllers?
Dagonfly 5y ago
https://www.chargerlab.com/category/power-z/ https://www.chargerlab.com/category/power-z/ These read out the e-marker and tell you the supported power delivery and USB data speeds. The irony that their product comparison table has 30+ rows should not be missed!
wsinks 5y ago
Wow, the tool that I didn't realize I wanted. Let me know if you find one. I don't have an inexpensive one.
_Microft 5y ago
Maybe with an attached labelling machine to print the results in a way that could easily be affixed to the cable? ;) Oh, and please with an integrated wirecutter that automatically destroys cables if their results are too bad?
- pantalaimon 5y ago
  Heh I had a cursed micro-USB cable at the office that only carried power, no data - had fun debugging why my board did not work.
  - vel0city 5y ago
    Sometimes those are useful. I've got a Canon camera which can charge by MicroUSB, but if it detects any data it doesn't engage the charger and does data only. So having a power only cable is the only way to charge it without taking the battery out and putting that on a charger.
  - ectopod 5y ago
    My micro-USB charging cable is worse than that. It appears to transfer data but it always flips a few bits. Quite surprisingly, no part of the protocol stack catches this. The cable quietly delivers slightly broken files.
    - xsmasher 5y ago
      I've seen a lot that are JUST good enough for android debugger to connect, but then drop as soon as data is sent.
  - rini17 5y ago
    These charge-only cables are supplied as standard with cheap chargers.
  - xsmasher 5y ago
    It seems that half of the micro-USB cables I get only work for charging, not for data. When I find one that does reliably connect I label it and then hide it where even I can't find it.
    - Dylan16807 5y ago
      A 5-pack of reasonable quality micro-USB cables is less than $10, FYI.
  - PostThisTooFast 5y ago
    All micro-USB cables are cursed shit.
unwind 5y ago
That's a great idea, really! I guess it is not completely trivial though, and would probably end up costing a fair bit due to the max bandwidth etc. Just measuring resistance accurately enough for short cables for all conductors sounds hard.
- rini17 5y ago
  In ideal world it would be part of spec of USB host that it can test cable and report to user. That would not be expensive at all. Resistance is most important for power connection. To determine if voltage drop is acceptable does not need high accuracy.
chmod775 5y ago
I haven't had dealings with these new USB cables yet. Can anyone enlighten me what is happening here? In older USB cables you used to have four, five, or nine pins that were directly connected via copper wire to the pins on the other end. With the exception of charging-only cables that didn't connect the data pins. Is the issue just that the new cables tend to only connect a subset of the 24 USB-C pins?
- georgyo 5y ago
  USB-C cables can have all sorts of logic embedded in the cable, including inline resistors to signal capabilities. However, when it comes to power delivery. For both old style USB and newer USB-C, the thickness of the copper matters for how much amps the wire can carry. IE apple has a 30W charger that comes with a different thickness than their 61W charger. And using the 30W cable with the 61W charger. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201700#usbc https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201700#usbc > For the best charging experience, you should use the USB-C charge cable that comes with your Mac notebook. If you use a higher wattage USB-C cable, your Mac will still charge normally. USB-C cables rated for 29W or 30W will work with any USB-C power adapter, but won't provide enough power when connected to a power adapter that is more than 61W, such as the 96W USB-C Power Adapter. The best part is that the cables look nearly identical with some very small print on the cable that says they are different.
  - consp 5y ago
    As a solution by anecdote: My (by now) ancient laptop simply won't charge (or boot if cold) if the wattage of the psu is insufficient. This will easily solve that problem as you find out when the battery runs out of juice. I noticed this as it originally came with a 45 watt charger but after a processor upgrade the required power would be at least 60 watt. Note that it will charge the battery when off with any charger, it is just slower.
  - crispyambulance 5y ago
    > The best part is that the cables look nearly identical with some very small print on the cable that says they are different. If you're lucky, that is. One would think that after nearly 2 decades of USB cable confusion the standards bodies and vendors would make an effort to make the cable identification easy, but no. I suspect it's because they actually want consumers to end up buying lots cables and the churn it causes.
numpad0 5y ago
kinda https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B07Y8BPVV4 https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B07Y8BPVV4

by rini17 5y ago

Are there cheap devices that measure USB cables? So that user plugs the cable into it (both ends) and it will list what protocols/bandwidth does it support. And electrical resistance of course.

jerf 5y ago

How much information about the cable is exposed to a computer's interface, even if nothing is plugged in on the other side? Could this just be a computer program, albeit one that may only work with certain controllers?

Dagonfly 5y ago

https://www.chargerlab.com/category/power-z/ https://www.chargerlab.com/category/power-z/ These read out the e-marker and tell you the supported power delivery and USB data speeds. The irony that their product comparison table has 30+ rows should not be missed!

wsinks 5y ago

Wow, the tool that I didn't realize I wanted. Let me know if you find one. I don't have an inexpensive one.

_Microft 5y ago

Maybe with an attached labelling machine to print the results in a way that could easily be affixed to the cable? ;) Oh, and please with an integrated wirecutter that automatically destroys cables if their results are too bad?

pantalaimon 5y ago
Heh I had a cursed micro-USB cable at the office that only carried power, no data - had fun debugging why my board did not work.
- vel0city 5y ago
  Sometimes those are useful. I've got a Canon camera which can charge by MicroUSB, but if it detects any data it doesn't engage the charger and does data only. So having a power only cable is the only way to charge it without taking the battery out and putting that on a charger.
- ectopod 5y ago
  My micro-USB charging cable is worse than that. It appears to transfer data but it always flips a few bits. Quite surprisingly, no part of the protocol stack catches this. The cable quietly delivers slightly broken files.
  - xsmasher 5y ago
    I've seen a lot that are JUST good enough for android debugger to connect, but then drop as soon as data is sent.
- rini17 5y ago
  These charge-only cables are supplied as standard with cheap chargers.
- xsmasher 5y ago
  It seems that half of the micro-USB cables I get only work for charging, not for data. When I find one that does reliably connect I label it and then hide it where even I can't find it.
  - Dylan16807 5y ago
    A 5-pack of reasonable quality micro-USB cables is less than $10, FYI.
- PostThisTooFast 5y ago
  All micro-USB cables are cursed shit.

unwind 5y ago

That's a great idea, really! I guess it is not completely trivial though, and would probably end up costing a fair bit due to the max bandwidth etc. Just measuring resistance accurately enough for short cables for all conductors sounds hard.

rini17 5y ago
In ideal world it would be part of spec of USB host that it can test cable and report to user. That would not be expensive at all. Resistance is most important for power connection. To determine if voltage drop is acceptable does not need high accuracy.

chmod775 5y ago

I haven't had dealings with these new USB cables yet. Can anyone enlighten me what is happening here? In older USB cables you used to have four, five, or nine pins that were directly connected via copper wire to the pins on the other end. With the exception of charging-only cables that didn't connect the data pins. Is the issue just that the new cables tend to only connect a subset of the 24 USB-C pins?

georgyo 5y ago
USB-C cables can have all sorts of logic embedded in the cable, including inline resistors to signal capabilities. However, when it comes to power delivery. For both old style USB and newer USB-C, the thickness of the copper matters for how much amps the wire can carry. IE apple has a 30W charger that comes with a different thickness than their 61W charger. And using the 30W cable with the 61W charger. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201700#usbc https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201700#usbc > For the best charging experience, you should use the USB-C charge cable that comes with your Mac notebook. If you use a higher wattage USB-C cable, your Mac will still charge normally. USB-C cables rated for 29W or 30W will work with any USB-C power adapter, but won't provide enough power when connected to a power adapter that is more than 61W, such as the 96W USB-C Power Adapter. The best part is that the cables look nearly identical with some very small print on the cable that says they are different.
- consp 5y ago
  As a solution by anecdote: My (by now) ancient laptop simply won't charge (or boot if cold) if the wattage of the psu is insufficient. This will easily solve that problem as you find out when the battery runs out of juice. I noticed this as it originally came with a 45 watt charger but after a processor upgrade the required power would be at least 60 watt. Note that it will charge the battery when off with any charger, it is just slower.
- crispyambulance 5y ago
  > The best part is that the cables look nearly identical with some very small print on the cable that says they are different. If you're lucky, that is. One would think that after nearly 2 decades of USB cable confusion the standards bodies and vendors would make an effort to make the cable identification easy, but no. I suspect it's because they actually want consumers to end up buying lots cables and the churn it causes.

numpad0 5y ago

kinda https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B07Y8BPVV4 https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B07Y8BPVV4