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> But the cables should be marked clearly... How about by using different ports? Imagine if instead of playing whack a mole with 4 usb-c ports on my laptop, 2

> But the cables should be marked clearly... How about by using different ports? Imagine if instead of playing whack a mole with 4 usb-c ports on my laptop, 2 usb c ports on my monitor and a bag of cables, I could plug a cable that fits into the port it fits into?

masklinn 5y ago
> How about by using different ports? That would just be worse: the port being backwards compatible is a feature, being able to plug a 5Gbps device into a 20G-capable-port is a good thing, so is being able to plug a self-powered device into a PD-capable port. The issue is the difficulty of matching the cable with the device (and port) to ensure the upper bounds match. Obviously you could get the highest-rated cables but there are tradeoffs in length and flexibility, using a 2x2 PD 3.1 cable to plug in a keyboard is just a waste of money and simply results in lower convenience (as the 2x2 PD 3.1 cable will be shorter and more rigid than a USB 2.0 low-power cable). That could be an argument for "different ports" being backwards-compatible "poka-yoke" (mistake-proofing) ports, but historically these have had really shitty design (e.g. m.2 tabs are plain misdesigned) and they would have required significantly increasing the size of the plugs to make room for the hardware features.
- maccard 5y ago
  > That would just be worse I disagree. In my cable/charger box I have 4 USB-c chargers with 4 USB-c cables, and they're not interchangeable for all intents and purposes. I've ended up sharpieing what device they belong to rather than reading the specs printed on the back of the charger, because otherwise I end up trickle charging devices (and thankfully I don't use a USB c dock, or I would be in all sorts of hurt. > The issue is the difficulty of matching the cable with the device (and port) to ensure the upper bounds match. If that were the only problem then sure I would agree that things are worse, however in the real world manufacturers ship both devices and cables that are missing features, underperform, and are labelled as "USB 3"
  - nicoburns 5y ago
    A legal mandate that they had to be different colours where be the best way I think.
    - Forgeties79 5y ago
      Works well for USB3.0 vs. 2.0/1.0 that’s for sure. Legally mandated I’m not sure, but yeah, colors for sure.
      - nicoburns 5y ago
        Yeah, I was imagining more like trademark law or something rather anything usb-specific.

masklinn 5y ago

> How about by using different ports? That would just be worse: the port being backwards compatible is a feature, being able to plug a 5Gbps device into a 20G-capable-port is a good thing, so is being able to plug a self-powered device into a PD-capable port. The issue is the difficulty of matching the cable with the device (and port) to ensure the upper bounds match. Obviously you could get the highest-rated cables but there are tradeoffs in length and flexibility, using a 2x2 PD 3.1 cable to plug in a keyboard is just a waste of money and simply results in lower convenience (as the 2x2 PD 3.1 cable will be shorter and more rigid than a USB 2.0 low-power cable). That could be an argument for "different ports" being backwards-compatible "poka-yoke" (mistake-proofing) ports, but historically these have had really shitty design (e.g. m.2 tabs are plain misdesigned) and they would have required significantly increasing the size of the plugs to make room for the hardware features.

maccard 5y ago
> That would just be worse I disagree. In my cable/charger box I have 4 USB-c chargers with 4 USB-c cables, and they're not interchangeable for all intents and purposes. I've ended up sharpieing what device they belong to rather than reading the specs printed on the back of the charger, because otherwise I end up trickle charging devices (and thankfully I don't use a USB c dock, or I would be in all sorts of hurt. > The issue is the difficulty of matching the cable with the device (and port) to ensure the upper bounds match. If that were the only problem then sure I would agree that things are worse, however in the real world manufacturers ship both devices and cables that are missing features, underperform, and are labelled as "USB 3"
- nicoburns 5y ago
  A legal mandate that they had to be different colours where be the best way I think.
  - Forgeties79 5y ago
    Works well for USB3.0 vs. 2.0/1.0 that’s for sure. Legally mandated I’m not sure, but yeah, colors for sure.
    - nicoburns 5y ago
      Yeah, I was imagining more like trademark law or something rather anything usb-specific.