
Ever Plugged a USB in Wrong? (2019) - Tomte
https://www.npr.org/2019/06/21/734451600/ever-plugged-a-usb-in-wrong-of-course-you-have-heres-why?t=1561497376866
======
tzs
Back in the early '90s, when 100 MB was a big hard drive, we were doing a
project for a company that had access to some early, very hard to get, units
of a 1 GB drive that IBM was going to be introducing later that year.

I somehow managed to fry one by plugging in the power connector upside down.
This should be possible, as it used the 4-pin connector from the middle of the
top row here [1]. That and its mate are not symmetrical and are made of a
pretty stiff plastic.

When I told the company we were doing the project from that I had fried one of
the pretty much irreplaceable test drives I expected them to be very upset.

Instead, their owner laughed and admitted that he had also fried two of them
that way.

Even better, his contacts inside IBM told him that something like 30% of the
drives were failing testing during manufacturing, and that had been traced to
IBM testers plugging in the power connector upside down and frying the drive!

It turned out that for some unfathomable reason they were using a power socket
on the drive that had a very flexible plastic hood. It turned out that the
force needed to plug in the keyed connector backwards, bending the hood out of
the way, was not much more than the normal force to plug the thing in the
right way because the plastic was so flexible.

[1]
[http://www.playtool.com/pages/psuconnectors/connectors.html](http://www.playtool.com/pages/psuconnectors/connectors.html)

------
chkaloon
It doesn't really address why one plugs it in wrong more than 50% of the time.
John Siracusa had a great analysis on this on the ATP podcast a few months
ago: Even if you have it in the correct orientation the first try, it
inevitably catches a bit and you think you've done it wrong. You don't want to
break anything, so you flip it to try the other way. That is now the wrong way
and won't fit at all. So you flip it again and it goes in. So, 3 tries if you
had it right the first time, 2 tries if you had it wrong the first time.

~~~
ryall
My (non-technical) friend solved this ten years ago: "holes up"

~~~
Jaruzel
Go through your drawer of USB cables. You'll see that a lot of Type-A
connectors now have the holes on _both_ sides!

~~~
djmips
There are several ways to tell visually which way it goes. Holes up and the
fat plastic part (look into the connector on the cable) down. On top of that
there is often a USB logo on the 'top'. Finally you can remember. heheh. With
a bit of effort I've managed to get my USB plugging in to be about 90%
accurate but I'm still caught out by that factor they mention in the OP - when
it catches, you doubt and reverse.

------
iamaelephant
The article addresses the reason it was made non-reversible (cost) but does
not address why the plug was made rectangular, which gives it no visual or
tactile feedback for orientation. HDMI for example is non-reversible but it's
obvious (more or less) which way to insert it.

The only reference in the article is,

> The Intel team led by Bhatt anticipated the user frustration and opted for a
> rectangular design and a 50-50 chance to plug it in correctly, versus a
> round connector with less room for error.

Which sounds like a post-hoc rationalisation for a bad design to me. I find it
hard to believe they did this intentionally.

~~~
jandrese
That sounds more like "Well, it's not as bad as PS2 connector at least."

The worst part is that they already had a good example of a connector you
couldn't plug in backwards, was sturdy, hot-pluggable, and could easily
accommodate the number of pins they needed: The Gameboy Link Cable.

~~~
vinay427
PS/2 seems entirely rotationally ambiguous without looking at the pins, or at
least seemed so to the younger version of me. It still stands out as the most
painful part of computing during my childhood.

~~~
mynegation
PS/2 male connectors have a set of grooves and rotationally asymmetrical rim.
I had always been able to plug them in blind on the first try.

~~~
reaperducer
And the "top" is usually flat so you can put your thumb on it and push in.

------
stinos
_you go to plug in your thumb drive. You try once. Failure ensues. Metal
clashes with metal. Humiliated and discouraged, you flip it and try again.
Failure, again! How could this be possible?_

I hoped the article would explain also why the above happens, not just why the
design decision which leads to the above was made.

Although I think it's not just the shape, but a combination with other things.
Thingking in the direction of: most ports are all black and/or hard to reach
so from a distance you just don't see where exactly it will fit so you just
try and don't get a proper match. I.e. I never ever have this problem when
pluggin into a socket which is right before my eyes and/or e.g. has the
central plastic piece in white since then you can clearly see how to match
them. Further ideas?

~~~
astine
" _I hoped the article would explain also why the above happens_ "

If I had to guess, I'd suspect that it's because there are a couple of ways to
get it wrong when plugging in a USB drive or cable. You can get the
orientation wrong but you can also accidentally put it in at a slight angle
and have it catch. In the later case, just slightly adjusting your approach
would get it in, but because you know that there is a chance of you having got
the orientation wrong, you automatically assume that that was what happened
and flip the orientation instead and end up flipping it back when you realize
you were right the first time.

I suspect that the reason we make that assumption, that we got the orientation
wrong and not the angle, is that that's actually what happens the majority of
the time when we fail to insert a USB connector. We discount the angle problem
because it happens so infrequently, and when it does happen we just get the
impression that we got the orientation wrong, twice, which is something that
sticks with us. Hence, the sense that there is a paradox about the orientation
of USB connectors.

------
wffurr
RJ-45 and USB ports are exactly the same width. If you plug in a USB port
blindly, you can feel it make contact with the sides of an RJ-45 port.

I found this out trying to fix someone's printer. I even un- and re-plugged
the cable and it still wasn't detected. It wasn't until I actually looked at
the back panel that I noticed the printer's USB cable was plugged into an
RJ-45 network jack.

~~~
sxcurry
I also discovered this while trying to plug my telescope's camera USB cable
into my PC in the total darkness, and wondering why the camera didn't work.

------
PaulHoule
(1) I remember the time I mashed a USB plug into an e-SATA socket and thought
I did something horribly wrong, but then I heard the beep saying that the
computer recognized the device and I looked it up and found out you really can
mash a USB plug into an e-SATA socket and have it work.

(2) USB-C eliminates the problem of putting the cable in upside down, but it
adds the problem that there are different kinds of USB-C cable, you might pick
the wrong one, get a fake, etc. It's a tough problem to make one cable that
can "do everything" but not make the cable to plug your mouse in crazy
expensive.

(3) I've seen quite a few devices (PCs and tablets) where the Type-C
connectors seem to be floppy and not well connect to the circuit board. I
haven't had one outright fail, but I think it's just a matter of time.

~~~
jbarberu
I had a Nexus 5X for a few years and the USB C port started progressively
giving out at around 8 months. I had to lay it down flat find a position where
it would charge and hope no gust of wind would hit it. Forget charging it
while using it for navigation.

I like the idea of USB C, but actual my experience with it makes me happy to
currently be on a micro. You just learn which way the plug goes. USB A on the
other hand, that's trickier...

~~~
stevenwoo
If I am only charging and not using the cable for data, I have started to rely
on imitation Mag safe type plugs for phones and other portables. Since the
lifespan on both USB-A and USB-C is limited, hope to make stuff useable until
the battery needs to be replaced (if possible) instead of a mechanical failure
of the port itself or wearing down the contacts too much for use - my 2012
Macbook pro USB ports are super loose and only work if I plug the cable in
just right for this reason I assume.

~~~
fwip
They make 20-pin magnetic adapters now that can carry data as well as power.
Last I checked they were like $30 each.

------
erikw
One cool trick: the USB standard [0] dictates that USB A type ports should be
oriented "toward the host". On a computer, this means that the thick part of
the plug should be facing toward the top surface motherboard. As long as you
start in this position, you've got a good change of getting it in correctly on
the first try, assuming you aren't blindly feeling and end up putting it in an
RJ45 or HDMI port.

[0]
[https://www.phoenixcontact.com/assets/downloads_ed/global/we...](https://www.phoenixcontact.com/assets/downloads_ed/global/web_dwl_technical_info/USB.pdf)

~~~
lonelappde
I don't know which way all my motherboards are oriented. Opening the case
isn't easy.

~~~
leetcrew
motherboards are almost always going to be mounted on the right side of a
tower (facing left) or facing up in a sff/nuc/laptop. if all else fails, look
at the io shield. the side where all the ports line up is where the io ports
are attached to the motherboard.

------
fnord77
> A USB that could plug in correctly both ways would have required double the
> wires and circuits, which would have then doubled the cost.

I don't think this is quite true. You wouldn't need double the wires.

~~~
GeorgeTirebiter
That's correct. In fact, if everything were AC coupled (signals and power) it
would be easy to reverse 180 degrees. The original USB was to replace
kbd/mouse 'PS2' connectors, and some audio devices - the original maxed out at
12 Mb/s raw. Given the mishmash of connectors at the time, USB even with 50%
insertion rate success was pretty darn good. It seems much less good in
hindsight. One does have to wonder why they didn't try to fix this when they
went USB-C -- they did only half the job.

~~~
ry4nolson
which part didn't USB-C fix?

~~~
gatesphere
Still gotta line it up.

~~~
lsllc
And push it all the way in until it clicks home

------
rhn_mk1
I still prefer USB-A fitting on the third try over USB-C, which may fit on the
first try, but then mysteriously fails to work properly half of the time due
to factors like badly designed cables or worn solder joints on some of the
"reversible" pins.

------
ihuman
> The Intel team led by Bhatt anticipated the user frustration and opted for a
> rectangular design and a 50-50 chance to plug it in correctly, versus a
> round connector with less room for error.

Why not a shape that can't be rotated, like Displayport or HDMI?

~~~
peglasaurus
Both of those came after USB 1, yes? So they would have that history _behind_
them. A precursor can't be criticised for laying the foundation for better
descendants.

Later usb dont have that defense. Those micro usb abominations have no excuse.
They are just waiting to break and become landfill.

~~~
mikestew
Let me tell you as someone that was there, man, when USB came out. Everything
else that plugged into my computer had a non-symmetrical shape. Serial ports,
VGA, DVI, SCSI, even PS/2 which had a flat spot that told which way was up.

Now imagine someone showed me a new connector that _looks_ like it could go
either way, but only one way would work. They had a clean slate, and that's
what they came up with? From my perspective at the time, that was the dumbest
fucking thing I'd seen in a long while.

~~~
mumblemumble
> Everything else that plugged into my computer had a non-symmetrical shape.
> Serial ports, VGA, DVI, SCSI, even PS/2

Heck, even USB B-type connectors.

~~~
zro
I've only ever seen female B connectors on peripherals. Do they make
motherboards that have them?

~~~
ZiiS
Raspberry Pi?

~~~
mumblemumble
The type B port is for connecting the Pi as a peripheral. It has separate type
A ports for connecting peripherals to it.

------
PAGAN_WIZARD
I feel like I am the only person who can plug one in correctly the first try
>90% of the time. The trick is simple, look at the damn connector first.

~~~
Brave-Steak
Okay, and what’s your trick for knowing which way around the plug is?

Edit: Whoops, meant port.

~~~
kzrdude
It has a symbol printed on the side that's "up".

~~~
pwinnski
People keep saying this, but I have at least a half-dozen (admittedly cheap)
USB cables with no symbol or logo printed on them at all.

~~~
kzrdude
Oh that's no good. Time to grab a pocket knife and make some marks. :)

------
ivanmaeder
Every device I've come across has it set up so that the plastic part should be
inserted closest to the floor (horizontal plugs), or closest to the centre of
gravity of the device (vertical plugs).

I don't know if this is specced—otherwise it's very interesting that all the
manufacturers agreed to this kind of arrangement.

~~~
ivanmaeder
Actually I just found this:

[https://superuser.com/a/1260944/83295](https://superuser.com/a/1260944/83295)

------
bitwize
USB-A plugs have spin 2/3.

~~~
jzl
Proof That USB Cables Exist In a 4-Dimensional Space: [http://www.smbc-
comics.com/?id=2388](http://www.smbc-comics.com/?id=2388)

------
zzzeek
> A USB that could plug in correctly both ways would have required double the
> wires and circuits, which would have then doubled the cost.

why couldn't they have used a notch / tab like other connectors do? not
durable enough?

~~~
kuon
I'm pretty sure some Apple USB had a notch. But I think it wasn't to help to
plug it in, I think it was to ensure it was directly plugged into the computer
without using a cable extension. But I don't remember well, it's only
speculations.

~~~
lonelappde
You got it backwards. The notch was for compatibility with the extension
cable, which had a lug because USB extension cables are not allowed by the
spec (too much distance for the signal), so the lug prevented you from using
the extension cable with a device that might fail.

~~~
lilyball
Also this way you can't plug two extension cables into each other, because the
cable didn't have the notch, only the lug.

------
wizzwizz4
Text-only link, for those who haven't got a redirect rule:
[https://text.npr.org/s.php?sId=734451600](https://text.npr.org/s.php?sId=734451600)

------
kawfey
I've found that if you try to plug a USB male into a USB 3.0 jack backwards,
you can wedge the male connector substrate under the female connector
substrate, causing it's connectors to short circuit with the housing, blowing
a polyfuse that shuts the PC down abruptly. The problem is the substrate on
the female connectors isn't adhered to the wall of the connector, and can bend
far enough to touch the opposite wall and blow.

I'm surprised there's not more stories like this lately.

~~~
gruez
>I'm surprised there's not more stories like this lately.

Probably because what you describe requires an unusually high amount of force
to be applied to the connector, causing most people to stop before damage is
done.

------
modzu
i thought it was because of usb superposition:

[https://m.imgur.com/gallery/kYGTLjc](https://m.imgur.com/gallery/kYGTLjc)

------
lesquivemeau
This "Decline and visit plain text site" button is by far the best
functionnality that they could've added

------
lilyball
> _In fact, Bhatt has not made a single penny from his USB design, because
> Intel owns the patent._

Does Intel not award patent bonuses? I think they're finally being phased out
but historically big tech companies have given bonuses to employees who are
awarded a patent.

------
Moeg
Any insights as to why we don't have more connectors in a round form factor,
such as headphone jack?

------
outside1234
For what it's worth, I think this is the thing that USB-C has really gotten
right: it works both ways.

~~~
DannyB2
And...

for a USB-C to USB-C cable, you can use either end of the cable!

Grab one end of the cable, either end, and it plugs in (flipped either way).

You can plug a phone into a laptop. You can make either one of them be the
"host" and you can control which one will charge the other one, or that no
charging will occur at all. (At least with Android and a Pixelbook.)

~~~
woodrowbarlow
this is an anti-feature in my eyes. there's no way to predict what will happen
when you connect two host-capable devices.

~~~
DannyB2
With a Pixelbook and Android phone, it is completely predictable.

You choose which does what using UI controls on each device.

You can specify whether this device will provide charge to the other device.
Whether this device will share files with the other device. And the other
device can specify that it will be charged, and will receive files.

There is no guesswork about it. No mystery.

------
8bitsrule
And all that was ever needed was a colored bar on the outside of the plug and
the jack.

------
thanatropism
My experience with Apple laptop, iPhone, etc. plugs that are reversible is
that you inevitably end up twisting the cord to a point where its rubbery
shell breaks. That never happens with USB, where the minimal viable twist is
"twice over" which the outer material doesn't accept, making it untwist on the
other end.

~~~
chaosite
That really isn't my experience. Plugs break usually because they're pulled,
for example from using the device while it's plugged in to charge. I'm not
talking about violent pulls from a phone falling of the desk, just the
stresses, bends and twists of normal usage.

This happens eventually on all types of cables, USB, Apple branded cables,
earphone cables, everything. Higher quality cables last for longer, even much
longer, but not forever.

~~~
thanatropism
But earphone cables rotate in place. So do the thicker kind of ordinary audio
cable.

USB cables don't rotate in place, but you have to exert a lot more effort to
twist them twice (so they plug in). Reversible cables have a lower barrier to
twisting.

(I'm repeating myself a little, but that's because what I had just written
sounds confusing in re-reading.)

------
slowhand09
(1) I plug them in correctly one time.

(2) I mark the top side outline of the USB symbol with a white paint marker.

(3) ...

(4) Profit!

~~~
lonelappde
Why is 2 after 1? It would help 1 succeed.

------
carapace
Apple solved this for all time with their magnetic orientation-agnostic
connectors, and then didn't let the rest of the world have it. Vantablack
bastards!

~~~
seandougall
The last thing I would want is a peripheral whose data connection was on a
MagSafe connector. It’s specifically designed to be able to disconnect easily
by accident.

------
Ohn0
Does the article actually explain WHY?

~~~
drivingmenuts
Yes. It would have required double the wires and circuits, increasing the
expense of the cable. That would have made it a difficult sell to computer
manufacturers.

Not quite sure I follow that argument, but I'm not a hardware person. Nor am I
looking to be one.

~~~
HeXetic
Doesn't explain why it wasn't made a trapezoid shape like many common
connectors (serial, parallel, VGA, SCSI) of the time were.

------
leokennis
The part of the plug with the usb logo (the wire thing splitting in three)
goes on top.

~~~
sorokod
Got a desktop in a tower case, USB connectors on the back plate( | | ) have no
"top"

~~~
floren
The "top" is the side furthest from the motherboard.

~~~
sorokod
Interesting, is this a universal thing?

~~~
compiler-guy
It was the plan, and the most common result. But no, it isn't universal. For
one, not all usb cables even include a logo or marking for the top of the
cable.

~~~
falcolas
You can, with a cable, rotate it another 90 degrees and visually identify the
top.

