

Europe calls for every phone to use the same charger - tekplayer
http://gizmorati.com/2014/03/14/europe-calls-every-phone-use-charger/

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slashdotaccount
That's some really shoddy reporting. Shame on you, "Ryan Burgess"! But what
else can we expect from a news site that rips off the name from two better
ones (Gizmodo and Technorati)?

Original sources instead of badly regurgitated crap:

[http://europa.eu/rapid/press-
release_MEMO-11-75_en.htm](http://europa.eu/rapid/press-
release_MEMO-11-75_en.htm)

[http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-
room/content/2014...](http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-
room/content/20140307IPR38122/html/MEPs-push-for-common-charger-for-all-
mobile-phones)

Quote:

> What was the process leading up to a solution?

> To tackle this issue the European Commission gave phone manufacturers an
> ultimatum in March 2009: __to voluntarily adopt a common charger or be
> subject to mandatory EU legislation __. As a result in June 2009, Europe 's
> major mobile phone manufacturers agreed in close co-operation with the
> Commission services to adopt a common charger for data-enabled mobile phones
> sold in the EU. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) - signed by 14
> manufacturers - committed the industry to provide charger compatibility. In
> the course of 2011, European consumers will be able to purchase a standard
> mobile phone charger for all data-enabled phones - including smartphones -
> sold in the 27 EU Member States.

So everyone except one manufacturer standardised on Micro USB back in 2009.
Apple wouldn't play ball, so in order to compel them the directive finally had
to be established.

------
thyrsus
My son's iPhone physically (and probably electrically) fits a USB, but the
phone requires that it receive some Apple only signal from the charger, or it
refuses to charge. It's one of the reasons his phone is often dead. The
regulators need to kill this kind of hostile behavior.

------
oftenwrong
Hopefully they will standardize on something free and open.

------
tjaerv
"It would seem the charger of choice would be the Micro-USB as of now, though
who knows what the next big thing will be."

Forcing everyone to use a government-sanctioned standard is a good way to
prevent the next big thing from happening and succeeding.

~~~
sqrt17
Yes, every electricity utility company should mandate its own electric plug,
and limit you to their model of matching TV and washing machine. Don't ever
think of taking your washing machine with you when you move to another state.

Honestly? MicroUSB has been the next big thing. Before, you had to toss out
your charger when your phone broke; now you can keep it and don't need to
shell out for an extra charger if you have a perfectly servicable one.

Of course, Apple products are special, so you're only good if you buy this:
[http://store.apple.com/de/product/MD820ZM/A/lightning-auf-
mi...](http://store.apple.com/de/product/MD820ZM/A/lightning-auf-micro-usb-
adapter?fnode=3c) (Does this count as the next big thing?)

~~~
felipeerias
The main reason why Apple's solution is special is because it is intended to
charge both phones and tablets.

The only real problem with it is that it is proprietary and not standard.
Other than that, it is clearly superior to MicroUSB.

------
coherentpony
I feel like this comic is very appropriate:
[https://xkcd.com/927/](https://xkcd.com/927/)

~~~
kiiski
Not really. They're not creating a new standard, but forcing everyone to use
the same one; whether it's the best one or not.

~~~
sentenza
I'd like to add that from the perspective of the EU, and I'd say also from the
perspective of most citizens, it is irrelevant which charger standard is
better.

In the bigger picture, it is much more important that there be only one type
of charger, standardized in form and function.

Sometimes, being less of a hassle counterbalances technical shortcomings.

If the average EU citizen is anything like me, somewhere in their living space
you can find two bins: One for an assortment of non-interchangable (and in
part obsolete) chargers and one for broken headphones.

~~~
wlievens
I can confirm the bin thing.

------
dhjrnrj
Finally. I hope this law will be is US, too

------
throwwit
Will this commoditize the charger market to the point of more knockoffs?

------
OneOneOneOne
This won't reduce waste unless chargers are sold separately.

------
jdc2172
Micro USB isn't already a de facto standard?

~~~
svenkatesh
Ask Apple.

~~~
thedrbrian
Like the 30 pin before it lightning is their de facto standard. Which is nice
because the cable I got with my air fits my iPhone and will fit my air 3
electric lightness too.

------
yss
so cool

------
chrisfarms
Finally someone really tackling the big issues of today.

With the help of the state, maybe we can stop headphones from falling out of
our ears and put a stop to unopenable plastic packaging!

~~

This seems pretty unenforceable, and Micro-USB seems to be taking over anyway.

