
Universal USB-C charging: How the dream is coming true - michaelrkn
http://www.pcworld.com/article/3170184/laptop-accessories/universal-usb-c-charging-how-the-dream-is-coming-true.html
======
ProfessorLayton
I was pretty peeved about losing Magsafe in the newest MBP, but being able to
charge via any USB port has been amazing.

Even using an iPad charger is good enough for travel a lot of the time. Sure
it'll still discharge while in use, but it effectively doubles the battery
life of my MBP when its plugged into it, and I don't have to carry another
charger with me.

Also cables are dirt cheap, and I don't have to worry about anything fraying
and having to spend $88 for a replacement.

~~~
sithadmin
An issue I've had with my Macbook is that after charging from a non-Apple
USB-C power source, the battery life on the system drops through the floor,
especially when the system is in sleep state.

Before charging with a non-Apple USB-C source? Starting with a full battery,
the system can sleep for at least a week without running the battery
completely down.

After charging with a non-Apple USB-C source? Starting with a full battery,
the system makes it for 1-2 days sleeping before the battery is totally
discharged.

I can restore this to the original state with a PRAM + SMC reset, but that's a
pretty big annoyance. And I've tested with a completely clean system without
any 3rd party software at all in order to validate this pattern. Something is
definitely screwy about charging a Macbook with a non-OEM USB-C power source.

~~~
chaostheory
What brand is your USB-C power source? I've been using a Dell USB-C docking
station for a few months now and I don't have this problem with my new
Macbook.

~~~
sithadmin
I've tried a bunch. Anker (AC and battery packs), Aukey, Lenovo, Google (both
for Nexus portables and Pixel devices), and Finsix Dart.

~~~
chaostheory
This is what works for me [https://amazon.com/Dell-Dock-WD15-Adapter-
Type-C/dp/B01C8PHW...](https://amazon.com/Dell-Dock-WD15-Adapter-
Type-C/dp/B01C8PHWQY/)

------
exhilaration
Even for older Android devices like my Nexus 9, or wireless headphones, I'm
now only buying USB-C wall adapters and using them with USB-C to Micro USB
cables (like this
[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WJSPW8Q](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WJSPW8Q)).
If you have an older wall charger that dies consider spending a few extra
bucks and moving to USB-C, it'll futureproof your purchase.

~~~
Someone1234
USB-C has so many compatibility problems (and safety issues) I don't
legitimately believe we buy today will be futureproof. Buying anything USB-C
today is a minefield. At the very least you'll want to check that Google
engineer's spreadsheet but even that only assures safety, not future
proofness.

I don't think we'll see the USB-C connector change again soon, but everything
else about the standard seems somewhat in flux. There's already competing
standards for fast charging over USB-C. Once Apple hits the market with a
USB-C iPhone, that's going to tip the bucket over.

~~~
ardit33
Did you read the article? They said they had major problems last year, but now
things are getting much better.

See chart:
[http://core0.staticworld.net/images/article/2017/02/usbcchar...](http://core0.staticworld.net/images/article/2017/02/usbccharging_state_2017-100709054-orig.jpg)

~~~
peterwwillis
That article doesn't really mean anything. It's just a test of some laptops
and their adapters, which is a small subset of the world of charged/charging
devices.

There are at least 10 different official USB power specs, the latest being
from last year, called "USB Power Delivery revision 2.0 version 1.2". Each
spec may have multiple revisions, and versions of revisions, and each revision
version may have up to 6 power profiles. There are more unofficial specs that
are hacked by vendors. Fast charging has even more variations and
incompatibilities. And then some ports get some other standard tacked onto it,
which may have their own incompatible power spec.

We keep getting new specs and new devices with new uses. Laptop vendors can
only push out new hardware supporting new specs after a lot of R&D, and at
considerable new cost. Because of this, in order to support some new feature
without as much time and money spent making it compatible, it is vendor locked
so it doesn't catch on fire. We saw the same thing with wifi.

So are things getting better? Yes, we finally have support for enough of the
baseline standard so at least most _new_ things will charge now. But will they
all continue to work compatibly in the future? Probably not as long as vendors
continue to make their own power adapters.

------
chrisseaton
> Chromebook Pixel and Apple’s original 12-inch MacBook had no issues working
> with each others’ chargers, but HP, Dell, and Razer all gave us fits

This is why people pay the Apple tax (although Google does just as well). Why
are the other manufacturers so incompetent?

(This was last year's tests though, this year's look better across all
manufacturers).

~~~
bobbyi_settv
We can debate why people pay the "Apple tax" (ignorance, fashion, the fact
that they once made very good hardware), but it _certainly_ isn't because they
have the best track record for working with third party peripherals like
chargers.

Have you ever tried to charge an Apple phone or tablet with a charger for a
non Apple phone?

~~~
scblock
Yes. It works fine.

~~~
PhasmaFelis
I wouldn't say "fine." It works, but it's slow. The original USB standard only
provided for half an amp of power, much less than modern phones and tablets
need. There's a global standard for high-power USB charging, and another
standard used only by Apple, so Apple devices are stuck with the default 0.5
amp when using a standard charger, and vice versa.

------
101km
I have a Macbook and this incredibly tiny Nonda USB-C $10 adapter:
[https://www.amazon.com/nonda-Adapter-Smallest-Aluminum-
Indic...](https://www.amazon.com/nonda-Adapter-Smallest-Aluminum-
Indicator/dp/B015Z7XE0A)

It is much smaller than the Apple dongle and allows you to carry just the
Macbook charger and a standard Micro USB cable to charge older cellphones and
the kindle.

I did have one die on me after about a year of abuse and immediately
repurchased it. Hopefully it will last long enough for me to upgrade my
phone/kindle/smart-card-reader. Anker batteries also support USB C and happily
charge the Macbook, they also make nice braided cables.

Next up would be next-gen tiny chargers like this (65W):
[http://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2017/2/10/14581300/fi...](http://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2017/2/10/14581300/finsix-
dart-usb-c-laptop-wall-charger)

Unfortunately that specific one has a proprietary connector on one end but
probably the next version will be fully standard. One tiny charger, one high
quality cable, for all your devices. We're almost there.

------
pasbesoin
What's the expected (specs, and real life) lifespan of these connectors? (How
many typical connection/disconnection pairs?) I know that was an issue with
earlier generation USB connectors, but I'm skeptical that C has achieved
desired robustness.

I'm not talking about abuse, just expected use. Though if particular
vulnerabilities to abuse or whatnot are showing up, that would be of concern.

~~~
MagnumOpus
> I know that was an issue with earlier generation USB connectors

Standard big USB plugs are supposed to have a design life of 1,500 plugging
cycles - though I've never had one die, and never heard of any die.

Mini-USB are designed for 5,000 cycles, Micro-USB have a design life of
10,000. Ditto, only ever breaks if you try to bend and snap it off
deliberately.

USB-C is also supposed to be able to last 10,000 cycles (which ought to be
enough as a minimum spec - plugging in thrice a day for a decade).

~~~
xyzzy_plugh
> Ditto, only ever breaks if you try to bend and snap it off deliberately.

No way. I've had many Micro-USB cables die because the connector gets bent.
Trying to plug in devices in the dark or without being able to tell which way
the cable is facing, not to mention the tension put on the connector when your
device is in a bag or something, means the design is not very reliable in
general.

My USB-C cables _feel_ much sturdier, but we'll see.

------
paradite
Not even close. Tons of peripherals are still being actively manufactured in
older usb interfaces. It was pretty ironic to be buying futuristic Bluetooth
headphones with old usb ports.

I recently compiled all my usb devices and the result is depressing:

[https://github.com/paradite/my-usb-
life/blob/master/README.m...](https://github.com/paradite/my-usb-
life/blob/master/README.md)

------
peterwwillis
This page explains why the Spectre x2 (and I thought the x360 too? but maybe
not) is locked to a proprietary charger, while the Elite x2 isn't
[https://www.tapatalk.com/topic/69523-34990](https://www.tapatalk.com/topic/69523-34990)

I have a phone with a USB-C port, but when it came to buying a laptop, ended
up skipping the USB-C port. For the same specs, a laptop with USB-C 3.1+Power
Delivery is almost twice the price. Acer's budget line include USB-C, but not
necessarily USB 3.1 or power delivery (so basically it's just a more
cumbersome usb 3.0).

------
post_break
My phone is usb c. My laptop is usb c. GoPro is usb c. It's slowly happening,
if only Apple would ditch lightning but that's not going to happen. Hell I'll
cheer if they adopt QI because it will spread like wild fire.

~~~
spullara
I am hoping that they ditch in the iPhone 8. It really doesn't make sense to
use lightning anymore.

~~~
derefr
An upward-pointed male Lightning connector can be used directly as a
freestanding charging dock to "hold up" devices, with no other support,
because it's just a piece of solid metal. Docks are important! (At least, in
Apple's opinion. Probably in large part due to their stores, where people are
constantly picking devices up and then plopping them back, roughly, onto their
docks.)

~~~
pitaj
And USB-C can't?

~~~
derefr
Nah, the USB-C male connector is a hollow sheath of aluminum, and there's no
rule stopping anyone from making that sheath as thin and non-load-bearing as
possible. And while there are minimum shear force requirements for the female
end of the connector (and thus the reinforcement of the housing around said
connector), there's no guideline in the USB-C spec about how much _torque_ the
device itself needs to be able to sustain when _held up by_ the connector. (So
the USB-C slot in your Android phone might do okay at holding onto a USB-C
"plug dock", but over the long term, that may gradually pull the housing
itself out of your phone, or bend your phone, or poke a hole in the battery
inside, etc.)

Meanwhile, the Lightning+MFI specs put required tolerances on all of these
factors. It's not just about the connector; it's about what having the
connector guarantees about the device. _That 's_ why Apple will never replace
Lightning: it's there to indicate that a device or cable or dock compliant
with it won't wear out any other device or cable or dock compliant with it.

And the interesting thing is, the design of the connectors _forces the hand_
of at least the knock-off cable manufacturers, into obeying those tolerances.
Even if you don't bother to get an MFI license, just making your Lightning
cable's male end _fit_ female Lightning connectors means making it
structurally-sound—since the male connector is just made out of thick
aluminum, and aluminum is already the cheapest metal you can get, and it also
needs to serve as a grounding pin as well so you can't just replace it with
e.g. plastic. So a bad Lightning cable is never going to break your phone
_physically_.

Will a bad Lightning cable be able to break your phone _electrically_?
Probably not; AFAIK, the the device-side board around the female connector is
required, according to MFI, to detect the negotiated-current signal using an
optoisolator before switching on the current path to the rest of the device.
So you actually can't make a "Lightning killer" cable the way you can make a
"USB killer" cable.

------
cbr
I've been pretty happy with an Anker 60W for charging my 15" MBP; it doesn't
charge as fast as the stock charger, but it's good enough and it's $40
shipped: amazon.com/Anker-Premium-Charger-PowerPort-Delivery/dp/B01D8C6ULO

~~~
TheSpiceIsLife
Does charging a modern LiPo battery slowly result in extended battery life?

I've thought it would be good if there was a charge-mode selector of some
description for when your laptop is low but you know you won't need a full
charged battery until tomorrow. Or if you could tell the battery to stop
charging at a particular capacity, say by intentionally shifting the 0% and
100% battery levels.

~~~
lorenzhs
ThinkPads allow you to set the charging limits, e.g. "Charge up to 90% but
don't start charging if above 80%". Works on Linux, too (e.g. using tlp, which
also has a "fully charge it this one time" command when you need it)

~~~
TheSpiceIsLife
I'm on my third ThinkPad. I wasn't aware of that, I'll look in to it.

------
agiamas
but who cares when 99% of people at work, in conferences and cafes have Apple
Macbook (Pro)?

~~~
et2o
You may live in a bubble

------
notadoc
Dongles, a dream come true.

Maybe in another 5, 10 years.

------
agumonkey
Can't wait for USB 4 support on my eSDV

