In a world where every tech company is trying to lock us into their own ecosystem, Windows vs Mac, Android vs Apple, there is finally one thing we can all actually agree on: USB-C.
It sounds like a small thing, but if you’ve lived through the mess of charging standards we had growing up (yes, I am old, I know), you know what a relief this port is. For once, we have something that just works across every brand and platform. Sochna nahi padta hai!Tech… simplified.
I come from the time when literally every phone had its own unique charger. Sony had that wide comb-like connector. Ericsson was different (yes, I have used phones in the era when both were separate and yet one of my favourite ones that I have owned after the Nokia E90 Communicator was the Sony Ericsson P990i). Samsung had a wide pin layout. And Nokia had those chunky cylindrical pins, which they later shrunk down into the famous ‘patli-pin’ charger. Back in college, half of our daily conversations were just asking friends, “Bhai, patli-pin waala charger hai kya?” Whenever I travelled, I had to pack a separate pouch filled with 5 different adapters just to keep everything alive.
I still have the adapters!
Then we moved to Mini USB, USB-B, and Micro USB. It felt like progress, but Micro USB was fragile, slow, and just as I had made peace with it, from the hard disk to the rechargeable flashlights and mobile fans, we could slowly see USB-C coming up. And even when USB-C finally showed up, we still had to deal with Apple’s Lightning cable sticking around for years on iPhones and iPads.
Today, almost every device I use on a daily basis is on USB-C. In fact, I’m actively counting the ones that aren’t and looking to replace them. The problem is some are just too expensive to swap right now. I still have 2 older iPads and an iPhone Pro on Lightning. Replacing all three just to get rid of a cable would easily cost me more than a Lakh, so I’m just waiting it out until it actually makes sense to upgrade.
In the meantime, I did get rid of the Apple Magic Mouse with the oddly placed Lightning port and upgraded my AirPods to a USB-C variant.
Then there are the smaller devices. Things like my TPMS, a handheld retro gaming console, and an old DJI Tello drone are still stuck on Micro-USB.
Last count, I have less than 10 devices using something apart from USB-C. (Yes, finally found a fan, and some rechargeable lights, including batteries, that run on USB-C!)
Now, whenever I buy anything new, even a basic feature phone, my absolute first filter is checking whether it has USB-C. I’m currently using a Nokia 235 4G as a tertiary phone. I actually really wanted to buy the 2660 Flip or 2720 Flip, but skipped them purely because they still came with Micro-USB. HMD has recently refreshed the Nokia 2660 with USB-C in global markets, so I am hoping for them that they will launch the same in India…soon!
The only annoying catch with USB-C? Not all ports are created equal.
If you buy smaller gadgets like torches, lasers, or cheap desk fans, you’ll find they often refuse to charge with your fast phone or laptop charger. That’s because cheap manufacturers skip basic resistor standards on the port, so smart GaN chargers don’t even realise a device is plugged in. I actually had to read up a bit on USB-C power delivery standards just to figure this out (Linking a really technical post on that here for anyone interested).
Quirks aside, the convenience today is unbelievable. I remember when products like the StuffCool Quad cable or the Portronics 4-in-1 cable were my absolute favourite travel accessories because I needed so many heads. Now? I travel with just one 100W GaN charger and two Type-C cables max.
That one charger handles my laptop, phone, power bank, camera, external SSDs, and card readers. Even Apple pushing MagSafe on newer MacBooks hasn’t ruined this; they kept Type-C charging open as an option (thank the tech moguls and gods for small mercies), so I just leave the MagSafe cable plugged in at my clinic cabin desk and stick to USB-C everywhere else.
It’s just nice to see tech simplify for once instead of getting more fragmented. Let’s hope things stay this uniform, and tech continues to bring things together rather than dividing us further.
For quite some time, I was a little miffed about the lack of a 3.5 mm jack on most phones, which continues to be present on the Mac, some iPads, and some Android tablets and also Nokia feature phones! Over the past few years, these have also migrated to USB-C. And yet, not all USB-C earphones are equal! My Samsung AKG ones don’t work on the Mac, and the Apple USB-C pair does not play nicely with my Samsung phone. Some day… maybe! Maybe!
Maybe just give the EU the Nobel Peace Prize for forcing Apple to actually save the ecology and unifying us all with one cable? (sarcasm!)
Please… let’s hope they don’t ruin this for another decade at least!
