As of: April 26, 2024 11:00 a.m
Many households collect charging cables for smartphones or tablets. From the end of 2024 there will only be one standard for technical devices. Laptops will follow from 2026.
Cell phones, tablets, headphones, laptops or even game consoles often need different charging cables – depending on the manufacturer. This will end in the future. After the Bundestag, the Bundesrat also approved the implementation of a corresponding EU directive, according to which uniform charging cables and plugs will become mandatory at the end of 2024. The standardization is intended to relieve the financial burden on consumers and help avoid electronic waste. With regard to smartphones, the iPhone company Apple in particular had long resisted a uniform solution in the EU with its in-house Lightning connector.
The regulation applies to small and medium-sized devices
The uniform standard will in future apply to all small and medium-sized devices that are rechargeable and portable. These include smartphones, tablets, digital cameras, headphones, headsets, portable loudspeakers, but also e-readers, keyboards and computer mice, navigation devices, smartwatches and game consoles.
The list of devices should be continuously reviewed and expanded – initially after three years, later every five years.
USB-C charging socket for laptops from 2026
The USB-C charging socket will be mandatory for the devices mentioned at the end of 2024. Manufacturers must then offer the USB-C charging socket on new devices. In the future, laptops must also be able to be charged via a USB-C socket. Because a longer transition period has been agreed for them until the requirements have to be implemented, this will only be the case from 2026.
USB-C has often been installed, but inconsistently
USB-C plugs cannot be inserted “upside down”.
Many devices now have a USB-C port. When it comes to smartphones, for example, there are models from Samsung, Huawei or Google. Apple’s iPhone 15 also came onto the market with a USB-C port. A number of notebooks already have a USB-C port, and Apple Macbooks have even had one for a long time. Some of the portable speakers are also equipped with USB-C.
The new EU requirements should apply to products that will be brought onto the market from the end of 2024. Previous devices do not have to meet the requirement. When buying new devices, consumers should therefore look closely at the respective model, because it can happen that USB-C is installed in one version but not in another. USB-C plugs can be recognized by the rounded sides and the open middle. This makes them twist-proof, which means that you always insert them the “right way up”.
Customers decide whether to purchase charging cables
In order to take advantage of the uniform standard and reduce electrical waste, consumers will in future be able to decide for themselves whether they want to buy a device with or without a charger or charging cable. Manufacturers are obliged to offer the respective device with and without a charging cable or to sell the charging cable separately. However, selling the device and charging cable separately is not initially required. The EU Commission wants to check whether this requirement should be added as a further obligation.
USB-C – one cable for everything
Faster data transfer than USB, fast charging times, charging current for smartphones, tablets and notebooks, anti-twist plug, transport of video and audio signals, USB data port, connection for mouse and keyboard, display port for external monitors, HDMI for TV sets
There will also be a standard for wireless charging
Charging without cables is becoming increasingly important. That’s why the EU Commission wants to develop technical specifications for a uniform standard for wireless chargers.
Further information
1 Min
From January, new electrical devices will only be available with a USB-C cable, the e-prescription will apply, and cannabis will be allowed from April. 1 min
2 Min
Every damn device you buy has its own charging cable, which is guaranteed not to fit another device you’ve already bought. 2 mins
This topic in the program:
NDR Info | March 14, 2024 | 10:13 p.m