I feel similarly about the EU forcing companies to use usb-C as a charging port. I love usb-C, and it is basically a requirement for any electronic I buy. But forcing everyone to use it until the end of time is ridiculous. Imagine if they had done this a few years ago, and the micro-B connector was mandated. We would never have gotten usb-C.
> Imagine if they had done this a few years ago, and the micro-B connector was mandated. We would never have gotten usb-C.
They did, you don't have to imagine it.
In 2009 they've signed a memorandum of understanding with 14 phone companies, which is why micro-B was the standard before type C. Apple was within those that signed it, and used a loophole in the text to ship a lightning-to-micro-B adapter instead.
Around 2016 they've realised micro-B was outdated and notified the signatories that they should switch to type C.
A Memorandum of Understanding is a far cry from the legislation they are trying to push through. A MoU is not legally binding. From your link:
> The recent 582-40 parliamentary vote in favor of a common charging standard came about because the European Commission's previous approach of merely "encouraging" tech companies to develop a standardized solution "fell short of the co-legislators' objectives," according to a briefing on the European Parliament website.
The first phones with USB-C came out in 2015. If this MoU was instead binding legislation, those USB-C phones never would not have been allowed.
Almost as if they've seen a shortcoming with signing just a memorandum of understanding and took it a step further this time around.
> To address the challenges for consumers as well as the environment, the Commission has supported a common charging solution for mobile phones and similar electronic devices since 2009. The Commission first facilitated a voluntary agreement by the industry in 2009 that resulted in the adoption of the first Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and led to reducing the number of existing charging solutions for mobile phones on the market from 30 to 3. Following the Memorandum's expiration in 2014, a new proposal by industry presented in March 2018 was not considered satisfactory in delivering a common charging solution or meeting the need for improved consumer convenience and e-waste reduction.
I can't speak on behalf of anyone but myself, but when that goal is less e-waste, their goal sure does align with mine, even if it may take me 20 extra minutes to charge my devices when something better than type C comes around.
If I can charge my laptop with it, it's surely good enough for charging devices with a much smaller battery at least for the next decade or so.
Two drawers full of useless USB cables next to me imply so, and that's next to having 6 chargers and cables pretty much everywhere you can sit in my apartment.
But I wouldn't call it significant, I would call it completely unnecessary. I'd really rather buy one when I need it than get one with every single gadget I buy, which is precisely what the EU is trying to achieve.
Oh I'd totally rather just buy one as well, but let's be honest this is a first world problem around convenience, it's not going to put any significant dent in the global e-waste problem.
All the Apple chargers are compatible, and have been for quite a long time. They’ve had a standard USB-A port since at least 2004, and they now have a standard USB-C port.
The only reason to get a new charger is if you need more power, but that’s exactly the same situation as with Android. Where did you get the idea that you had to get new chargers?
Sorry. I don't have time to reply to this comment because I need to find my Motorola charger. The thin long barrel jack, not the older thick short barrel jack one...
> Imagine if they had done this a few years ago, and the micro-B connector was mandated. We would never have gotten usb-C.
But they didn't. These people aren't that dumb, they told companies to settle on a standard, and now that we have a good standard that basically everyone follows they want to make a law to ensure everybody follows it. Bringing up a scenario where they did the right thing and argue "just imagine if they didn't do the right thing here, that would be a problem!" isn't a strong argument.
> What happens when we want better features as new tech is invented?
The new tech would prove itself, somehow, and then the standard changed over after there's evidence that the new tech improves more than the cost of the change!
How would a new tech prove itself if manufacturers aren’t allowed to use it in their product? If customers aren’t allowed to try something new, they are never going to be able to determine if customers prefer it.
The only way to ‘prove’ that a tech is better than another is by letting the market decide.
If basically everyone follows, then why require it and shut off or slow down future innovation? Regulations like this are nearly always obsolete by the time they are implemented.
> If basically everyone follows, then why require it and shut off or slow down future innovation? Regulations like this are nearly always obsolete by the time they are implemented.
Apple doesn't follow it. Also the reason companies settled was that EU threated them with regulations, if they didn't follow through when some companies (Apple) misbehaves it would mean that such threats would lose teeth and wont solve future problems. So if anything the problem here isn't EU, the reason that law is coming is Apple. Best possible scenario is that companies dynamically create new standards and fall inline, but Apple refuses to play along so regulations are necessary.
They did follow it. The initial agreement was about chargers, not cables, and you can charge any iPhone off any usb charger. Now, we can discuss the spirit versus the letter, but they signed the agreement and followed it.
The sim/operator is irrelevant for emergency calls, and the motivation behind keeping 2G is better signal reach for emergency calls. So I guess even if you wouldn't be able to call your friends from the top of the mountain, you could successfully dial or sms to 112 (if there's a distant mast somewhere in sight with a signal to camp on).
Not sure how it is in the EU specifically but many new networks around the world do not have 2G (Jio in India is (in)famously 4G-only, Tele2 in Moscow is 3G+4G)
I don't understand the 'never gotten usb-C' part. Modern phones have more than enough space for two connectors. So usb-C next to a micro-B charging port is no problem.
After a while, almost all phone also have usb-C, most people like usb-C, so the industry can petition to replace micro-B with usb-C.
Are there any examples where the EU mandates legacy stuff that is no longer useful, but still has to be kept anyway?
Ports actually do take up valuable real estate inside a phone. There are downsides to making phones have two USB ports. More ports on the bottom means less space for the second speaker and microphone, and makes waterproofing more difficult. I don't think any manufacturer would actually do it outside devices designed for special use cases.
Is that really better though? Phones would have to be manufactured with an unused port - and if you want to use all the functionality you’d need to buy another cable (yet more e-waste)
Not that I have ‘the answer’ just that it’s a hard problem.
I quickly glanced at a couple of the feedback documents they've got so far, and they seem to echo your concerns. We'll see if the parliament makes any changes.
On a slightly different angle, my frustration is that it's not done on a general standards or outcome based requirement. For example rather than dictating a specific thing or even standard like micro-USB, simply require, e.g., that 90% of all power cables must comply with an industry self-organized standard within 3 years of the final release and, e.g., that the largest firms must subsidize the compliance by the smallest firms in order to prevent gaming the system to drive the small companies out of business.
There is a rather significant and major issue that this change highlights; essentially all our politicians and bureaucrats see themselves as smart and wise enough to be central planners and masters of the universe … when the truth could not be farther from it.
That is a really, really obvious problem, so why do you think you are the first person on the planet who ever thought of it? And that nobody addressed it?
> But forcing everyone to use it until the end of time is ridiculous.
Correct, it is ridiculous you think anyone did that.
> Imagine if they had done this a few years ago, and the micro-B connector was mandated. We would never have gotten usb-C.
What makes you believe it's until the end of time? They did do it with micro USB also. From what I can see the mandate changes with the times, so if everything evolves I would assume that they'll update their requirements.
