We have been talking about it for years, but it looks like it will be solved by the European Union! There will really be one charger for all smartphones.
If you forget your charger, your friend has another smartphone. So you can’t recharge. Could that be smarter? It’s been years. Everyone has also been talking about it for years, namely the European Union’s long-term plan to harmonize chargers for smartphones and other devices. This will reportedly be formally proposed. And this despite criticism from Apple.
One charger
Apple has been trying to stop it for a long time. They do not consider it necessary to make this a legal requirement. The company stopped supplying a power adapter with the iPhone in 2020, but they are against it. This is because Apple uses its own proprietary Lightning connector for iPhones, and the EU is more likely to recommend the USB-C or USB 2.0 micro-B, commonly used by other vendors.
Still, the European Union (EU) is in the process of drafting legislation on a common charger standard. Indeed, the EU continues to maintain that such a standard is not only convenient for users, but will also reduce waste.
According to multiple sources, legislation will be proposed in September this year. Further details are not yet clear, but the proposals are likely to follow the EU’s previous recommendations. And in 2019, those include suggestions for different ways to arrive at a common charger. A manufacturer may need to use one connector to make its charger compatible with others.
Long-term
It now seems to be finally taking off. The EU’s pursuit of a common charger began about 13 years ago. At a given moment to have companies, including Apple, signed a voluntary memorandum of understanding. With this, they have agreed to work on harmonizing chargers. In the meantime, nothing has come of this. And that is why the EU is now planning to realize this with legislation.
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