GigaOM » micro-usb

Apple relents, and an unplugged Kickstarter is back on

Kevin C. Tofel — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 16:45:29 +0000

Days after a Kickstarter project was cancelled due to Apple’s rules regarding its Lightning adapter, the project is back on track. On Thursday of last week, the successfully funded effort for the POP charger was effectively shut down because Apple didn’t want its new charger to be integrated in any device that also used other types of chargers. In an email to project backers — I was one of the many — one of the project’s founders, Jamie Siminoff, shared the good news:

As you know on Thursday we sent you an update that because of Apple’s rules around Lightning we would be canceling POP. The story got A LOT of news and reactions, way more than we could have ever imagined. In fact it became such big news that 24 hours after we posted Apple changed their guidelines for Lightning.

It was an incredible turn of events for us. We never could have imagined that we would be able to change Apple’s rules.

Based on Apple’s change we can make POP the way we had promised and the project is back on. We will not be processing refunds and are going full speed ahead to produce and deliver the product to you ASAP.

POP was always meant for multiple devices and is designed with Apple’s 30-pin interface as well as micro-USB ports. Inside the POP is a large battery, which is used to recharge tablets and phones a number of times before the unit itself needs to be recharged. Several charging cables enable the POP to recharge several devices at once.

I never quite understood why Apple’s guidelines wouldn’t allow for its new Lightning adapter to be used in a device that also has other charging or data interfaces. It felt like a heavy-handed move without any physical or technical reasons behind it.

Regardless of whether this was a strategic business decision initially, or simply some type of administrative oversight, it’s good to see Apple change the guideline. Not only will the 1,000 POP backers be happy, but consumers for future products that use multiple charging or data interfaces will be as well.

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One mobile device charger that actually rules them all

Darrell Etherington — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 14:56:44 +0000

I live in a constant nightmare of wrangling cables. So any time someone suggests a solution that might cut down on the number of cables I have to deal with on any given day, my ears perk up. That was the case with Innergie’s new Magic Cable Duo and Trio, announced by the company on Tuesday.

The Magic Cable Duo and Trio are two- and three-headed cables, respectively, that work with any standard USB charging block to provide power to your mobile Apple devices, and plenty more besides. They achieve this by partnering an Apple dock connector with a Micro USB cable tip, in the case of the Duo, and both a Micro and Mini USB connector in the case of the Magic Cable Trio.

Unlike other clumsy solutions I’ve seen, these cable ends aren’t arranged in parallel, sprouting off from a single source in an unwieldy bouquet. Instead, they are arranged in serial, with larger connectors popping down over smaller ones, or pulling up and off yet remaining attached, so they can be easily folded out of the way. It’s a little tricky to explain, but the picture should say it all.

The unique configuration means you won’t have to go hunting through drawers to find the right charger for your Kindle, your BlackBerry, your iPad, or any conceivable combination of modern mobile devices, really. Considering how fast Micro USB has become a widely accepted standard, you can probably satisfy most of your mobile needs with just the Duo. One Duo and one dual USB charging block should actually cover all of my current mobile device needs, in fact, especially since with 15W output, the USB adapter does full-speed iPad charging.

The Innergie Magic Cable Duo sells in packs with either its 15W dual USB adapter ($39.99), or its 10W car charger ($34.99), or both ($49.99), and the cables sell alone for $24.99 for the Duo and $19.99 for the Trio. Not a bad deal for stocking stuffers, considering how many iPads and iPhones will be under trees this year.

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Nice micro USB adapter, Apple. Now sell it everywhere.

Darrell Etherington — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 14:53:31 +0000

Apple snuck in another new product Tuesday, but it isn’t nearly as flashy as anything else it unveiled. The new Apple iPhone Micro USB Adapter is a small add-on that plugs into any iPhone (except for the orignal version) via the dock connector and allows for charging and syncing using a micro USB cable.

The adapter has so far only shown up in Apple Stores from EU-member countries, since it’s clearly designed to bring Apple into compliance with recently passed EU standards for common cell phone charger standards (via TUAW). It retails for around €9 (roughly $12 USD) and ships separately from the iPhone. While it’s a bit disappointing that Apple didn’t just package the adapter with the iPhone 4S in the box, it’s more disappointing that Apple isn’t just making this available everywhere.

Even as a North American iPhone user, I’d love to have the option to pick one of these up. More and more devices are shipping with micro USB cables, including Amazon’s Kindle, many Bluetooth headsets and other electronic devices. Micro USB cables are also relatively easy to get your hands on, whereas dock connector to USB cables, especially off-brand, can be harder to find, especially when not shopping online.

A micro USB adapter would make keeping iOS devices charged a much simpler affair, especially for gadget fans with a considerable device collection. Ideally, Apple would replace the dock connector entirely with a standard connection interface, but that would mean rendering a whole lot of accessories useless, and I doubt Apple’s planning to do that anytime soon.

Apple might be offering the micro USB adapter just to comply with EU regulations, but while it’s doing that, it might as well offer them over here, too. There might be financial reasons that prevent Apple from doing so, but I’d buy one, and I’m sure there are plenty of other multi-device owners who would, too.

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Here Come the Universal Smartphone Chargers!

Kevin C. Tofel — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 19:45:04 +0000

A year-and-a-half after an EU commission requested research into a universal phone charging standard, various telecommunications bodies around the globe have approved micro USB as the universal standard to charge data-enabled mobile phones. It’s good news, but even better is widespread support from handset makers all around the globe, which should reduce the number of redundant charging solutions for consumers and, according to the GSM Association, will eliminate 51,000 tons of such duplicate chargers from being manufactured on a yearly basis.

Earlier this month, two European standardization bodies, CEN-CENELEC and ETSI, approved standards for a universal phone charger, and 14 manufacturers signed an agreement to honor the plan, including: Apple, Emblaze Mobile, Huawei Technologies, LGE, Motorola, NEC, Nokia, Qualcomm, Research in Motion, Samsung, SonyEricsson, TCT Mobile, Texas Instruments and Atmel. Based on the agreement, new micro USB chargers that can work for multiple devices should begin to appear early this year, although there’s room to compromise: Companies can use proprietary plugs as long as they include a universal adaptor.

The EU commission hopes the standard will gain support outside of its home region and the odds of that happening increase with each new standards body that adopts the universal cell phone charging approach. Just today, the IEC, the international standards and conformity assessment body for all fields of electrotechnology, adopted the universal standard as well. Aside from the benefit of producing fewer charging solutions, the IEC notes that both handset manufacturers and consumers will see cost benefits because devices won’t need to ship with a charger. Essentially, when a new handset is purchased, the universal charger from a prior phone can be used.

As positive as the news is for smartphones, it raises an interesting question for the next new device class: tablets. While currently available tablets use a standard USB charger, I’ve already noticed that the Galaxy Tab re-charges much faster when using the included power brick as opposed to charging it from a computer. This is because the Tab’s power brick supplies 2 Amps of current, while most USB computer ports only provide 500 to 900 mA. My fear is that other tablets follow suit and we end up repeating the lengthy process of establishing a charging standard for tablets.

For now, however, data-enabled cell phones far outsell tablets: IDC estimates that 401.4 million mobile phones were sold in 2010, while roughly 17 million tablets were purchased last year. So a universal phone charger offers much more bang for buck at the moment, and for next few years as well.

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EU Set to See Single Charging Interface for All Cell Phones, Apple On Board

Darrell Etherington — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 21:00:35 +0000

In a surprising move, Apple has signed on with a handful of other major mobile device manufacturers to end the madness of proprietary charging interfaces and agreed to one standard for all, according to Reuters. That’s in Europe, anyway, although there’s hope that the agreement could result in more cross-compatibility on this side of the Atlantic, too.

Along with Apple, five other cell phone manufacturers have agreed to the deal put forward by the European Commission, which is not binding and instead depends on voluntary cooperation from the private sector. The other five companies are Sony Ericsson, Nokia, Research In Motion, Motorola and Samsung, which means that Apple basically had to toe the line or risk looking like the villain in a field of heroes. Hopefully no one breaks rank, since that could result in the agreement becoming insubstantial.

The agreed-upon standard is micro-USB, which is already fairly ubiquitous, so it will be a huge bonus for consumers if this goes through as planned. I’ve got about four or five micro-USB cables lying around within eyeshot, in fact. Devices from companies that agree to the standard will have to ship with a charger that matches the specifications put forward by the commission, though eventually the two will be allowed to be sold separately. The time frame for implementation of the new standard is said to be within 3-4 years, and the hope is that by adopting a single charger, people will have less cause to throw out their old ones when they purchase a new phone.

For Apple, the agreement will lead to the inclusion of an adapter rather than the abandonment of the dock connector standard they’ve so consistently championed. An Apple spokesperson said in a statement following the deal’s announcement that it’ll ship future iPhones with a dock-connectable micro-USB adapter, which is completely in compliance with the specifics of the new agreement.

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