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One port to rule them all! Starting today, USB-C reigns in Europe!

28.12.2024 08:34
From December 28, 2024, all new mobile devices sold in the European Union - such as tablets and mobile phones, but also digital cameras - will have to be able to charge via a USB Type C plug.
USB Type C plug
USB Type C plugProject Kei / Wikimedia Commons | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Usb_type-c_plug_socket.jpg

Manufacturers have been preparing for this change for months, and now it has finally come into force - introducing a single standard for charging most mobile devices throughout the European Union.

Digital Poland Association's president, Michał Kanownik, told Polish Radio that the new regulations will provide greater convenience for consumers. He pointed out that no longer we'll be forced to take two or three cables with us, because now there will be a single, universal one.

In addition, the new regulations are of great importance for environmental protection. The introduction of a single charging port will reduce the production of electronic waste. And this is vital - because chargers thrown away as trash create as much as 11,000 tons of waste in the European Union every year!

At the same time, people who use older devices do not have to worry about the new regulations. Michał Kanownik explained that adapters allowing you to charge through another port will definitely be available on the market until - most likely - the USB-C takes over for good in a decade or so.

This is not the end of the changes too. All portable computers will soon also have to apply the USB C standard as well. In their case, however, the rules are only scheduled to come into effect from April 28, 2026.

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Source: IAR, PAP