Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by sbuk 1735 days ago
What is proprietary about Apples chargers? They sell USB-A and USB-C wall warts, and their devices happily charge on non-Apple chargers. Their laptop chargers are USB-C and have been for some time. I charge my MBP from a Lenovo power brick. The only proprietary part is the lightning connector.
2 comments

> What is proprietary about Apples chargers? > The only proprietary part is the lightning connector.

> I charge my MBP from a Lenovo power brick

Way to avoid the issue at hand, can you charge your iPhone using your Android charger/cable?

Laptop chargers aren't the problem, phone chargers are. As you saw, USB-C solved the problems for laptops, it's about time we solve it for phones too.

To answer the question, with a usb-c/micro usb cable? No, obviously not. With a Google/Samsung/Anker manufactured wall-wart? Yes! Android "chargers" aren't a thing that I'm aware of with USB-C, just with micro usb, which would be pointless, because the proposed law would make those redundant anyway.

When was the last charger sold with a built in cable? And honestly, why is carrying 2 cables such a hardship? I agree that USB-C would be more convenient, but the bluster that is made every time this "issue" comes up really is over the top. Look at it this way; the argument goes that having Lightning cables produces e-waste. Changing to USB-C will render existing Lighting cables useless, thereby producing significantly more e-waste! At this stage both arguments are redundant.

As to being labelled a 'troll'; the OP made a factually incorrect statement. I questioned, genuinely, other than the cable, what was proprietary about wall-warts and charging bricks currently made by Apple?

You can certainly charge an iPhone using an android charger.
We're talking with no adapters here, as in you have a single plain usb-c charger for all your phones.
Not if the cable is built into the power adapter. But if the power adapter just has a USB-C port, then you can charge it using the cable that comes in the iphone box.
Why feed the trolls? It's plainly obvious to everyone here that "charge X with Y" doesn't by default include special adapters or connectors.
Not really. The biggest claim is that this measure will reduce e-waste, but that’s a red-herring since the e-waste is in the charger not the cable, and chargers are already interchangeable.
stop being pedantic