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by ziml77 53 days ago
Ah that's a fun misuse of USB ports. The companies will often even dodge issues with the USB-IF by labeling the ports as Type C and letting the customer's mind fill in the word USB.

I wish these devices would just use barrel jacks, labeled with the voltage and polarity. But these manufacturers know that the USB-C port weighs into buying decisions (and they know that most people have zero clue about the difference between a physical port and the electrical/protocol specs).
3 comments
SoftTalker 53 days ago
I hate barrel jacks, it seems that every single time I encounter one it's different from any adaptor I have. Size, voltage, and polarity can all differ. People got sick of having 10 differnet power adatpters to charge stuff. Hence the demand for "single connector" which seems to have converged on the USB-C form factor.
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ziml77 53 days ago
Right, but if it's not actually USB-C, at best you're looking at the device not working when plugged into a proper USB-C power supply. At worst you're facing fried electronics.
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SoftTalker 53 days ago
Agreed that would be like wiring a standard North American household wall outlet with 240VAC. Technically possible, but will probably fry anything not expecting it.
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ssl-3 53 days ago
I came across a group of racks in the IT room in a (US) factory once that had 208v on their standard NEMA 5-15R sockets.

Their global-market IT stuff didn't care at all. But some of the US-market audio stuff I was integrating came with old-school linear power supplies, and those items cared a great deal.

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SoftTalker 52 days ago
Have run into that exact thing also, not that the sockets were 5-15R but IEC C13 in a rack CDU. But someone had some adapter pigtails from C14 to a standard NEMA socket, of course that doesn't change the voltage at all. Hilarity ensued.
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progman32 52 days ago
My aftermarket android auto display uses the type c connector for power input - wired directly to raw vehicle power. It will not run on 5v. It doesn't negotiate pd either. It just expects around 13 volts right on the power pins, and the supplied power cable does exactly that. It's portable too, which means that some poor person plugged their cable into their phone and blew it up.
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flemhans 53 days ago
Or just include a $0.03 pd negotiator in the circuit
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