The European Commission announced today, Wednesday, that it is working on a law to create a universal charging cable for mobile phones, tablets, and other electronic devices. The goal of this long-anticipated move is to avoid the immense electronic waste caused by families needing to have dozens of cables.
The market has undergone a massive change over the past decade, and now only three types of connectors out of the numerous ones used a decade ago still exist: "Micro-USB," the newer "USB-C," and Apple's thinner "Lightning" connectors.
The European Parliament called on the Commission to introduce unified charging technology in early 2020, although this issue has been on the radar of European institutions for a long time.
In 2004, 14 mobile phone manufacturers, including Apple, agreed to a unified standard for power supply units in a voluntary commitment brokered under pressure from the Commission.
Since then, consumers have been waiting in vain for a standardized plug.
This proposal is bad news for Apple, which wishes to retain its current Lightning connector found in all "iPhone" models and some "iPad" devices. Apple claims that stopping the mandatory use of the Lightning connector would result in a massive amount of additional electronic waste, which contradicts the overall goal of the proposal.
