Universal Cell Phone Chargers Never Coming
I have a number of businesses that have been buying and selling cellphones, laptops, and other electronics for a number of years. During that time I must have thrown away a few thousand obsolete, incompatible, and mismatched chargers because all the manufacturers just cannot get together and decide on one standard, Universal charger.
Back in April 2006, a few months after I first started blogging, I wrote a rant complaining about all the mismatched chargers out there.
Then in 2009 my heart jumped when I came across this article promising an end to the panoply of charging devices:
CNET, 17 Feb 2009, Universal cell phone chargers coming soon
On Tuesday, the GSMA trade association announced at its 2009 Mobile World Congress here that it has brokered a deal with the world's leading handset makers to come up with a standard for charging cell phones.
I waited, and waited, and waited. While I waited, I dumped hundreds of useless, old chargers that didn't fit the new phones.
Two years later, my heart fluttered anew:
IEC - Newslog, 1 Feb 2011, One size-fits-all mobile phone charger: IEC publishes first globally relevant standard
IEC, the international standards and conformity assessment body for all fields of electrotechnology, announces today the publication of the first globally relevant universal phone charger standard for data-enabled mobile telephones.
...
The new IEC International Standard comprises input from all relevant sources, ... also based on specifications by more than a dozen phone makers. Those include Apple, Nokia, Research in Motion, Emblaze Mobile, Huawei Technologies, LGE, Motorola Mobility, NEC, Qualcomm, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, TCT Mobile (ALCATEL), Texas Instruments and Atmel, all of which have signed an MoU with the European Commission.
I waited. While I waited cellphone users the world over dumped tens of thousands of tons of unusable chargers.
Three years passed. Then in 2014 (my heart no longer fluttered):
Technology Personalized, 14 Mar 2014, Europe to Have One Charger for All Mobile Phones, Global Standard Next?
Back in December, last year, we told you that a universal laptop charger standard was in the cards for this year and now we’re hearing reports that the European Union wants to cut down electronic clutter by obliging OEMs to adopt an universal charger for mobile phones and tablets, as well. This way, you won’t have to ditch your previous charger whenever you buy a new one.
In all of America our 110 volt 3-prong electric plugs look like this:
Thank God that when I buy a lamp I don't need to also buy a special electric plug to make it work, nor do I need to install an outlet specifically for that lamp. When I buy a toaster, all my previous extension cords do not need to be thrown out. But buy any company's cellphone and you have to go out and buy a whole new set of chargers for your home, car, or office. Want a different manufacturer's smartphone? All your present chargers are crap.
When will this madness end?
