I'm a USB-C Maximalist

radial_symmetry

So many kids toys use custom brick chargers, especially remote control cars. I refuse to buy anything that isn't USB-C, I'm not keeping track of all of those.

snickmy

Any recommendation for electric shavers that are USB-c ?

eigencoder

I don't like USB-C because they all look the same on the outside, but they're not all the same on the inside. Especially my cheap consumer electronics. Sometimes they will charge, sometimes they won't charge, but all the cables look the same, and you don't tend to know in advance.

flowerthoughts

I'm the same. Though I still think they could have made USB much neater as a protocol, USB-C now does everything I need for goto-connectivity. I recently looked at the connector and reflected on how insanely small it is. It's no wonder it took decades to get to this point, and it's a very neat physical design at a great price. 16 pins and 10A in that little thing. Amazing.

theandrewbailey

> No. One charger. One cable. One standard. USB-C being "one standard" is a bit of a stretch. It is the Unintuitive Serial Bus, after all. Most will charge. Some faster than others. Some will supply data with 2.0 speeds, others 3.0, yet others will do more. Some will only work with the other devices they came with. Few cables will tell you which is which, unless you have a tester.

cgyvbunji

> What are the chances that I could find the exact charger needed for a GameBoy Colour? Your chance is 100% because the charger for GBC is 2 AA batteries ;)

pluralmonad

I would like the USB-C connector was more durable. I've literally never killed a USB-A connector, but enough lateral force and USB-C just breaks. I suppose it was made so small due to mobile devices, which is understandable, but came with tradeoffs.

chaosharmonic

I too am a USB-C maximalist, but with a handful of differences from OP: - You lose me at "toothbrush." I don't want personal care items that have internal batteries at all , because they'll eventually die on me while the device itself (brush heads notwithstanding) is otherwise perfectly functional. I'd much rather keep rechargeable AA(A)s on hand for that kind of stuff. (I still haven't found a good electric razor for this purpose, though, and have actually just gone back to manual for the foreseeable future.) - I don't think I could live off just one charging port, but would rather just ditch USB-A entirely. - I'm using wired earbuds, with a standard headphone jack, but with the number of full-sized cans that are using USB-C in some way it baffles me that there aren't more or them (or any, that I've been able to find) that also support using it for audio input, so you you can play them while charging.

zfnmxt

> A Pixel 8 Pro (running GrapheneOS) > Tracker What if someone steals my bag? Hopefully the PebbleBee "Find My" device will help me recover it. In your review (from last year) of the tracker, you wrote it doesn't work with Graphene. [1] From the linked issue, looks like there's partial support now. [2] What's the experience like now on Graphene? Is it good enough for tracking a checked bag or similar? [1] https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/01/review-pebblebee-clip-unive... [2] https://github.com/GrapheneOS/os-issue-tracker/issues/4079

cestith

I agree with using a single ubiquitous power standard for small electronics and electrics. That’s almost what USB-C is these days. We need better labelling of cable capacities when there are 20w and 120w cables that at a glance look the same. I was afraid this article was going to say one connector for everything when it said maximalist. If it had said to kill eSATA, SPF+, RJ-45, DisplayPort, HDMI, 3.5mm audio, and a bunch of other ports it would have been far more controversial. I’ve seen people saying we don’t need card formats anymore because everything can just be an external USB-C flash drive. I’m glad this article wasn’t that maximalist.

PunchyHamster

> What are the chances that I could find the exact charger needed for a GameBoy Colour? Someone's trying to talk about stuff they never used, experienced or googled ever. But yeah game boy advance cable is $2.5 one day delivery here in Poland

jaimehrubiks

We'll we ever see usbc in TVs?

cryo32

I am a USB-C maximalist too. Until I find a cable that doesn't do what it looks like it is supposed to do. Then I suffer from USB-C depression.

jpalawaga

I agree. I'm looking at replacing my braun series 7 shaver, and I'd love if the replacement product had usb-c. what really gets me though is products that support usb-c and then don't support PD, so you end up charging at a glacial pace. The most upsetting incidence of this I've seen is a powerbank charging via usb-c but not supporting PD. So slow!

vvpan

I think one thing that we have come to think as electronic consumers, or just consumers in general, is to expect the absolute best modern version of everything (plug, AI model, car...). I think it is pure conditioning and we forgot the simplicity and convenience of things just working even with apparent downsides relative to acme version. Could USB-C be better? Probably. Is just settling on a standard so you don't have to think about it preferable? I think so. Consider USB-C standardization as an expression of a specific system of values.

PStamatiou

I draw the line at cheap unbranded rechargeable toothbrush. I’d be too worried about fires with cheap cells. I’m happy to pay the premium for top brands for anything with lithium-ion batteries.

j16sdiz

> Using my USB-C cable tester, I can be sure all the cables I have can deliver the amount of power my devices need. Wait until they discover off brand usb cable with incorrect e-marker.

rwmj

Recently bought a guitar amp which came with a cursed USB-C cable: http://oirase.annexia.org/tmp/IMG_20260709_123740.jpg

mikepurvis

This year I grudgingly switched from an iPhone 13 Mini to a Pixel 10, largely to get the full integrated Pebble experience, but having USB-C has been a surprising and delightful upgrade to my home/travel experience. For sources, I basically have an INUI battery bank and a 100W wall adapter, then everything is a USB-C sink: Lenovo X1, Pixel 10, Nintendo Switch, Sennheiser headphones

fl0ki

I'm still driven absolutely mad by how many devices are being released in 2026 that refuse to charge if they're connected to a port that negotiates USB Power Delivery. They don't fall back to 5V, they just don't charge at all. Devices like this usually come with an A-to-C cable in the box and that's a warning sign, but an even more twisted version of this is when they come with a C-to-C cable and a Type C charger that does not support PD. That's the only combination they tested, and that's your problem now. I now carry enough adapter cables that I can deliberately take PD out of the equation just to work around these devices.