Europe Charger Law

In this article, Nathaniel will talk about the decision made in Europe to have one charger for everything.

One charger to rule them all

By Nathaniel Lee

Europeans are making efforts to reduce e-waste. The European Parliament website states that "By the end of 2024, all mobile phones, tablets and cameras sold in the EU will have to be equipped with a USB Type-C charging port. From spring 2026, the obligation will extend to laptops." This means that, from then on, USB Type-C will be the only charger sold in the European Union, or EU.

The government of the United Kingdom, the only country that has left the EU, informed the British Broadcasting Corporation, or BBC, "...it was not 'currently considering' replicating the EU requirement regarding the adoption of a universal charging cable..." The European Parliament gave phone manufacturers until Dec. 28, 2024 to adopt the USB Type-C charger. Apple has already announced that the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus will use the USB Type-C charger.

Photo Credit: Business Insider

Photo Credit: Apple

Due to the new law, phone manufacturers need to change how their products are charged. On the Apple website, it is said that "The new USB-C connector lets you charge your Mac or iPad with the same cable you use to charge iPhone 15." Now, iPhones are switching to USB Type-C instead of the classic Lightning charger in accordance with the law. After the deadline, no electronic devices using a charger other than the USB Type-C will be sold in the European Union.

While this is currently only in place in the EU, it stands to reason that it will affect everyone else. If electronics manufacturers are switching to the USB Type-C charger, then people in other countries will end up using the same charger. Does this mean that someday the USB Type-C will be the only charger? Keep an eye on various news sources to find out.

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