The European Union has decided to require consumer electronics to use USB-C as a unified charging interface in 2024
The European Parliament confirmed earlier that it will be mandatory before the end of 2024 that consumer electronics including iPhones and AirPods must use USB-C as a universal charging interface design.
“Lightning cable”by robpegoraro is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
According to the European Parliament, this adjustment will enable all consumer electronic products such as mobile phones, tablets, and cameras sold in the EU to be charged through the USB-C interface. This adjustment will further extend to larger consumer electronics products such as laptops from the spring of 2026.
In the view of the European Parliament, this adjustment will help simplify the convenience of consumer electronic products, while reducing the proportion of the electronic waste generated, while increasing the service life of consumer electronic products.
The European Parliament also requires that all consumer electronic products that operate through wired charging and operate with an electrical power of less than 100W must be equipped with a USB-C charging interface, and support fast charging and the same charging efficiency that allows users to recharge most consumer electronic products with the same charger.
In addition, the European Parliament has also passed a decree that requires manufacturers of consumer electronics products to clearly label, so that consumers can easily know which charging specifications can be used. Smaller devices such as smart watches, health bracelets, and sports tracking devices are currently exempted, but they are expected to use the same charging interface design as technology advances in the future.
After this vote, the European Commission will formulate relevant bills before the end of 2024, and will further add the wireless charging design scheme to make it a market standard specification to avoid fragmentation of such charging methods due to differences in specifications.
The current relevant decree will come into force 20 days after the official EU announcement and will require manufacturers to comply with the specifications for consumer electronics products launched after the next 24 months. The consumer electronics products launched before this do not need to be readjusted and can continue to be sold in the market.
